Hello to all and what a great site. I am well underway in the construction of my first tear. I am getting close to installing the roof and I am looking at different options. I have two things enhancing the challenge. First, I am trying to keep cost down so I ruled out an aluminum skin. The second is I am making my tear 72" wide.
I was originally just going to skin it with 1/8" birch and coat it with an oil based stain and marine spar varnish. I am concerned about durability and 4 sheets of the ply is over $100 and about $50 for the stain and varnish. A more expensive option is to go with a fiberglass resin but that is a huge mess and over $200. The idea I came up with would be to use 1/8" hardboard (like peg board without the holes) for the roof and then covering the top with vinyl. I found a shop that carries the vinyl in 72" width used for tonneau covers. Waterproof and no seams. Cost for hardboard, glue, vinyl and the corner molding about $150. I am leaning toward the vinyl. I might still do the hatch in the birch. Any suggestions?
Thanks in advance!
Jay