The V-berth paneling is just about done. I have to say, it turned out pretty darned nice.
Marking off the plywood panels for the ‘shelf’ around the V-berth
Measure the angle from the shelf to the curvy walls
I could rely on the bevel and epoxy to hold up the back edge of the shelf panel where it will meet the curved side wall. But I decided to make angled cleats just to make the joint more robust.
Cleat angles look about right
They’ll get glued and screwed on here
Mark the cleat locations
Then cut the Buffalo Batt insulation for the under-side
Insulation is epoxied in place…they’re ready to install!
Cleats are glued and screwed in place
Next, I wetted out all of the joints with epoxy and started installing panels.
Epoxy thickened with wood flour makes strong glue
Base panels are installed
Next, I saturated the base panel top surfaces and the under-side of the pretty ribbon stripe mahogany 1/4″ plywood with epoxy. Then I mixed up some wood flour-thickened epoxy, brushed on a thin coat, and installed the mahogany panels one by one.
Pressing the mahogany panel in place
I wonder sometimes how professionals would deal with this sort of situation. My solution is to put shrink wrap tape on solid blocks of wood, and use that to press the veneer panel to the base. Epoxy doesn’t stick well to the tape, so if I miss some epoxy when I’m wiping the panel with alcohol after I put it in place, the solid block of wood pops free very easily the next day. Then I use scraps of 1/8″ and 1/4″ plywood as springs between the overhead deck framing and the solid blocks that press the mahogany panel onto the base.
Next day, the blocks and springs come off…
On to the next panel…
One more to go
Looks good!
AC vent opening turned out nicely
A straight router cut trims the opening
I used Sikaflex 291LOT for sealant and stainless screws installed from underneath to attach the MSI transition box to the opening in the plywood.
Last panel gets pressed in place
Next day, off come the spring panels and blocks
Not bad joinery for a weekend woodworker!
Done!
I’ll eventually put a fiddle molding on the edge of the shelf, but the big panel work is finally done in the V-berth.
Next up in our 1969 Chris Craft Roamer 46 Refit: Final Install of the V-Berth Forward Bunk Cabinet
1969chriscraftroamer46 
Hello there.
We own a 60 ft Roamer and are having difficulty with the air conditioner. Have tried most obvious things, but wondering if you may have any ideas. The water starts flowing then trickles down to nothing. Any ideas?
Vanessa and mark davis
Sent from my iPhone
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Hi fellow Roamer owner!
Sorry for the delay getting back to you. I’ve been swamped here.
It sounds like maybe your raw water pump is cavitating. If air somehow got into the lines, it can cause the pump to have insufficient draw. The impeller ends up whipping up bubbles instead of pushing water. I have that problem with my 1968 2. The AC works fine at the dock, but if we take the boat out and get on plane it pushes air into the AC strainer. When we get back to the dock, the AC won’t work!
You might try burping the system by removing the output hose from the pump and see if water flows out. You might also remove the input hose from one of your AC units and turn on the water pump…that should push out air that’s in the system, and your bilge pump should have no problem keeping up with a brief blast. If the water flow still stops even with an open system, you’ve got a pump or maybe blocked strainer problem. Have you checked the strainer for plastic bags and other material that can move around, letting water flow sometimes but then blocking it?
Let me know how it goes!
Cheers,
Q
Beautiful work… just amazing. If she hasn’t been there in a while, it’s time to have the missus come see that the interior will be gorgeous,
Thanks Doug! Word has it the missus is coming this weekend. Time will tell…
Cheers,
Q