installing a purchased hatch

jimmar57 · Post by **jimmar57** » Fri Jan 30, 2009 7:19 am

I've started stripping a Resolute. My first kayak, second boat.

If I were to purchase a hatch and cover like this one:

http://www.duckworksbbs.com/hardware/ca ... /index.htm

can it be glued in with epoxy or is there some other preferred installation method?

Ross Leidy · Post by **Ross Leidy** » Fri Feb 06, 2009 4:04 pm

I installed a similar set of hatches in my last kayak. The hatches I used were made by Kajaksport, but they're probably close to the ones you referenced. I scuffed up the bottom surface of the rim with 60 grit sandpaper and used thickened epoxy to glue it into the opening. No problem with adhesion so far.

Ross

Glen Smith · Post by **Glen Smith** » Fri Feb 06, 2009 4:24 pm

Ross, did you attach them to the rounded deck structure or did you build a recess to receive the hatches? Your photo shows a recess. This may be the part that interests Jim.

Ross Leidy · Post by **Ross Leidy** » Fri Feb 06, 2009 7:40 pm

Glen Smith wrote:Ross, did you attach them to the rounded deck structure or did you build a recess to receive the hatches? Your photo shows a recess. This may be the part that interests Jim.

Glen,
You are quite right. I fashioned a recess from layers of glass and carbon, and I mounted the hatch ring to that. However, that was just a method for establishing a flat plane on which to mount the rim. I could have used a plywood disk or stripped the recess, too. Attaching the ring would be the same. Thickened epoxy seems to work just fine.

Ross

Bryan Hansel · Post by **Bryan Hansel** » Tue Feb 10, 2009 5:44 pm

On my Iggy, I built recessed hatches using carbonfiber and fiberglass. Before that on my Siskiwit Bay I built hatches with plywood and strip recesses. The carbonfiber/glass version was easier to make and looked better, IMHO.