Interior drawings via GIMP

[CapnK]

Next, I did a series of tracings of lines inside of the boat to establish the major features. I made the black lines as a separate "layer", so that I could overlay them onto later drawing to check the accuracy of what I was doing. Note: This drawing is saved as a "transparent" .gif file. It shows only the lines I drew, and will allow the background of what it is placed on top of to show through (in this case, the background color of the Ariel Forum).

[CapnK]

Then I cleaned that drawing up. I removed some "artifacts" (odd bits and pieces), and some non-essential information. I also had drawn in my raised settee berths, and added a couple blue dashes to establish a centerline for a reference.

[CapnK]

After that, I just used straight thin black lines to establish more detail.

[CapnK]

...and then dropped in some shades of gray to give it a bit more "solid" look.

[CapnK]

After the above, it was just time-consuming detail work to get it to a point I was happy with. I did some shading stuff to give the cabinets a look of depth, put on the slat fronts that I plan to use, that sort of thing.

[CapnK]

And this is as far as I got - far enough for me.



I'll be happy to answer any questions or give anyone help who wants to try this sort of thing. I'm no guru, but am getting better at it.

Also, here's some of the thinking going on behind what I have designed so far.

Raising the settee berths about 6-8" (to v-berth level) will bring them up above the design waterline by a bit. I can then make separate watertight locker spaces into/under them, which would be sealable - handy in case of (heaven forbid) a hull breach at sea. I've measured this in an Ariel, and that much of a raise allows one to see out of the deadlights while seated, but still with plenty of headroom, and not too big of a stretch to the sole (I'm 5' 9").

The kinda-funky-looking "doors" on the cabinetry is actually a shelving material made with wood slats. The stuff is pre-assembled, can be bought finished or unfinished, in varying widths (7" to 20") and lengths (12" to 48"). I like the idea of using it instead of solid wood or caned doors becuase it allows a lot of ventilation, and allows viewing of the objects within a storage space without having to open the door. Heck, I can rationalize that it might save some weight, too (but I doubt it ).

The strbd side cabinet has space under it because I will have storage down to bunk level in the area of the current icebox, and so need to extend that berth a bit for legroom when lying down. On the port side, I left the space under open in case I need to stow things longer than the berth ahead (oars, whisker pole, etc...).

I'm not positive that this is where I am going to go, design-wise, but it is nice to see what I have been thinking about doing. Obviously there are some engineering issues that would need to be addressed making an interior like this - primarily the strongback/bulkhead and it's reinforcement as regards the mast. Also, I do plan to move chainplates to the outside of the hull, a la Geoff's Aussie Wonder. That borders on Heresy to some of y'all I know, but the benefits outweigh the drawbacks, in my opinion of course.

[mbd]

"Bring out the Gimp!"... I've been resisting quoting that, but just can't hold back any longer. Sorry...

Great stuff! Thanks Commodore Kurt!