Suggestions for Cuddy Organization

[whitejw1967]

Does anyone know of photos or information on ways to arrange the cuddy of a DS II? I'd ideally like to have some organization system (maybe lightweight but waterproof plastic bins or drawers for storing stuff (so that it doesn't get all tangled up. Any suggestions?

John

[Roger]

These are typically bought at your local walmart or home reno store. They slot and stack together. Some have a locking mechanism that straps a few of the together from behind. At any rate check your local area for these cheapies. The fronts are slanted so that stuff does not easily roll out when your boat heels. I bungeed a set of these to one side of the cuddy.

I also use a plastic tool box for my bosun box. It can slide around the cuddy to its hears desire or you can bungee it to the mast.

The other items I have used for storage are small equipment nets (hammocks) that can be strung along side the inside gunwale, well off the cudy sole. These are good for soft items like towels, jackets etc that you might want to keep dry.

Dry bags are also an option, but I only used these in my canoeing days.

[mistermoon]

Any suggestions for creating tie down points inside the cuddy? I don't want to drill a lot holes in there if I don't have to.

[ChrisB]

I don't blame you for not wanting to drill holes. I would recommend a nylon (or some other plastic material) eye strap (West Marine item number 403925) and epoxy the eye strap to the inside of the cuddy roof or inside of the hull. Use Marine Tex, JB Weld or other similar two part epoxy. You may need to hold them in place with duct tape until the epoxy sets. Then, you can use them as lash points.

For organization, I use two large plastic tote bins (no lids) that fit on either side of the mast. In them I store spare PFD's, anchor, my tool box, lunch, and warm clothing while underway. They are not secured to the hull or the mast.

[jeadstx]

I've added "harness staples" to my boat in a few places to secure things both inside and outside of the cuddy cabin. One staple I put just below the Daysailer emblem is backed up with a staple on the inside for straping in things. The outside staple is for attachment of a fender. I plan to sail the Texas 200 and I'm going to need to strap supllies/camping stuff/etc. in to keep the weight from shifting so as to keep the boat balanced with the extra weight (also to secure in case of a capsize). I also have a net attached inside for some things. My small toolbox and my first aid kit are held in place by velcro. I managed to "screw up" sailing on Sunday and capsized my boat, first time since I started sailing in 1969. Interesting experience, and other than 60 degree water all went well in righting the boat with some help of a passer by who jumped in the water to assist. It floated high on it's side, but old holes from where hardware was once attached did start to fill the mast with water (did not turn turtle), something soon to be fixed. Everything stayed in the cuddy, despite not having my cuddy doors on at the time. After the experience tho, I would recommend sailing with the cuddy doors in place if you have much inside. Also the cuddy doors would probably have kept some of the water out of the cuddy.

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[Peterw11]

I've been kicking around some extra storage ideas for my DS1.

Elastic netting stretched along the inside of the cuddy roof, to hold lighter items like PFD's, boom tent, and the rolled up jib, when not in use. I think most auto accessory places have them.

Also, a couple of plastic organizer boxes that I can attach to the sides of the CB trunk to hold snacks, bottles, cell phone, sunglasses etc. to be easily accessible while underway. West Marine has 'em for cheap money.

[talbot]

I noticed the aluminum sail track fittings, such as the one that holds the downhaul cleat on some Daysailers. For light use (i.e., securing things inside the cuddy) you can make one of these easily by just unstepping the mast tabernacle and slipping a short oak dowel up into the track. Then mount an eye strap to the dowel. (I soaked the dowel in teak oil and drilled it for the eye strap before installing it.) Besides not requiring any holes in boat or mast, the eye strap can be positioned at any height inside the cuddy by loosening and retightening the screws that hold it to the dowel. (You can buy these fittings from Defender.com with aluminum dowels for more serious use.)