replacing V-berth deck hatch on F30

Archives
1

Posted by svbagatelle (rmasson@…>)

Just as I was preparing my F30 for summer storage in the Bahamas the
handle on the hatch above the forward cabin broke, and since the
lens is also cracked I will replace the whole cover.
Bomar/Pompanette says they can do it, but they say they need the
following measurement:
“I DO NEED TO KNOW THE OD OF THE DECKFLANGE AND IF YOUR HINGES ARE
SCREWED ON OR MOLDED INTO THE FRAME”.
On my boat (hull no. 58, 1987), the hinges are screwed on, but I
am now in Canada and cannot measure the outside diameter of the deck
flange. Can someone with a similar vintage F30 help me here? I
hope to order the replacement and pick it up in Florida on my way
back to the Bahamas at the end of the hurricane season.
Paul Masson
F30 “Bagatelle”

2

Posted by ajlorman (ajlorman@…>)

I just went through replacing the lens on the hatch over the v berth
on my 1987 F-30. Bomar makes two hatches which are essentially
identical except for the height of the hatch cover. The hatch
opening size, the cut out and the outdside diameter of the deck
flange are the same; the only difference is the height of the the
opening lid and, therefore, the lens. We got it right the second
time around. I can’t say which of the two hatches your boat has, but
mine has part number N2090-103. An email in the archives of this
group also cites that numnber.

If you’re really replacing the hatch because of a broken handle and a
cracked lens, I’d be more than happy to take the old one off your
hands for spare parts.

Al Lorman
F-30 Ab Initio


— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “svbagatelle”
<rmasson@e…> wrote:

Just as I was preparing my F30 for summer storage in the Bahamas
the
handle on the hatch above the forward cabin broke, and since the
lens is also cracked I will replace the whole cover.
Bomar/Pompanette says they can do it, but they say they need the
following measurement:
“I DO NEED TO KNOW THE OD OF THE DECKFLANGE AND IF YOUR HINGES ARE
SCREWED ON OR MOLDED INTO THE FRAME”.
On my boat (hull no. 58, 1987), the hinges are screwed on, but I
am now in Canada and cannot measure the outside diameter of the
deck
flange. Can someone with a similar vintage F30 help me here? I
hope to order the replacement and pick it up in Florida on my way
back to the Bahamas at the end of the hurricane season.
Paul Masson
F30 “Bagatelle”

3

Posted by svbagatelle (rmasson@…>)

Thanks Al,
since they didn’t ask me to measure the height of the opening lid,
I am assuming that the other question they asked me–whether the
handle went through the lens–correlates with the height of the
lid. In my case, there is a hole in the lens for each handle, and a
plastic insert that is on the outside of the lens (i.e. projecting
above it by 1/8 inch or so). Does this describe your hatch too?
And did yours have the hinge screwed to the frame, like mine (as
opposed to being molded in)? How did you remove the existing lid–I
removed the nut securing it, but found that the pin was in solidly,
and did not come out when tapped with a hammer. Also, did you
replace the whole of the lid, including the hinge–everything except
the frame that is glued into the deck–or did you just replace the
lens (somehow getting it back in the existing aluminum lid?
Sorry to ask all these questions but it is hard to get it right
the first time, and I won’t be able to send it back without a lot of
cost and effort.
Paul


— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “ajlorman” <ajlorman@y…>
wrote:

I just went through replacing the lens on the hatch over the v
berth
on my 1987 F-30. Bomar makes two hatches which are essentially
identical except for the height of the hatch cover. The hatch
opening size, the cut out and the outdside diameter of the deck
flange are the same; the only difference is the height of the the
opening lid and, therefore, the lens. We got it right the second
time around. I can’t say which of the two hatches your boat has,
but
mine has part number N2090-103. An email in the archives of this
group also cites that numnber.

If you’re really replacing the hatch because of a broken handle
and a
cracked lens, I’d be more than happy to take the old one off your
hands for spare parts.

Al Lorman
F-30 Ab Initio

— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “svbagatelle”
<rmasson@e…> wrote:

Just as I was preparing my F30 for summer storage in the Bahamas
the
handle on the hatch above the forward cabin broke, and since the
lens is also cracked I will replace the whole cover.
Bomar/Pompanette says they can do it, but they say they need the
following measurement:
“I DO NEED TO KNOW THE OD OF THE DECKFLANGE AND IF YOUR HINGES
ARE
SCREWED ON OR MOLDED INTO THE FRAME”.
On my boat (hull no. 58, 1987), the hinges are screwed on, but
I
am now in Canada and cannot measure the outside diameter of the
deck
flange. Can someone with a similar vintage F30 help me here? I
hope to order the replacement and pick it up in Florida on my
way
back to the Bahamas at the end of the hurricane season.
Paul Masson
F30 “Bagatelle”

4

Posted by ajlorman (ajlorman@…>)

Paul:

I found them very nice to deal with but they didn’t ask me the one
simple question that would have identified the hatch immediately:
the measurement from front to back of the lens.

In answeer to your questions:

  1. The handles on both sizes hatches go through the lens; I know
    this from painful experience. This does not help in determining
    which you have.

  2. I think, but am not sure, that my hinges were screwed to the
    frame. I never really looked at that, but I do believe they are. (I
    will check tomorrow.) I replaced the lens without removing the hatch
    frame, so I never had to deal with the issue of getting a pin out.

  3. I replaced only the acrylic lens. The handles come off the lens
    quite easily from below. The lens is held in place by adhesive
    silicone caulking. I used a razor to cut around the lens enough to
    be able to pry the old lens out and then carefully cleaned up the
    remaining caulking. You then apply a bead of black caulking to the
    frame, place the lens in the frame and fill in the gaps with more
    caulking and tool the caulking to make it neat. (It helps to use
    masking tape on everything you don’t want covered with black
    caulking.) The lens is actually a good 1/4" smaller than the frame,
    so it is easy to put in. (Do make sure you put it within 1/8" of the
    front of the frame or the handles won’t keep it closed.) Give the
    caulk a few hours to cure and then install the handles. If you’re
    careful with the caulking, it’s really not a difficult job.

  4. I paid Bomar $90 for the lens. The next time, I’d buy a piece of
    acrylic and cut it myself (I now have the old one for a pattern). If
    you choose to buy the lens only, don’t let Bomar sell you their $25
    tube of caulking to install it. I bought a perfectly good GE
    architectural silicone caulk specifically for installing windows for
    about $9 plus shipping.

Feel free to ask any other questions you may have.

Al

— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “svbagatelle”
<rmasson@e…> wrote:

Thanks Al,
since they didn’t ask me to measure the height of the opening
lid,
I am assuming that the other question they asked me–whether the
handle went through the lens–correlates with the height of the
lid. In my case, there is a hole in the lens for each handle, and
a
plastic insert that is on the outside of the lens (i.e. projecting
above it by 1/8 inch or so). Does this describe your hatch too?
And did yours have the hinge screwed to the frame, like mine (as
opposed to being molded in)? How did you remove the existing lid–
I
removed the nut securing it, but found that the pin was in solidly,
and did not come out when tapped with a hammer. Also, did you
replace the whole of the lid, including the hinge–everything
except
the frame that is glued into the deck–or did you just replace the
lens (somehow getting it back in the existing aluminum lid?
Sorry to ask all these questions but it is hard to get it right
the first time, and I won’t be able to send it back without a lot
of
cost and effort.
Paul

— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “ajlorman”
<ajlorman@y…>
wrote:

I just went through replacing the lens on the hatch over the v
berth
on my 1987 F-30. Bomar makes two hatches which are essentially
identical except for the height of the hatch cover. The hatch
opening size, the cut out and the outdside diameter of the deck
flange are the same; the only difference is the height of the
the
opening lid and, therefore, the lens. We got it right the second
time around. I can’t say which of the two hatches your boat has,
but
mine has part number N2090-103. An email in the archives of this
group also cites that numnber.

If you’re really replacing the hatch because of a broken handle
and a
cracked lens, I’d be more than happy to take the old one off your
hands for spare parts.

Al Lorman
F-30 Ab Initio

— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “svbagatelle”
<rmasson@e…> wrote:

Just as I was preparing my F30 for summer storage in the
Bahamas
the
handle on the hatch above the forward cabin broke, and since
the
lens is also cracked I will replace the whole cover.
Bomar/Pompanette says they can do it, but they say they need
the
following measurement:
“I DO NEED TO KNOW THE OD OF THE DECKFLANGE AND IF YOUR HINGES
ARE
SCREWED ON OR MOLDED INTO THE FRAME”.
On my boat (hull no. 58, 1987), the hinges are screwed on,
but
I
am now in Canada and cannot measure the outside diameter of the
deck
flange. Can someone with a similar vintage F30 help me here?
I
hope to order the replacement and pick it up in Florida on my
way
back to the Bahamas at the end of the hurricane season.
Paul Masson
F30 “Bagatelle”

5

Posted by svbagatelle (rmasson@…>)

Al,
this is extremely useful; I had wondered how to replace just the
lens. I think I will try to do what you suggest, namely go to a
plastics shop and get them to cut a piece to fit–if I can get the
exact dimensions. Do you think you could trace the outline of the
old lens onto a piece of paper and send it to me (including the
holes that need to be drilled for the handles?)
One of the reasons for doing it myself is that I also want to cut
a circular hole for a solar vent. I did this on the old one, which
is why it cracked when someone stepped on it. I temporarily solved
that problem by getting a slightly smaller piece of acrylic and
gluing that on the inside of the lens to reinforce it. Not very
elegant but it worked for a few years, and now that I need to
replace a handle I will do the whole thing, and use thicker acrylic
(3/8" or 1/2" instead of 1/4") or Lexan (but the latter is much
harder to work with and more brittle, so I think I will stick with
acrylic). I will order just the handle from Bomar/Pompanette. Thanks
for the tip about the GE adhesive.
Paul
PS. If you’re willing to send me the outline of the lens, please
email pmasson@… to get my mailing address.

— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “ajlorman” <ajlorman@y…>
wrote:

Paul:

I found them very nice to deal with but they didn’t ask me the one
simple question that would have identified the hatch immediately:
the measurement from front to back of the lens.

In answeer to your questions:

  1. The handles on both sizes hatches go through the lens; I know
    this from painful experience. This does not help in determining
    which you have.

  2. I think, but am not sure, that my hinges were screwed to the
    frame. I never really looked at that, but I do believe they are.
    (I
    will check tomorrow.) I replaced the lens without removing the
    hatch
    frame, so I never had to deal with the issue of getting a pin out.

  3. I replaced only the acrylic lens. The handles come off the
    lens
    quite easily from below. The lens is held in place by adhesive
    silicone caulking. I used a razor to cut around the lens enough
    to
    be able to pry the old lens out and then carefully cleaned up the
    remaining caulking. You then apply a bead of black caulking to
    the
    frame, place the lens in the frame and fill in the gaps with more
    caulking and tool the caulking to make it neat. (It helps to use
    masking tape on everything you don’t want covered with black
    caulking.) The lens is actually a good 1/4" smaller than the
    frame,
    so it is easy to put in. (Do make sure you put it within 1/8" of
    the
    front of the frame or the handles won’t keep it closed.) Give the
    caulk a few hours to cure and then install the handles. If you’re
    careful with the caulking, it’s really not a difficult job.

  4. I paid Bomar $90 for the lens. The next time, I’d buy a piece
    of
    acrylic and cut it myself (I now have the old one for a pattern).
    If
    you choose to buy the lens only, don’t let Bomar sell you their
    $25
    tube of caulking to install it. I bought a perfectly good GE
    architectural silicone caulk specifically for installing windows
    for
    about $9 plus shipping.

Feel free to ask any other questions you may have.

Al

— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “svbagatelle”
<rmasson@e…> wrote:

Thanks Al,
since they didn’t ask me to measure the height of the opening
lid,
I am assuming that the other question they asked me–whether the
handle went through the lens–correlates with the height of the
lid. In my case, there is a hole in the lens for each handle,
and
a
plastic insert that is on the outside of the lens (i.e.
projecting
above it by 1/8 inch or so). Does this describe your hatch
too?
And did yours have the hinge screwed to the frame, like mine (as
opposed to being molded in)? How did you remove the existing
lid–
I
removed the nut securing it, but found that the pin was in
solidly,
and did not come out when tapped with a hammer. Also, did you
replace the whole of the lid, including the hinge–everything
except
the frame that is glued into the deck–or did you just replace
the
lens (somehow getting it back in the existing aluminum lid?
Sorry to ask all these questions but it is hard to get it
right
the first time, and I won’t be able to send it back without a
lot
of
cost and effort.
Paul

— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “ajlorman”
<ajlorman@y…>
wrote:

I just went through replacing the lens on the hatch over the v
berth
on my 1987 F-30. Bomar makes two hatches which are
essentially
identical except for the height of the hatch cover. The hatch
opening size, the cut out and the outdside diameter of the
deck
flange are the same; the only difference is the height of the
the
opening lid and, therefore, the lens. We got it right the
second
time around. I can’t say which of the two hatches your boat
has,
but
mine has part number N2090-103. An email in the archives of
this
group also cites that numnber.

If you’re really replacing the hatch because of a broken
handle
and a
cracked lens, I’d be more than happy to take the old one off
your
hands for spare parts.

Al Lorman
F-30 Ab Initio

— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “svbagatelle”
<rmasson@e…> wrote:

Just as I was preparing my F30 for summer storage in the
Bahamas
the
handle on the hatch above the forward cabin broke, and since
the
lens is also cracked I will replace the whole cover.
Bomar/Pompanette says they can do it, but they say they need
the
following measurement:
“I DO NEED TO KNOW THE OD OF THE DECKFLANGE AND IF YOUR
HINGES
ARE
SCREWED ON OR MOLDED INTO THE FRAME”.
On my boat (hull no. 58, 1987), the hinges are screwed on,
but
I
am now in Canada and cannot measure the outside diameter of
the
deck
flange. Can someone with a similar vintage F30 help me
here?
I
hope to order the replacement and pick it up in Florida on
my
way
back to the Bahamas at the end of the hurricane season.
Paul Masson
F30 “Bagatelle”