What is with all the inset cockpits I am seeing on many designs? Is it just a style thing or is there a really good reason to do that, besides the look of the big-boats. Less weight above the waterline maybe? The only advantage I can see of it is so you can run the rudder pushrod through the cockpit frame, and have access to the end of the tiller arm. How often do you adjust your rudder, or change it?
I may not be right, but I think you are refering to the IOM skiff style cockpits. I think it originally came about as a way to lower the rig height on the IOM so you can carry the A rig longer. This is necessitated by the IOM rig plans where the sail area is fixed for each suite and the jump in area is big. Now with classes not limited by this, the adoption has not been as great and maybe influenced more by that being the hot new look, than the need to lower the rig. I do think they look better.
I like IOM’s but I think they made two errors in the rules, one the sail area change between rigs. this should have been just a reduction of height not area and height. This would have pushed development to narrower boats as the overlap of rigs would have been much larger than it is now. second, there should have been a limit of 6 or 8% on foil thickness. This would have allowed home built foils instead of having to purchase 4% foils.
I just do it to keep the water off the deck mounted servos. I hate fiddling around inside small boats when something goes wrong. The combined deck/radio board is Sintra [sp?] plastic, the servos are glued in with 3M 5200, and the board is sealed to the hull with automotive water pump gasket goop. If something goes wrong I just replace the whole thing.
Cheers,
Earl
The raised foredeck and recessed (skiff) cockpit allow you to set up an effective mast ram. The ram is a very useful item for controlling the lower third of the rig and for resisting the force of the goose neck. To see the value of a ram, with you boat rigged and the vang set to the correct twist, lift the end of the main boom. Look at how the force at the goose neck bends the lower mast forward, and also note that the beem end can in fact rise, allowing the main to twist off more than your vang setting. The mast ram stops this effect.
John
I was wondering how it related to the RG65? With the ‘smaller’ cockpit, is there still room enough? (big, clumsy fingers of mine 
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I still kinda think it’s just for looks on the Rg65, except for the kind Earl makes.
You can add “mast ram” style adjustment without a cockpit. You can do it with a mast ram like many full sized boats run or with a set of shrouds that are set very low. All of which are of no use with a swing rig.
I have kept mine below decks for all of my builds - but for the new multihull (65M) I will need to have the drum or arm above deck since hull is so narrow. With everything below decks, I find it is rather … ummmm … compact (frickin’ tight would be a better term) yet it all fits, and reduces above deck clutter. That clutter can always be addressed, but a deck without a lot of protrusions means less chance of snagging a line during a gybe.
This is a view of deck hatch when closed and an inside view of “DIRTY DEEDS” (RG-65 USA 04) radio gear