J/42 Aft cabin measurement(s)

[Todd Stevens]

Making plans again, but the boat is in Mexico and I'm up north. Does anyone have the measurement of vertical clearance over the aft berth deck under the cockpit footwell? And under the box for the steering quadrant? I.e. the port side of the aft bunk, without the mattress.  

When I go back down, I'm considering removing the mattresses and installing a row of Milwaukee Packout units, or similar. Just trying to get an idea of what would fit.  

Thanks,

Todd

J/42 SV Wild

[Ed Sitver]

Todd,

21.5” at the bottom of the cockpit sole, outboard of centerline, and 17-7/8” under the steering box. I wouldn’t cut it close, however, as there is a bit of slope/variation over the areas. And your’s, of course, might be a little different.  I can take more precise measurements next week, if you're not in a hurry; I’ve currently got it packed with stuff and a friend staying in the quarter berth. 

I did what you’re describing — removed the portion of the mattress under the cockpit to use that space as storage — and built a lee cloth to hold it all in.  Works great and it’s a lot of space. Too much tempting space.  :-) 

Four of these storage containers fit perfectly under the steering box with one stacked on top of the other: IRIS USA 19 Quart WeatherPro Storage Box, Clear (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CY53M4U?ref_=ppx_hzod_title_dt_b_fed_asin_title_0_0). It’s dimensions are listed as: 17.43"L x 11.81"W x 7.87"H

I am considering Packouts for the rest of the area, but haven’t tried them out yet (the remaining mattress would prevent the bottom drawers from opening, but there are obviously ways to handle that). 

Ed

[Todd Stevens]

Thanks a lot. 

So there’s plenty of room for a Milwaukee drawer unit, but not quite enough to stack a full “tool box” or “deep organzer” on top.  Well, there might barely be “room” but probably not enough left to operate the latch. And the bottom bracket must take up some space as well.

These storage units appeal because they securely latch into place and provide random-access to tools and equipment. Although neatly organized drawers would take up more total room than a jumble of stuff in a duffel bag.  

I was also looking at their new wall units, for the outboard side of the cabin.  There turns out to be a whole ecosystem of people with 3D printers who custom-make snap-in holders for all sorts of stuff that Milwaukee never thought of.

Todd

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[Ed Sitver]

Yeah, if you leave half of the quarter berth as a bed, as I have, then the bottom drawers would be blocked, if the case wasn’t sitting raised on something else. I like the Milwaukee ecosystem, and considered a drawer set up, but decided to suffer through lesser organization to allow for portability. I like to bring the whole bag/case of tools to the site of work. Still searching for the perfect solution for that.

e

[Todd Stevens]

On Sep 1, 2025, at 04:20, Ed Sitver <esi...@gmail.com> wrote:

Yeah, if you leave half of the quarter berth as a bed, as I have, then the bottom drawers would be blocked, if the case wasn’t sitting raised on something else. I like the Milwaukee ecosystem, and considered a drawer set up, but decided to suffer through lesser organization to allow for portability. I like to bring the whole bag/case of tools to the site of work. Still searching for the perfect solution for that.

I’m not sure that the drawers would be fully blocked, at least based on these drawings. But I’m thinking of removing both mattresses. Nobody has slept back there in a couple of years, except when all the cargo was shifted to the forward cabin, for access to the transmission.  Also, I am told that my mattresses are a custom feature - extra plush and extra tall.  (And heavy.) 

OOPS! Double-checked before posting and in fact I had drawn the depth of the boxes wrong. Makes enough difference that fitting six of them in there could be problematic.  (One of them would probably be the freezer, which currently sits on the small “seat.” ) Not just for fitting my shoulders in there, but the wire bail that locks the drawers in place needs room to pull out from its stowed position underneath.  A surreptitious visit to Home Despot with a tape measure is in order...

I mean, it's possible that I’d take on crew, if I jump off to French Polynesia next spring, but hard to imagine anyone who could live on a small boat with me for that long.  (Though in that case, we’d likely use the settees as seaberths…)  Still pondering.

I’ve been using the forward head as a tiny workshop, but things are packed so tight in there, it’s hard to get out a tool, then use it. And the “site” where all the tools end up being carried to, often as not, is the vicinity of the engine. My plastic pegboard arrangement hasn’t collapsed yet, but I’m not sure why not. This is what got me looking at the “Packouts” in the first place, as their wall units look more robust.

I can think of more things to move to the putative new boxes than there is room for the boxes. So I’ll have to think carefully about what size drawers and bins I would buy.