Hatch and Laz gasket

[Bill]

Promise to get onto this in January.  To begin, I'll be needing a commitment from everyone on purchases -- again.  My apologies, but some skippers may have lost interest or sold their boats, so we need to update the list.  More later . . .

[Commander 147]

Bill
 
You know I'm in for two sets of gaskets. Good to hear you will get it going soon.

[SkipperJer]

Commander 270 needs a full set also.  Does this include something to block water at the front of the companionway hatch cover?

[Bill]

Does this include something to block water at the front of the companionway hatch cover?

Unfortunately not.  Maybe someone has a solution?

[ebb]

Jer, if you want to block off with rubber gasket your sliding hatch's  underneath cross bar, if it is Pearson original,  it is strangely cut away at the ends.
You can buy some EPDM rubber strip,  comes 2"-4'"-6" wide with a  very aggressive peel and stick on one side.
Assuming the underneath cross bar on the hatch IS the Pearson cut away style that zero's out at the companionway sides, it's not easy to weatherstrip.
Imco the cross bar could have a blunt ended rubber strip applied on top...  if the rubber  had stiff support backing.

McMasterCarr has the strip.  Thickness range 1/32" to 1/2".   Cost range  $8 to $16, 36" long.
It's bendy and pliable, but the thicker it is the less floppy.  EPDM is the rubber that holds the glass on your truck.
Make a  paper pattern of the shape you want to block off, see what width you need when you lay the pattern out flat.
If you are trying to keep the water out in the corners under the hatch  and you are going to use the original Pearson cross piece  - that has the stainless U-bolt in the center that goes thru the dropboard -  
you can cut your gasket with square ends.
For example, it can be a 2" wide piece that is  parallel to the curve of the hatch from side to side.  
 But you'll have unsupported ends that would flop around.   So it needs some stiff backing.  Doorskin might do the trick.  

  Cut the ply backing undersize at the sides so that the  rubber overlaps it to make a soft seal against the companionway sides.
Use 1/8" thick doorskin ply and rubber that is also thin enough  (1/8"?) so that the U-bolt still engages the drop board slot without having to change it out for a longer one.   The ply and rubber probably  around 1/4" thick.  Seal the ply with epoxy first, then stick the rubber on.

Better would be to have the ply backing with the rubber stuck on behind it, against the crossbar, so most of the rubber is unseen.  
It would then be called 'ply fronting'.  
If it's philippine mahogany, it'll varnish up nicely and the jerried weatherstripping goes unnoticed.
How to attach it to the old painted crossbar?   Brass nails?   Small flathead screws?  Monel staples?

This 'cheat' will do the job, but it is better imco to take that original Pearson crossbar off and replace it with a more practical blunt-ended piece of wood better able to keep weather out at the sides where you need it.


McMaster-Carr.com online catalog page 3510.  EPDM is outdoor rubber.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I've radically  EDITed the original post.  
For high winds when away from the boat perhaps a sunbrella cover lashed over the top and down infront would better keep the rain at bay.

[SkipperJer]

Thanks!  I was moored when Irene came through and the 20 hours of spray kicked up by the steady 50 MPH winds put quite a bit of water into the cabin.  Not a regular event but still unwelcome.

[Full and By]

Hello, Bill
 
I have my boat in the shop this winter for major refit work.  I will buy a set of gaskets ( fwd and Laz) for her as soon as they are available...hopefully before may launch.  When might they be available, and to whom may I send my check? ...
 
I also have  bow, stern pulpits, stanchions, lifelines...available for sale
 
and the original Tufnol winches (4 pcs)
 
Thank you
 
Bill

[ariel235]

Still interested also
 
Arjen de Boer

[Commander 147]

Bill
 
You indicated you would get into this in January. Any progress on placing the order?

[Rico]

I'm still in for 2 sets...

[jshisha]

I will also buy a set.

[Full and By]

Any action on the gasket sets?  I'll be launching memorial day weekend and would love to have installed the new gaskets by then.  If not, I'll use the old ones.  How much does it cost to gin up a production run?  How many sets are "spoken" for here?  any interested parties can contact me at wmcgraw@gmail.com

[vanguard64]

Sign me up for a set also.
Marcelo
Adastra A-407

[jshisha]

Count me in for a set also.
Thansk

[Bill]

The association's finances are now known and we are in the process of ordering enough of each extrusion to produce 20 sets (fwd hatch & lazarette).  The lengths are 10 feet for the large extrusion (lazarette) and 7 feet for the fwd hatch.  That's adding six inches to my measurements for the needed material.  Actually, the Ariel's fwd hatch is smaller than the one on the Commander, so Ariels will be getting about an extra six inches (i.e., a foot) of material.

Our early cost estimate is somewhere between $44 and $48 per set, depending on the shipping and other costs from the manufacturer.  Once the material is in house, we'll figure out the packaging and shipping costs.  We will offer two shipping options, one slow and cheap, and one, "if it fits, it ships" USPS fast and expensive option.  

Stay tuned.  It will be about three weeks before we get the product from the mfg.

Bill