A new approach

There's nothing quite so rewarding as going forward with one plan only to scrap it and start again after realizing that a new approach makes more sense and should have been pursued from the beginning. And so here I am with a new bed for the holding tank laminated and ready to be installed in the v-berth and a new idea hatched.
Rather than install the new holding tank - which, by the way, is the still-to-be-ordered #B115 - in a tight-fitting fiberglass bed, the plan now is to create a watertight enclosure under the v-berth that has enough volume to do two things: contain any slop from the holding tank in the event of a leak, and provide a means of collecting and draining green water from the anchor locker into the bilge rather than flooding the compartment in the v-berth, as it has.
I've already removed the bed for the original holding tank. Sunday, if all goes as planned, I'll grind out the remaining globs of bonding material in the v-berth and prep the area for fiberglass work. The idea at this point is to create a horizontal support out of marine plywood that is glassed in place, and create the verticals out of construction insulation covered in fiberglass cloth. Once everything is glassed together I'll drill a hole in the bed and fit it with a drain that will empty into the bilge. At least that's the plan so far.
The idea of using the Ronco tank that was close - but not close enough - to Ariel's original met its demise when I decided that removing pieces of Ariel's interior to "fit" a new tank was utterly ridiculous. It just seemed wiser and more appropriate to reconfigure the area under the v-berth to accomodate a new tank than to remove pieces of trim, an amateurish endeavor at best. Beyond that, the new approach will provide a proper drain for the anchor locker, something Cape Dory apparently didn't think about.

Starter back where it should be

Things would have gone together more smoothly if I'd noticed that a spacer had fallen into the bilge! As it was I manuevered the starter into place without too much trouble, got the bolts threaded, then couldn't figure out why the bolts seemed to be bottoming out and yet the starter wasn't contacting the bellhousing. Hmmm. My daddy always told me not to force things so, heeding his admonition, I sighed, unscrewed the bolts, and pulled the starter out to get a clear look at things. That's when I saw the spacer resting just below the engine bed. With the spacer where it should be, things went together with a reassuring "thunk" - i.e., the sound of parts fitting together as designed. What a thrill to know that the starter can be removed and replaced so easily, despite the cramped quarters in the engine compartment. In fact, now that I've had some practice, I'm sure I could swap starters in fifteen minutes or less - twenty in a seaway!