Hello Mike and Ashley
Some years ago I did convert the table on our 26C to drop down so that we have a huge double bed in the salon. I do not have pics with me (we are sailing on a different kind of catboat now a few thousand miles south of home port). The legs on the table were sawn and hinged to kneel like a camel, which means that when dropped, the table goes forward by a distance equal to the lower half of the legs. The place to cut the legs took into account how wide the table leaves are, so that they can remain dropped, which puts the top of the table a tad higher than the settees. A thin plywood bridge spans and hooks over the fiddles on the settees, and the new infill cushions are about an inch thinner than those on the settees to create a flush mattress.
The table requires ‘spines’ to keep it solid when erected. A teak stick is inserted vertically on the centreline of each leg on the outer face, trapped with thru-bolts and butterfly nuts above and below the hinge joint. These prevent the hinges from folding and make it very strong when erected.
Both stbd and port settees already had swing out extensions which meet at the dropped table, and our boat came with infill cushions for the port settee. We made a template for the new foam cushions needed to complete the full mattress and had them cut to shape at a foam specialty shop (Comfort Foam in Dartmouth, NS).
Having the huge berth is a great amenity for Dawn and me, but there is some hassle in erecting and dismantling, and the parts and cushions take some storage space (most of the forward stbd locker in our case).
If I were to do it again I would do it differently, as I did more recently on our Niagara 35. In this boat I set it up so that the table leaves remain open (I made new table leaves to fit the gap between the settees). I attached a 1 x 1 hardwood cleat to the inboard face of each settee, and the leaves are supported by that when the table legs hinge down. As the table goes forward from its original position, a separate piece of plywood drops onto the aft portion of the cleats. All the horizontal surfaces match the settee tops, all the foam is the same thickness. This bed is absolutely huge. Fortunately this boat also has a warehouse/workshop cabin instead of a vee-berth so storage of the parts is no problem.
Sorry I don’t have pics with me to illustrate, but I hope this wordy description makes sense.
From Punta Gorda for a winter respite aboard Cat Breton,
Greg and Dawn Silver
Misty Cat 26C #121
St. Peter’s, Cape Breton
I am currently doing something similar on my 30C. I have removed the factory table and am installing a 3 stage gas assist pedestal that drops to below berth height (actually drops to 12 1/2") but goes as high as 28". I am making a new tabletop with leaves to replace the existing table. The existing tabletop won’t work because it has storage drawers in it. I could reuse the leaves, but they arborite and I’d rather have solid wood.
I have cut one (rhomboidal-shaped) piece of 5/8" plywood that will rest on the lower wooden ledge of the berth which will support the cushions. When not being used, this plywood fits under the cushions of my starboard quarter berth. When I need the extra berth, I will simply drop the tabletop to a level where it supports the plywood insert and use the back cushions from the salon to created the third berth. In the 30C this essentially becomes a king-sized bed.
For pictures and details check out my post in then Nonsuch Facebook group.
My 26U has a kneeling table which I have not yet tried to use. One lesson from it, though, is to think about the right height. The one on my boat is 22" high. All ergonomics books will tell you that a table should be between 27-30".
Two additional alternatives from historical records:
One is a take-apart design for the folding leaves by Tony Clark that I believe was published in a '92 Update (I found it while going through a pile of Updates that Phil LeVine had on his boat). This is what was on my previous boat, a 26C. By choosing the right height to cut off the legs, and sizing the two folding leaves appropriately, you could adapt this design to give you a drop-down.
The other can be found on the Nonsuch.org website under the “Members” tab. Select “Members Tips and Projects” and from there download “N30C Stowable Table”. This was done by Alan Stummer in October 2020. Measurements would have to be adapted for an N26.
If I remember correctly, while the holes are the same diameter there are different threads on the caps for the waste, water, and fuel fills.
I discovered that while replacing the neoprene gaskets.
You may have to replace the whole fitting because through about 1982 or 83, the standard thread size was 16 tpi (threads per inch) and diameter of the threaded opening of a 1.5" deck fill was 1.25". Today the standard diameter for the threaded opening in a 1.5" deck fill is still 1.25", but the threads are 11 tpi…f All NPTP.
You can get a tread measuring tool for a few bucks …
Hi,
Last year I was asking a similar question. I was looking for a spare cap to keep onboard in case one of my four caps fell overboard, but I never got any definitive answers from the INA group. I tried several different ones from local marine stores, but I never found one that was both the correct threaded diameter and/or thread count, and the head size that fit existing deck fitting. I finally found a black PVC(?) plumbing cap at Home Depot that will work temporarily in emergency when away from home port. I think when boats were built, the water/fuel/holding tank deck fittings came from a variety of suppliers, and there’s no brand name stamped on them to help. And suppliers are no longer in business? If you really need a cap, likely you’ll need to replace the whole unit, luckily to do this on a Nonsuch, access is much easier than many other boats. If you replace the whole unit, better buy a couple of spare caps at the same time.
If you do find a cap that fits, please share brand and size details with the rest of us.
Attached are my photos that may help:slightly_smiling_face:, or not!
Cheers,
Don
Breezin’ 1987 NS 30U #369
Vancouver, BC
Not to be picky, but shouldn’t this discussion about fill caps be on its own thread. When I need this info I will have a hard time finding it under “Salon Table …”? Is there a way to move this info?
Tim - you got the jump on me. I, too, feel that this thread on deck fill caps should, indeed, be seperate. I was quite surprised to see it pop up in “salon tables”.
I’ll blame COVID for this … Then again, maybe there is some kind of mystical connection between kneeling salon tables and deck fill caps. One never knows.
Fred,
That is a major topic shift for the thread. In the future it would be better to start a new thread for a new topic. It makes conducting future searches easier.
I have seen at least one 26C where there is a pull out extension on both the port and starboard sides. When they were both pulled out, they made one big berth. The standard 26C had a drop down back on the port side that revealed a storage area to take the extra cushions for the extension berth. With two extension berths you will have to find a storage area to keep the extra cushions when the area is not being used as a berth. The 26 with the two pull out berths did not have the cabin table installed. Folding tables were stored in the forward locker and brought out as needed. Most dining took place in the cockpit.
When we bought La Reina the cabin table had been removed by a previous own and was long gone. We bought two folding tables from Costco and store them in the forward locker by the mast. I pulled the legs off of one and made stretcher handles that allow the table to span the gap between the wheel and the back coaming. The other table can be used in the cockpit either as a dining table or as a lower coffee table. The tables can be brought out for dock parties. The legs operate like the legs on an ironing board. It should be possible to make similar legs for a cabin table that would allow you have a table that lowers down to form the base of a double berth. Another option would be to make a single wide leg for each end of the table. The leg would be hinged at the attachment point on the table and approximately in the middle of the table. You would then have a pin to hold the leg straight for use as a table. Pull the pin to let the legs fold out of the way and so the table could drop down to form the base of the bed. The table top could be shaped to fill the gap between the berths and would rest on cleats along the side of the settees.
We have found the ease of moving about down below without the table is wonderful and easily outweighs any loss of convenience of having the table. We have drop down counters on the forward and aft side of the galley to provide extra prep surfaces. We have a drop down table in the cockpit. Pretty much all dining takes place in the cockpit. The table on the stretcher is added when we have more than two for meals. If we ever feel the need we can pull out the folding table from the forward locker and use it in the saloon.
One large berth in the forward cabin area would require crawling in and out of the berth. It is way easier to be able to swing our legs off the side of the settee berths.
I can’t help you with the table there. We removed the table as soon as we got the boat, it was just always in the way. Our main eating and entertaining area is in the cockpit under the full enclosure. It can seat 8 up there and there is a cockpit table which swings up from the pedestal for 4 friendly people.
I agree with Greg though. The beds were always a problem. The cabin looked nice when the beds were slid in and the space was opened up but that meant the cushions had to be in two parts and I always hated sleeping on the lengthwise crack between these cushions. Now we have two twin foam mattresses from Ikea (each with one corner cut off, they are exactly the right length). Very nice to sleep on. There is a 8" gap between to shuffle forward. No table inside - there is a flat screen TV forward. We could change it back but the old cushions and table are never on the boat.
Based on Brian B’s approach on the 30 (and then went off on a tangent), I purchased a slab of finger jointed teak from Home Depot 39"x74"x1.5"…and cut it up based on the plan view below.
It features that fancy gas shocked telescoping pedestal that allows for a surface height of 14-30".
Ashley though up “ottoman mode” where you are watching TV, but want to put your feet up and still get through to the bow. “dining table mode” is where you can truly get 4 adult place settings for dinner with a little room left over to put the “turkey” down at the service end.. The original table fit 3 at best.
“day table mode” is the default setting 90% of the time. 8" of leg passage to the bow on each side. We opted for a larger table in this mode so you could do a lunch buffet with plates (as opposed to the 4" wide table it replaced). “full bed mode” converts the whole salon into a King+ size bed.
It utilizes a headboard and footboard, (cut from the same teak slab), along with the dropped table to create a bridge between the two salon benches. The headboard and footboard stow in the cabinet behind the port bench cushion.
It’s all still drinking teak oil like a drunken sailor, but when viewed with a fresh coat, it’s decadent.
So, there’s still the finishing, the removal of the old table, the creation of the memory-foam cushion to span the gap, and the install of the new table with supports beneath the sole.
Because that dining room/bed combo is not the best, we’re looking at a small table/workspace where the stove,/oven is that would swing around (like a kids school chair) to both serve as an additional kitchen prep table and as a workspace when sitting on the berth across. Anyone done anything similar or have ideas on adding that kind of space?
