Ports and Hatch

Ports and Hatch - Sounds like a 70's lite-rock pop duo!  We made quite a lot of progress on the ports and hatch in the starboard float.  In our last post we showed how we laid out the ports and hatch with our super high-tech laser system (while listening to the 70's super duo Ports and Hatch!)  Here's how I fabricated the access ports in the deck:

 I strapped the pattern for the router to the deck, carefully aligning it with our layout.  By setting the depth of the router I was able to carve out a flat shelf to support the port ring.  I wanted the top of the finished ports to be approximately flush with the deck, so it took a little arithmetic to determine how deep to set the ring.  Although the router and this procedure is not required to make the ports, the result is very clean and I think it will look great.

Here is the resulting access port hole with the shelf cleaned up.  The ring and port are also shown for reference.  As described previously, the rings are intended to provide a flat surface for the port to mount on.  I vacuum laminated the rings many months ago (when I thought this would only take a few weeks to finish!)  Now the opening is ready for the ring to be glued in place.

A quick trial fit before final assembly.  Even at this stage the port looks very clean and finished.

Here is the port hole with the ring glued in permanently with a thin epoxy - microballoon mixture.  I also added some putty around the raised edge of the ring to start blending it into the hull.  Next I will add more extra light putty to fully blend the raised edge into the hull.  Where the deck rises above the ring will be filed back slightly to remove the sharp edge.  Then I will add glass inside and out to structurally join the ring to the hull.  A little filler and sanding and we are done with this step.