Modifications--"OH MY"

I am the first one to argue changing anything from the original design is probably not the best thing to do. But---Our almost 30 year old IG 32 has been left in the dust by newer designs in the category of creature comforts.

I know she is at best a couples boat and there is only so much you can do with limited space.

Here is the issue, the vee berths are comfortable enough but cannot compare to regular house sized beds.

The separation offers some nightime challenges, and by day the area seems to become overflow storage. I thought of making a filler for the vee area, but unlike some boats the forward cabin door swings in and would not allow a full size filler.
So, take the door off and store it ashore? We like the option of closing this area if someone wants to sleep and someone else does not.
Besides with a filler in place we would have to climb almost 3 feet up and thru the open door to get in and out of bed. Not going to happen.

Of course, we could off load the old gal "Adagio" and get something with an aft cabin. But, I like the boat and selling is no fun.

Our solution of sorts, gives us a over size king berth 77 x 90+ inches!!
Takes only 5 minutes or less to set up!!
Keeps the forward cabin for storage, guests, or naps!!

Here it is in pictures. The plywood base is hinged and stores under one of the vee berth mattresses, or on top if we are using it daily. The rollout Ikea twin size mattress toppers , slide into bolsters and fit under the side decks at the aft end of the vee bunks.
At nite the door to the aft deck is only used an emergency exit. The side door is the main entrance during times the king bed is deployed.

This bed is huge and very comfy. I think we will keep her.

JohnP

Nice solution John.

We do have the "queen" size berth option in the forward cabin on our boat, which is very comfy EXCEPT its a bit challenging, but not too much so, to get in or out of.

What you did is sort of like what we did for the very occasional overnight guest, or guest couple. Rather than a filler piece of ply, we had a moveable folding leaf table made to replace the stock fixed position table that, when fully open and in its lowered position, spans from the port to stbd settee and acts like your filler piece/lowered table combo. When filled in with settee and flybridge cushions, and with an inflatable, almost queen size, mattress on top, it is very comfy and ingress/egress, as you stated, can be by the helm door.

One can certainly do a lot with these little IGs.

Dwhatty, I like your idea with the custom dining table. It is also amazing how they fit the queen berth in the newer models.

They are cool boats and look right!!

PS. The Admiral likes your Europa hardtop extended to the stern.

One thing solved another seed planted!!

John, You could replace the V-berth door with a fabric curtain, thought it won`t fix the 3ft step up. Our 36 has storage under the raised forward (only) berth, but we have lower step ups either side, due to the (part) "island" design.
The bed you created in the saloon looks king size, absolute luxury.
I know ideas differ,but you lose so much cockpit with an aft cabin. IG32s I`ve been on have excellent saloon design and cockpit area balance.
PeterB`s s/steel frame and canvas "Europa" style extension (see thread for extending a flybridge), should work on an IG, it gives everything except a hard walkable surface aft up top. BruceK

Bruce, I like the solid clunk the heavy wooden door makes. Someone once said yachts have doors and boats have curtains.

We do like the sedan style of our boat, and when we wrap up the king bed in the am we have our cosy salon back.

Your right it is an absolute luxury, and sometimes on a cruise that is exactly what we need.

JohnP

Hi John, yes, and thanks Bruce, I was going to suggest the same thing re the cockpit, but I must admit we have a similar bed issue to John, and the one thing that makes me a bit jealous when looking over bigger boats (such as I just did at the Sanctuary Cove Boat show just on Friday), is the island double or queen bed they all have these days, as we have Vee-berths as well. However, we put up with it because up to now, we don't want to have to muck around packing up a double in the saloon, and my wife likes to get up early and go read in the saloon so as to not wake me up. ( I mean really early). All the same, the port settee does pull out to make a quite generous queen size without even using the dining table. (it has alternating slats as the base and slides out and has detachable legs for the extension supports). So that might be something we should try. Up to now only guests have used that. Almost too simple really. However, if that is not the answer then there is the possibility of re-visiting the idea of front vee fill-in, but would end up with a rather large step up to get in and out, although the door would still be able to be shut, which is something. Seeing John's really wide and comfy bed there makes me think I might reconsider that vee fill-in when we get the new (thicker) mattresses, which would mean they would be proud of the timber edge surround. Then a suitable step should solve the getting in and out issue....maybe...? Of course I have thought of cutting the edging down, but then the mattresses would tend to slide off when the insert was not in, and they have a rather nice ornamental shape to them. Problems...problems...why is nothing easy...?...now where have I heard that before...oh yeah, that's right...I say it nearly every time I'm doing something on the boat. But it's all meant to be fun...right..?

Wow......you guys are sett'in me up to hate our V berth. All the way down to Wa I'm going to be thinking of you guys in your king berths. I really do'nt have an issue w our V berth but I did remove our head door in the fore cabin. Don't miss the heavy door and perhaps I have a mindset that life on the boat is life in the V berth and all is to be enjoyed. My initial response to this stuff was "this is way over the top" but if it's worth it to do the set-up dance then it's worth it. But when I'm ready for bed I'm almost always tired and just want to plop down and the set-up contemplated here would'nt work for me. It sounds a bit like setting up a tent for camping. Of course boating is only slightly different than camping and closing the gap between life at home and life on the boat is a bit like a desperate and doomed to fail project of making the boat like home w a marine view.....what happens if you succeed? Is the boating experience enhanced or is something lost. Iv'e heard all my life about how wonderful it is to sleep outdoors in a tent and how food cooked over a campfire is so wonderful. And then one might enjoy a camp fire when one chops their own wood more than otherwise because it feels good to work for your pleasures and comforts and I have a feeling this modification to John P's boat will work just great until it gets to be a drag to set it up every night. I just want a real dinette for Willy and we do'nt really have room for that.

But John I do'nt see any sins at all in your "tampering" w an existing plan or layout. And the feeling of success from creating a better one is great. I'd say full speed ahead and it sounds like you can go right back when (or if) you get tired of the set-up and you do'nt even need to concern yourself w resale value.

I have a feeling this modification to John P's boat will work just great until it gets to be a drag to set it up every night.

I am sure there will be times when we will not feel like setting up the king bed, and at that time the boat will function as usual.

But the option of having at home comfort once and a while on a small boat is a big plus to us.

The jury is out but for now the setup time seems worth it.

JohnP

manyboats said:

Wow......you guys are sett'in me up to hate our V berth. All the way down to Wa I'm going to be thinking of you guys in your king berths. I really do'nt have an issue w our V berth but I did remove our head door in the fore cabin. Don't miss the heavy door and perhaps I have a mindset that life on the boat is life in the V berth and all is to be enjoyed. My initial response to this stuff was "this is way over the top" but if it's worth it to do the set-up dance then it's worth it. But when I'm ready for bed I'm almost always tired and just want to plop down and the set-up contemplated here would'nt work for me. It sounds a bit like setting up a tent for camping. Of course boating is only slightly different than camping and closing the gap between life at home and life on the boat is a bit like a desperate and doomed to fail project of making the boat like home w a marine view.....what happens if you succeed? Is the boating experience enhanced or is something lost. Iv'e heard all my life about how wonderful it is to sleep outdoors in a tent and how food cooked over a campfire is so wonderful. And then one might enjoy a camp fire when one chops their own wood more than otherwise because it feels good to work for your pleasures and comforts and I have a feeling this modification to John P's boat will work just great until it gets to be a drag to set it up every night. I just want a real dinette for Willy and we do'nt really have room for that.

But John I do'nt see any sins at all in your "tampering" w an existing plan or layout. And the feeling of success from creating a better one is great. I'd say full speed ahead and it sounds like you can go right back when (or if) you get tired of the set-up and you do'nt even need to concern yourself w resale value.

Click to expand...

Some of us who have lived aboard for many years have tried from the beginning to make it more like home than "camping"...sure it's budget dependent...kinda like the difference between a tent and a million dollar bus conversion.

And I agree..unless you are on a couple week cruise for the year...thge only thing I want to do to climb into bed is turn down the covers and reverse the process in the morning...that is unless there's some OTHER reason to make the bed up....

JohnP said:

Bruce, I like the solid clunk the heavy wooden door makes. Someone once said yachts have doors and boats have curtains

JohnP

Click to expand...

Our forward sleeping cabin has neither door nor curtain; where does that leave us? Exposed I guess.But less exposed than hardy TF members enjoying nude cockpit showers in Alaska.
We have just the one (queen) sleeping cabin, apart from the convertible dinette(a double). Our little luxury is separate compartments for the head, and the shower. BruceK

While still posted in Berlin, my Admiral and I checked out the Greenline Hybrid 33' and were impressed by some of the space saving inovations, including a V-berth that slid together to give the option similar to a centerline queen. It would still permit leaving the door for privacy when someone wanted to snooze in one of the separated V-bunks. Here's the link to the pictures showing both positions.

Greenline 33: The 10 Meter Hybrid Motor Yacht « Superyacht News | Superyacht Design | OceanShaker.com

Mis-post see below..

Vee berths

What a brilliant idea for that front berth - vee or not to be vee - whichever you like - I like....hmmmmm....I wonder...