bulkhead hatch options

I need to get my Mill Creek 13' finished so I can order my next kit!  I've had her out on the water, but have not installed any hatches.  I've decided I don't want to mar the nice curves of the stern & bow with hatches -- I figure I can put 'em in the bulkheads.  I probably won't use the front one much, but it'd be nice to have 2. 

I was considering ordering the flush hatch kit from CLC. 

or would y'all recommend something else? 

will bulkhead hatches work?  I doubt I'd use the front one much, but I suspect the back one will get used every trip.

I'm not sure if I have extra okume left over as I've moved since I've finished her...

your thoughts?


3 replies:

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RE: bulkhead hatch options

I installed bulkheads in my daughter's Ganymede for flotation, and used deck plates in the bulkheads for access. They also allow airing out the ends of the boat in storage, and equalizing air pressure on hot days. Very easy to do and look great.

See photos at http://twofootartist.com/ganymede-construction-notes/ Scroll down about half way and left click on the photos to enlarge them to full screen. More photos toward the end of the blog.

-Wes

RE: bulkhead hatch options

Hi Wes-

The bulkheads are already epoxied in place. 

Do the deck plates have a backing piece or are they installed on just one side of the bulkhead?  I can only access the cockpit side of the bulkheads.

btw...I hadn't seen your Ganymede blog 'til tonight, but I did see your Shearwater build.  The Shearwater 16' will probably be my next build, unless someone talks me into One Ocean's Cirrus LT. 

THANKS!

RE: bulkhead hatch options

There are four deck plates on flotation compartments on my boat... not a kayak. I did the drill-fill-drill thing with the holes and picked up some stainless steel machine screws and nuts. The screws were a bit long. I used a thin "zip" disk in a grinder to cut them down to length so they didn't stick out the back. It was extremely fiddly getting the nuts threaded onto the screws inside the flotation compartments. To top it off, they went on temporarily (for a couple of years) and then came off to get some proper sealant between the hatches and the plywood and to shorten the screws so they didn't stick out on the inside. I will NEVER do this again. Next time around, I will add a plywood backer and use wood screws, with the same drill-fill-drill technique.

Keith

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