once again i must ask the v20 gods

[wellcraftv20step]

i have a starboard cover over my gas tank installed by the previous owner . now i find that no caulk will stick to statboard to bridge the gap between the gelcoat deck and the starboard, so now i am going to make a hatch from scratch, my question is can i wrap the fiberglass material over the 3/4 edge of the plywood or do i need to cut strips for that , or do i need to ease or round this over to some degree ? and how much of a gap must i leave so that when i wrap the wood with the fiberglass and the several coats of resin and gelcoat that it still lays in without being to tight. thanks for your help in advance . john,

[RidgeRunner]

If you want to get fancy with it make a mold to the exact outside demensions you want. Molds can be made from plywood laminated with formica use modeling putty for the radius and bend the formica for the radius corners . Glass the shell, add the core and glass the core gelcoat before or after for a factory like hatch. Lots of work and $$$ is the downside. Otherwise you laminate your precut plywood, leaving the plywood a bit smaller than your desired finished size (say 1/2" smaller than your opening)and work to it with glass and grinding. The top side radius and the corners of the lid will take the most time. You will not be able to make a tight radius with 1208 or any other multi-layer fabric IMO. You will need to do it with multiple layers of matt and hardware cloth. A 1/4" or less roundover bit on a router for the top edge all the way around would look nice and can be glassed without cutting into strips. You have to be creative on the corners sometimes. Wellcraft used a chopper gun on the liner and hatches, matt is close to the same when finished. Multi-layer fabric is great for the top and bottom. Be mindful of the thickness at the edge, Wellcraft did not run the core all the way to the edge on my boat. Measure the distance from the deck to the lip where the hatch will rest. It is probably only 3/4", meaning by the time you glass your 3/4" plywood on both sides your installed height will be higher than the rest of your deck. After you get the glassing done is no time to discover you have to grind it down to make it fit. BTW - NOT A GOD, bilge boy maybe. If you go for it post up some pictures.

[wellcraftv20step]

hey ridge , thanks for the reply. i have no choice but to take on this project do you think i should double the plywood , not up to the supporting lip of course. but just to give the hatch more strength by having more density, and if so what should i use to join them together. and . it will be the last piece of the year long project, mymac helped me with re gelcoating the deck. i just wish i figured this before i gel coated the deck

[RidgeRunner]

I wouldn't double up. The fiberglass will serve to strengthen the plywood. Then the hatch gets screwed down and caulked in place. All of which makes it very sturdy. Do you have the cuddy or the center console?

[phatdaddy]

after you get the hatch the way you want it, when you go to fasten it down, lay a couple of the foam noodles(cut to fit) across on the tank straps. i did this on mine and it cut down on the flex the will eventually lead to failure of the glass. it is good if it has to compress a little.

[wellcraftv20step]

i have a cuddy