Not this past weekend but the one before we finally got to install a new staircase in the boat down into the cargo hold… This would in fact be the 3rd system put in so far but it is the last. Lets go over the systems I had (sadly I have no photos of them).
- The spiral staircase that was originally in the ship. I’ve always wanted a spiral staircase so when I was looking at Pathfinder for purchase it was a major selling feature for me… Until during our trip back with it we discovered how truly terrible undersized and thrown together spiral staircases are. Everyone on the trip ended up sliding down them or nearly through the railings when we hit a wave. Even better was that the top hand rail on it was in fact a plastic tube. Not exactly safe. So we cut that right out first chance we got at TIM and replaced it with…
- A very steep stainless steel staircase with narrow steps. This worked out quite well for over a year. Except that it was VERY steep and the steps were a improperly spaced (each step was a bit too far away), so at the end of the day when you walked up and down them a lot your legs and hips were killing you. Also when taking laundry up and down the stairs it was literally like scaling a mountain at times. Which lead us to…
- Custom polished stainless steel stringers (a stringer is the side beams of a staircase). These were made out of Barrie Metal and Welding for us after we carefully measured the space it would go into. Once they were completed they stayed at my parents place until we were ready for them on the boat (2 weekends ago). And here they are!
The stringers side on of the new staircase.
Right now the steps are pieces of 2×10 spruce. Later on they’ll be replaced with mahogany.
That corner of the cargohold also acts as material storage for paneling etc. Eventually we may be building a laundry room there by walling it in possibly.
These steps are incredibly comfortable to walk up and down. The neat thing is that although they look thin and they do flex a bit when you walk up and down them a bit they’re strong enough to practically park a car on. I also have to modify the hatchway a bit since my head nearly hits some metal on the way up and down the stairs. I’ll be doing that after I finish a through hull fitting to fill the water tanks. I’ll do a post about the water system and all the hookups once I get that all done.
One Comment
Nice Job On New Ladder!