Changing deck design/RCD

[Steve_Bentley]

Have to confess to looking at an American forum recently which included a project where someone took the deck of an old 18 ft sportsboat (with a W-shaped 'triple hull' so presumably for lake use?) to rip out the rotting timber and foam from the hull. He was planning a few changes to the deck whilst it was sitting in another part of his garden from the hull. Someone else was converting an open-deck boat to a cuddy design. A fairly radical change.

This got me thinking- if I'm right then a new boat was built in someone's shed in the UK they need to get it assessed for RCD. What if they took an old (ie RCD exempt) open sportsboat and gave the deck a radical reshape (eg to a cuddy design): if they left the hull alone at what point would it become a new design and need assessing for RCD? Boat owners are always making minor mods (particularly PBO readers!) like installing coal stoves (er, not in a Princess!), raising the roof (coachline?) etc but how is decided at what point you've taken a step too far?

Er, if anyone asks I'm NOT planning to turn a fletcher into a flybridge design! Just idle curiosity.

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[dignity]

In my opinion it wouldn't apply because it was built before RCD was implemented. I must confess I don't agree with RCD I built my boat to how I wanted it, not to how someone sat behind a desk wanted it, and has long has I don't sell her before 5 years no-ones bothered.

Let's face it a boat is one of the oldest forms of transport! If you ask me there's too much legislation knocking about these days, I just want some fun! If it came to it I would challange anybody to say my boat isn't safe!

The wife's a bit un-stable, but that's a different matter.

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