Southery 35rs, Bimini conversion

"We are delighted with the conversion. It gives us an easy deployed Bimini for use in hot weather and also for use while sailing in rain. When moored up, we are able to deploy the enclosure which turns the cockpit area into cosy living space in foul or colder weather. There is no awkward extra steel-work to find a home for when the cockpit tent is stowed so all we have to find a home for is a few pieces of canvas. Dismantling it is a doddle. Putting it up takes a couple of tries to figure out the best order to do things in - but then it becomes easy. It takes us about 5 minutes to erect. The Velcro assistance on the side-panels helps and the bungee attachments around the base of the tent are easily deployed and removed from inside the tent. When erected, the whole thing looks like a 'proper job' blending nicely with the original design. With the Bimini up it has always taken a bit of ducking and weaving to get between the cockpit and the side deck. This is inevitable given the geometry and is quite manageable. The entrances to the tent from the side decks inherits the same slight difficulty. We anticipate that stern-to-mooring in the Med will make this even less of a problem. With hidsight, I would pay more attention to the tapes which secure the side and particularly rear panels when rolled up. These are fiddly to do up and not very secure. I would recommend toggles and loops - preferably with some bungee involved - for any future attempts"

Mr and Mrs Kitson, Southerly 35RS, Bimini Conversion