Beckson Port

[mike cunningham]

And my second problem is...

I have a leaking Beckson port. Not a gasket leak but a frame to cabin leak. It was a real seeper for a long time and I did not pay too much attention but now I am seeing a little discoloration in the interior teak (several square inches) so it is time to get off my duff and do something. And there's the rub. What to do. These are the original ports so they are 27 years old now. Should I remove the port, fix the leak and re-install? Don't like that answer cause I am re-installing a 27 year old port and assumes I can get the thing out without damaging it. Should I buy a new Beckson which matches the other ports albeit it'll be a lot newer and will probably stand out or should I replace with something else (like a New Found Metals SS port) which means I would have to replace all four ports and do all the cutting, grinding etc. associated with this job. Furthermore I could screw it up and that would be bad.

Anyone have any other ideas I should consider or thoughts on the three ideas above?

Mike

[rvivian]

I would try to re-use the existing port so it matches or buy a new Beckson port if that does not work.

I've seen first hand on other boats that the cut-outs made at the factory for ports are far from perfect, so be prepared for that.

You will never recover the cost of the New Found Metal SS Ports if you change them out.

[rvivian]

Mike -

Looking at the bill of materials and my F-30 it appears the ports are Bomar, not Beckson.

[mike cunningham]

Mine a Beckson for sure. I have replaced screens, gaskets and windows several times now and have used beckson for supplies. My three deckhatches are Bomar.

[bad]

I think the cost of new ports should be balanced with the length and joy of ownership. We bought 14 ports from NFM and I'm getting ready to install some in the next two weeks. Great product and customer service. We think it is going to be with it, but then again we want to go cruising.

Erik & Evi

[rvivian]

Mike -

Here is a write-up of installation of NFM SS ports that should be of interest:

http://smallboatprojects.blogspot.com/2 ... +Easier%29

[bad]

The other site that has a good installation guide - and info for other projects - is http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/nfm_port_lights. Great description and photos. We also used a trim router and template to fit the ports into the existing opening. For the forward cabin - remember this as 40 CC, all the openings were just a tad undresized and we made copious amounts of fiberglass dust to fit the new ones in. In all cases the builder had made the coach roof sides solid glass, approx 1" thick. In the aft cabin the core was exposed and I glassed over it to seal it. Feel confident that any leaks will simply be an annoyance, and not cause the core to rot - and after extensive hose testing, there are no leaks. Our interior is simply painted white, so in the main cabin and v-berth we added wood paneling.