Hi,

I'm building a Shearwater 14 stitch-and-glue so my hatches are supposed to be flat (I assume yours aren't with a stripped deck).  The important thing is that the hatch cover maintains the shape of the hatch opening so it seals well.  My hatch covers had quite a warp in them, so I am clamping them to a piece of wood when I'm gluing on the plywood stiffener to try to get them flat again (kind of the opposite of your problem).  

I think I remember reading a few builder's journals of strip built boats where they had to do some fiddling (cutting a notch under the hatch cover - in the plywood - so they could bend it back into the correct shape, etc).  You might try searching on strip built journals to find some ideas if yours have changed shape enough that they don't fit the opening any more.  

As far as the sill rims, they are meant to keep out the water and to help make a better seal with the weather stripping (compressing it more).  I believe the instructions say to put the weather stripping on the hatch cover.  It would probably be more protected from scuffing if it's on the cover when you load stuff in and out of the hatches.  

 Good luck with your build.

It is a stripped deck. Yup, I\'ll go by the instructions (and years of experience behind them) and put the rims and seals in their place. Next choice..finger groove or loop pull up?