The list is now one item shorter
The list of things that we don’t like about the Leopard 4600 is very short, and we just made the list one item shorter. The large stock salon, while perhaps good for inside dining, got very little use by us, at least for that particular application. In the warm Caribbean, almost all dining on the Leopard, and on our friends’ charter boats, is done outside. The table is so large that it makes it difficult to access the under-seat storage that is so important for us. It also requires someone to kind of scoot around if they want to sit on the rear side. All in all, it was an undesirable thing for us, and one that we wanted to get rid of.
Many of our friends with 4600s had already done away with the table, replacing it with a store-bought coffee table or ottoman. While they all look great, we wanted something a bit more custom to work with our Engel cooler that, up till this point, we kept under the dining table. Enter Puerto Rican Danny, a local wood worker. Over the past couple of months, Danny took our suggestions and crafted for us the table that you see in the photos below. It fits perfectly over our cooler and as you can see, the top lifts up to give us easy access to it. He also did a great job of matching the wood and design to the boat’s interior.
Ventilation for the cooler is obviously important so he left spaces at the bottom and below the table top to allow air to flow in and out. If we determine that more air is necessary, we’ll cut a vent in the rear. At this point though, it does not seem to be warm inside the box. Another thing I had him do was have the fiddles, the raised edges around the table top, not go all the way to the corners. If you’ve ever had to get crumbs off of a table with fiddles before, you’ll understand why I had it built this way.
That is very very cool.
very well thought out and it looks like it came as a standard item on the boat.
Great idea and well done.
been following your blog since you left here in July 2010, I look forward to reading the new post every morning with my coffee.
BTW, as I write this it is -17 here in Kingston this morning, lol.
-17? OUCH!
We’ve been having a similar debate about the salon layout in our monohull. Good to see you’ve come up with a more functional design for One Love!
Thanks. It may not serve everyone to get rid of that table but for us, we think it will be a big plus.
It looks incredible and so much more functional! The cooler looks electric….is it?
Yes, 12 VDC.
So very cool Mike! At first I was afraid you were leaving the guitar behind!
Never. 🙂
Nicely done!
Thank you, Sir!
Two thoughts cross my mind about your neat and ingenious ‘table’ replacement.
1. How will that affect the resale value of the boat once Michael wants to sell/upgrade her? Most people need a table some of the time, and if the boat is to have a market outside the BVI the need for feeding inside during cooler and/or inclement weather becomes relevant.
2. Did the carpenter fit any sort of stay, or strap, so that the lid can not open too far and break the piano hinge?
Looks a good idea for your use.
Mike
1. The other table is in storage and could be replaced should we want to.
2. No. Might be a good idea though.
Not quite that cold here, but not warm either. 14F above. Don’t know what the wind chill is, though. The new table looks great, and functional, as well.
Thanks. Stay warm!
Hi guys! That is a great modification. You will have gone from postage stamp to dance-floor for walkable space in the salon now. You never cease to amaze us with your fine touches. Big win on this one!!
Cheers,
Alan and Christina
Dance floor? Maybe we need a disco ball!
Several in the R&C line have that ill designed table. I too really dislike how aggravating it is to get either into a seat or get back out from behind that table. Whoever came up with the design must have never actually done any full sizing testing . . . probably all done by computer.
Kudo’s to you for the creativity and initiative to make this very substantive improvement.
I’m sure there are other ways that the table could be improved too. Any smaller table has to be better!
Good thing you left those corners open for crumb sweeping. I am curious why you chose
to hide the engle cooler over having a functional usage area, as in plates of goodies. Now when you need to get something from the cooler, you must first clear all glasses,snacks, and who knows what, and of course sweep up the crumbs, then put it all back together again. A door on
the front of the box to roll the cooler out might be a better idea,
Where were you when we were designing this thing? 😉