'74 Tsunami Pilothouse and Rehab

[Handful in NC]

After a few months of use, here are some observations for those that may be contemplating a pilothouse/cabin addition to a 23' Sceptre/Tsunami.

The glass windows are great. They can be cleaned in about 3 minutes with a squeegee and Rain-X cleaner. On a cold nasty day, we are warm and dry. On a hot sunny day, the cabin cools immediately when the windows are opened for ventilation.

Being able to move around inside the pilothouse with plenty of headroom is nice, but the majority of the time my passengers and I are seated, and I might have gotten by with a lower cabin top. This would have decreased fabrication costs, windage, weight, and resulted in better esthetics. (Check out the original 23' Sceptre hardtop plans in the CSC website specifications pages. Occasionally, one of these pops up for sale if you want to see pictures of the real boat.)

One way to maintain headroom in the pilothouse while lowering the overall top height would be to utilize the well along the centerline of the forward cockpit that joins with the forward cuddy cabin area. This finished space is typically used for storage or an auxilliary fuel tank and would require no significant alterations. By leaving this well open and placing a centerline hatch in the very rear of the cabin top, one could "step down" into this well inside the pilothouse. A large low-profile hatch properly positioned at the helm station would allow the pilot to stand, upper body above the cabin top, when doing so is advantageous.