Hey Andrew!

[mikeschn]

Okay I understand... so you're saying the color will be something like this...



Mike...

[BufordT]

Okay I understand... so you're saying the color will be something like this...



Mike...

What a beautiful tear!!!!!

See, beauty is in the eye of the beerholder!!!!!!!!

Bufordt

[RC]

Okay I understand... so you're saying the color will be something like this...



Mike...

Yep, only redder :!:

[R Keller]

As Mike said, my hatch is very similar.

I constructed it as a sandwich panel using 1/8" Baltic Birch on each side and 1.5" styrofoam in the middle.

The framing is as follows:
- 1.5x1.5" poplar crossbeam at hinge.
- 3/4"x1.5" poplar cross beam at bottom
- two 3/4"x1.5" poplar crossbeams at the middle "bend". These were each ripped at the approropiate angle on a table saw and then glued together with the outside edge sanded round.
-two 3/4"x1/5" stringers (cut at angle and pocket screwed together at the middle bend)

That's it. I glued the assembly up with the framing and outside skin first. And then epoxied the foam and inner skin in two stages so that I could get good clamping on both flat parts.

I also fiberglass-taped the outside of the middle bend for peace of mind. Probably not needed.

Because of the sandwich construction, the hatch itself seems plenty strong and stiff. I've placed my gas supports brackets at about 6" from the hinge which is as far as I can get. Any farther and I wouldn't be able to close the door all the way (compressed length of gas support would be too small). It does put a lot of pressure on the hinge. not sure if this is a problem though.

Also, in your drawing, you have a little "leg" at the top of the hatch. Is that needed? That may put more stress on the structure.

The "bare" hatch (plywood, foam and framing) weighs about 35 lbs. The aluminum skin weighs another 11 lbs. I just weighed the whole hatch this morning at 54 lbs., so I guess the wiring, lights, trim, hinge, etc. added about 8 lbs.

Rik

[RC]

Thanks for weighing in on this Rik. I appreciate your input.

Remember, I only "borrowed" these plans from Andrew. I believe he is an engineer, and probably knows what can work, and what might not work. That said, I see what you mean about the "leg" at the top of the hatch, and it probably wouldn't be any problem to do away with it. To me, it looks like it was done to get a bit more room in the galley area, and to maintain an aesthetically pleasing angle.

I am always amazed at how some people can make a shape that is so pleasing to the eye, where my shapes are best viewed in total darkmess!

I am not planning on making the hatch a sandwiched affair. That is to hopefully make it a simpler, and lighter assembly.

Thanks again Rik

[RC]

Hey Mike,
Any idea about when Andrew is supposed to be back from holiday?

[mikeschn]

When Andrew wrote me on Aug 12th, he said he'd be gone for a couple weeks. If we take that literally to mean 2 weeks from Aug 12, that would be Aug 26. Beyond that, it's anybody's guess...

Mike...

[RC]

Drat! So that means that I posted the first part of this thread, about the time he was walking out the door!

[mikeschn]

Yep, that's usually the way it happens.

Mike...

[RC]

bump

[BufordT]

Yep, And not to mention it will most likely take him a few days to catch up on reading the board if he's been gone that long.

Bufordt

[angib]

Yup, Buford was dead right. I'm still reading as fast as my little eyes will go and then there's still the 150 e-mails to go as well...

As designed the fenders were custom-made from plywood - this was intended as a basic design for people to whom the phrase 'store-bought' might cause offence...

The way the hatch hangs out over the prop is indeed a possible weakness - if you want a hatch that can be swung on (that would be by the beerholder, I guess?) then a separate prop further along is needed.

On the Simple, the prop acts on a corner brace that joins the 'top' and 'back' of the hatch, so that is a stronger joint than it may look. The 'top' bit of the hatch is pretty vital as otherwise the hatch will be a head-bumper when it's open. For the Rimple, I had assumed the hatch ribs would be made from at least two layers of 3/8" ply laminated together.

Mike's comments about overloading the interior with too much storage sound right, so I guess that's a design mod to add to the list of things to do...

And I second Rik's comment about adding some fiberglass tape where additional strength would be a benefit.

Must stop reading and eat.

Andrew

[BufordT]

Welcome back Andrew. Missed your comments for the past couple of weeks glad to see you back. Hope you enjoyed your vacations.
Bufordt

[RC]

So Andrew,
As you can probably tell, I just scabbed together a couple of your drawings to come up with another design. Since you have the real talent here, do you think this new profile deserves a set of plans on your web site? I guess, if nothing else, it could show the versitality of your design.

At this time, this is the design I am leaning towards (but a lot of things could change that), but I still have a lot of planning to do.