I got my truck back from the transmission shop. The shifting problem it was having appears to have been resolved, but I couldn’t tell for sure because before I got to where the roads are smooth the engine threw the same crankshaft position sensor code as before. GAAH! I’m really getting sick of not having my truck and making repeat trips to and from the shop.
That said, I am pleased with the way the pantry on the Roamer is turning out.
All panels got three coats of Minwax Spar Urethane clear
Top and bottom panels
Insulating the back-side of all the panels
A buddy of mine sold his wooden Pacemaker 43 last year and got a 41′ Marinette aluminum boat. There’s very little insulation in the Marinette, and he said it’s been a rough winter. They can’t get enough power in the boat to keep it warm. That’s bad news for him, but it makes me more and more convinced that insulating the back-side of all cabinet and wall panels that face the hull envelope is worth the effort. It takes an extra day to cut the Buffalo Batt insulation, wet out the panels with epoxy, press the insulation in place, and wait for the epoxy to cure. But it makes a big difference.
Once the insulation is in place, I press it together with whatever heavy stuff is laying around
Wood flour-thickened epoxy is a strong glue for the complex panels
This top panel will box in the pump-out plumbing
Last prep step: build out the floor at the step to the V-berth
Next day, the epoxy is cured and the panels are finally ready to install
Gluing and screwing the framing
After wetting out the cleat framing with epoxy, I apply wood flour-thickened epoxy, then screw each cleat in place. Then the panel edges and the corresponding attachment points get the same treatment.
Galley Pantry #1 is glued, screwed, and clamped in place
The back panel is 1/8″ cabinet-grade, rotary cut mahogany plywood. It’s pretty stuff, but it doesn’t stay flat on its own. At the top, there’s a 1″ x 1″ mahogany cleat that the top panel will butt up against, and that cleat keeps the top edge of the panel flat. But I had to glue and clamp another cleat onto the back-side at the bottom to keep that edge flat, too. It looks like that will work out fine.
Next up in our 1969 Chris Craft Roamer 46 Refit: Installing More Pantry Panels
1969chriscraftroamer46 