Altering a Vega

pilothouse king said:

Even more if you don't purchase a boat at all.

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Don't pay extra if you're not going to use it. Nevertheless, in the used market, I doubt one pays a premium for a boat with a flying bridge as they are very common.

On William we have a large deck for a 32 footer . I haven't measured it yet but maybe
12 x 12 . About nine or so feet of it is covered . It has vberth with wet heat and wheel house has bench seat ,sink and fridge no stove . I would like to extend the cabin with a couple steps down aft the wheel house and put in real galley and more seating . The wife says no way ! We bought the boat because we love the covered deck space . I'm not real sure I could pull it off anyway and make it look right . It would probably turn out looking like a camper .No more redesigning boats she says . The next one will have it ,if there is a next one . We do all our cooking outside anyway . The PO has a Lord Nelson 37 Tug. He said he missed the large covered deck space he had with William and now he has to go up a ladder and add canvas to get some space and shade . More time on the boat will help us get used to the tight living qtrs . In the south most time on boat is outside.

Mark,
What is the boat in the lower picture? She has much of what I dislike in a boat but I really like that boat. She's beautiful. I even like the railings.

Is the Californian FlyWright's? I like the cabin on the Cal and especially the back side window. The visual balance it creates is really good IMO.

But I like William better than all those ice cream boats!

Eric, that's FlyWright in the top photo and Pineapple Girl below. Photos taken on the same day, up the San Joaquin River on the way to the Asparagus Festival in Stockton.

manyboats said:

But I like William better than all those ice cream boats!

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It's a cutie, and has no flying bridge.

Al, get me off this rocking flying bridge (anchored off of Alcatraz Island):



PS -- Mine's a death grip.

Many thoughtful comments above, thank you to everyone. I appreciate it.

Of course the main reason for only changing the pilothouse windshield is, "That's what the client asked for." And the client is right. In a perfect world no project would be limited by time or budget constraints, but the reality is that these factors are the major issues. This owner is doing his own mods, over a winter in his backyard. I suspect the wheelhouse project will end up being at least a full winter's work. Enlarging the saloon will be another project for some other winter.

Below are some images from the Vega sales info. Price as of April, 1965 was $38,500 FOB Costa Mesa, trucking, launching, and commissioning was an extra $300. The optional lower control station was $575.00 and was installed on the port side. This is why the starboard side door disappeared from my sketch, it's over the galley counter.

Assuming that the owner goes with something similar to the B or C options, would that entail a raised floor in the newly created pilot house area? And a door on the port side? I ask as your comments suggest that the mods might only involve the windshield.
Very interesting project, and if it goes ahead hopefully you or the owner will bless us with photos after completion

Conrad said:

Assuming that the owner goes with something similar to the B or C options, would that entail a raised floor in the newly created pilot house area? And a door on the port side? I ask as your comments suggest that the mods might only involve the windshield.

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Garden's original arrangement shows a double width helm seat on the port side, aft of the lower control station. I would suggest building a 18" high box on the cabin sole, only to port of the forward cabin access, to make a raised helm position. This would leave the galley and forward cabin access intact. And it will create a 5' high wall (the helm seat back) at the forward end of the saloon settee. The wall can be used to back a nice fireplace, or one of those monster TV panels. Downside is it will visually close up the deckhouse space.....there's always something.......

I would encourage the port side helm door, even if it's short (Due to side deck height). The problem here is not much space to slide a door aft and bulwarks outboard will limit swing.....maybe a drop-board with swinging upper portion.

Sounds like a good plan Tad. The fireplace would be a nice touch if the saloon was extended...(sorry.)

Raised helm seat

Raised floor helm:

+1.

Without the pilothouse, rear windows will complete a 360-degree view.

Brooksie That's exactly what I'd like for Willy but on the stbd side. But thanks to the short boat and the side decks it can't be pulled off in the traditional way. I hate my L setee. Of course I could put in a haffa (2 seat) dinette. I have several odd solutions in mind but lots of "to do" stuff higher on the list. Thanks for sharing your pics as I was wondering what your boat looked like inside. I REALLY like your helm.

As for visibility aft I just look around in any direction I want.

Janet,
You see I need to underexpose my pic (on the post) so my subject can be seen in the post. With a normal exposure everything outside the windows was white (burned out) outside the windows in the pic.

After viewing Tad's sketches, I couldn't help messing around with this prospective Vega RPH. I tried to do it with Eric's boat long ago but couldn't get it right. Makes one appreciate the work of the Architects, no? Anyway, here's some examples. All have the extended salon back to the side access doors. The RPH seems kind of naked without a raised house forward, then adding a faux window behind the pilothouse door, then the stateroom ports to match the one at the rear....then a slightly forward angled windshield....I dunno. Then there's the mast to consider which should probably be in dead center of the fly-bridge seats.

Looking good Larry! My two cents worth would be to cut the flybridge down to what appears to be an accent stripe, and extend the cockpit cover back to the transom (to quote Tad I'm getting greedy). I'd keep the slanted windows though. The vertical ones don't work to my eye.

manyboats said:

Brooksie That's exactly what I'd like for Willy but on the stbd side. But thanks to the short boat and the side decks it can't be pulled off in the traditional way. I hate my L setee. Of course I could put in a haffa (2 seat) dinette. I have several odd solutions in mind but lots of "to do" stuff higher on the list. Thanks for sharing your pics as I was wondering what your boat looked like inside. I REALLY like your helm.

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Thanks, my reason for changing everything on the port side was 1) to raise the helm seat and put drawers under it. 2) to get rid of the pilot berth / movable table setup and put in a face to face dinette so I could properly play cards (and eat too I guess). I made the moldings so they would match what was already in the boat. It overhangs the engine hatch opening 4" to give width so 2 are comfortable on each side. These pics may show the overhang better.

Sorry Larry I don't like any of them very much.

Try a straight line from the top of the back of fwd trunk cabin to the top of the windshield. Getting rid of that knuckle would help I think.

I disagree w Conrad and think the short aft cockpit cover looks better than one all the way back. If it were my boat I'd want it all the way though in our climate. Fishermen would like it short too. But for looks short looks better IMO.

Part of the problem (as I see it IMO) is that the fwd trunk cabin isn't attractive. One of the great things about the W30 is the subtle elements of the shape of her trunk cabin. I love Nordic Tugs but the fwd trunk cabin on them looks like it was designed on a lunch break by roofers or plumbers ... no offense to roofers and plumbers. Fortunately it dosn't visually stick out. Don't make sense though. Right aft of the ugly fore cabin on the NT is the most beautiful wheelhouse in the business. But comparatively speaking re appearance the Willard's fore cabin is a grand work of art. See in the picture I think the fact that the crown of the forecabin roof is not the same as the deck. So the cabin corners aren't as high above the deck as the center. A very small thing but I think little subtle things like this playsa big role in what makes a boat beautiful.

Brooksie you did a wonderful job. Is the dinette big enough? I see the seat backs are vertical like in a Mexican restaurant. Did you do that to save space? I'd like to know how wide that dinette is if you think it's big enough. I mean back to back w/o the cushions.

As my old boss used to say, "Great design comes down to fractions of an inch."

It's not easy. Note that my efforts only raised the pilothouse area by half the window height, rather than the whole window height as you've done. Also I put the little break in under the windshield to break up that surface.

It is interesting to see those though, thanks.

manyboats said:

Brooksie you did a wonderful job. Is the dinette big enough? I see the seat backs are vertical like in a Mexican restaurant. Did you do that to save space? I'd like to know how wide that dinette is if you think it's big enough. I mean back to back w/o the cushions.

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No there was plenty of space to do it, there is even a 4 drawer cabinet aft of it, with graduated size drawers to allow for the slant in the bulkhead for the ladder. The seatbacks ARE slanted I guess the pics don't show it. I made a dinette with straight backs once b/4 and wouldnt do it again, never seemed right even with triangle cushions.

healhustler said:

After viewing Tad's sketches, I couldn't help messing around with this prospective Vega RPH.

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Some of your creations look much like this boat:
http://www.yachtworld.com/boats/2009/Guiles-Pilothouse-2711120/

The pics from this listing makes it look like it's the interior layout of this boat that needs work.

Animal, you're right...and that's a pretty spiffy little trawler there.

OK, here's some changes, deck extension over cockpit, half-window height of pilothouse, but chopping down the fly-bridge might smooth the lines out, but it's barely waste high now without digging a well into the pilothouse roof. Tad's right about the small changes. I must have subtly changed the roof line a dozen times and each change was such a different effect. Raising the pilot house just a half window sure did clean up the impression with the conventional forward trunk cabin.

Those last two look juuuuust right! Too bad those of us who think so would need to fork out for a custom job to snag one!

Larry,
Proportions are a biggie. It looks so so much better cut down. I like them both now.

Animal,
Isatt really only 28 feet!

Hard to believe.

I thought so too when I first saw the listing.... Looks much larger on the outside until you see the inside. Looks like an interesting boat for sure... And seems to be in good condition.

I wonder if it looks bigger because it has has large boat features but with the scale maintained evenly throuout. Some smaller boats look small because they try to keep some features full scale while shrinking other features... While this one seems to shrink everything evenly. For example, the pilothouse looks like most pilot houses, but when you see the interior pics, it's more apparent the pilot house is actually quite small.

manyboats said:

Larry,
Proportions are a biggie. It looks so so much better cut down. I like them both now.

Animal,
Isatt really only 28 feet!

Hard to believe.

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Designed, built by Peter Guiles.
Heading Home and Wrapping Up | Waggoner Cruising Guide

Looks much better Larry! Somehow the flybridge looks much more in place and the pilothouse fits nicely.

Extending the cover over the pilothouse finishes it off - sorry Eric!

The truncated deck overhang on our NT42 allows activities such as shown in the photo, but otherwise I'd much rather have the full cover for our rain prone cruising area.

Greetings. This is a Willard Vega 36 alteration based upon Buehler's diesel duck idea.
The raised aft has only 4'-10" hdrm unless you choose the dotted lines version and decide to have a deckhouse. One other thing is it would have an additional 22" of hdrm in the engine compartment.

Not very pretty but I like it a lot. Too many straight lines.

Wonderfull offshore boat layout IMO. But one's view out of the boat looks very limited. I love the dinette. Too many L settees now.
What is the big tank fwd? could it make the boat bow heavy? I'd steer way clear of that possibility. Could fuel be outboard in the engine compartment? Of course there's water too. Water could more gracefully be in several small tanks.
I'd prefer more of a sedan like Brooksie's boat.
Are you trying to build a passagemaker?

Somewhere.... I think I read that forward leaning windows were to reduce reflection of interior light sources into helmsmans' eyes.