Forward Hatch, Gasket, and Latch Repair 26X

[Be Free]

A couple of weeks ago I spent a couple of days going upwind in an area under a small-craft advisory. I tried to minimize the water that was coming up over the bow when I met a wave at an uncomfortable angle but it was choppy enough that I could not always adjust my speed and direction to cut the wave cleanly or ride over it. When I stopped for the first night I discovered that my v-berth cushions and one of my sleeping bags were quite wet.

I'd noticed some signs of a leak in the v-berth but always blamed it on the fact that I did not have the front hatch dogged down properly. That was not the case this time. I'd expected to take some water over the bow and had closed the hatch as tightly as possible to prevent just this problem. Since it was obviously not sealing well I decided that it was time for a complete rebuild.

I know some folks here have had good luck with various types of latches for this hatch but I decided to keep everything "stock". The old latch had worked reasonably well for 12 of the 13 years I've had the boat so I decided to keep it "stock". I lost the fixed part of the latch a while ago so I ordered a new latch and gasket from Blue Water Yachts. The parts arrived in about a week.



The first step was to remove the hatch so I could get the old gasket material out. It was pretty dried and deformed. It's no wonder it was leaking.


The old gasket adhesive was still holding pretty well in most areas. It came up pretty easily with acetone and a Scotch-Brite pad.


All cleaned up and ready for the new gasket.


New gasket installed.

Next post: fixing that latch.

[Be Free]

Wood screws in fiberglass are a bad idea. They are a particularly bad idea when they are holding something that is going to have a lot of pressure against it. Over the years I've filled and drilled, used larger screws, and inserted plastic anchors. All of them have worked for a while but now it's time to do it right.


Filled in some of the deeper gouges and sanded back to "mostly smooth". If the finished project does not suit me I may come back and make it prettier. Right now I just want it to work. Rivet nuts inserted in the old holes. I was a little concerned that the shoulder on the nuts might change the angle of the latch.


My concession to aesthetics. It's all white again. In hindsight, if I'd painted it before I put in the rivet nuts I would not have had to mask them.


New latch installed with machine screws. There is no wiggle or slop in the latch now.


The latch is not centered but that's the way it came from the factory. I just reused the old holes.


Testing with hose shows no leaks. Better than new.

[Jimmyt]

Nice job! That looks great! Most importantly, it doesn’t leak. Nice detail and pics. That will be a good resource for future leak chasers.

[Be Free]

I figured if I was going to do it I might as well document it.

[kmclemore]

Well done, and well documented!

[OverEasy]

Nice

[hart]

Good stuff and great write up. Thanks!

[krum]

Nice repair. Need to do same. Would you share hole size and rivnut size you used. And of course machine screw size.
Thanks in advance , sure beats driving back and forth to hardware strore whem I picked up wrong size.
Karl

[Be Free]

Karl,
The one I used had a .23" hole size. The rivnut was .42" long (including the lip). I've been using this one to replace the screws that were put directly into the fiberglass at the factory when they eventually fall out. The nut takes an 8-32 machine screw and looks very good. I usually put a small fender washer under the screw head to spread the load and give it a bit of a finished look. If it's not loose yet I don't go looking for trouble, but when stuff starts rattling this is the rivnut and machine screw that I've found fits best.

If you live near salt water (like me) make sure you use stainless screws. My first application was the screws that held the port side of the pedestal on. I lived in the middle of the state and was almost never in salt water then and did not think about corrosion. They lasted several years until I moved to the gulf coast. Every one of the screws was beginning to rust within a few weeks.

[HERNDON]

Wow. My forward hatch gasket is installed on the hatch and not in the groove for the hatch. The gasket lands on the interior lip. It has been that way since I purchased in in 2003. It should make align easy.

Rob
95 26X 60 Mercury

[Be Free]

Simple Interest is a 2001 model. My old gasket was firmly glued to the deck, not the hatch and appeared to be original. There were significant design changes between the 1995 and 2001 models. This is one I've not heard before.

[C Buchs]

My boat is a 2002 and my gasket is on the hatch.



Not the best picture, but it was the first one I could find.

Jeff

[kmclemore]

Wow. My forward hatch gasket is installed on the hatch and not in the groove for the hatch. The gasket lands on the interior lip. It has been that way since I purchased in in 2003. It should make align easy.

Rob
95 26X 60 Mercury

Mine is that way as well, and is absolutely leak-proof. This also means that debris doesn't get the chance to accumulate around the gasket, and that channel on the deck is able to drain quite rapidly, quickly removing water from around the hatch opening.

[Be Free]

Interesting. I wonder which way is the "correct" orientation. My boat had at least two previous owners so I can't vouch for what it looked like when it left the factory.

[Dougiestyle]

Mine is a 98 and it is glued to the hatch, and will probably leak with a wave over the bow.