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Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

Catalina 25 Specific Forum

Hinges for bilge cover.

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redeye
Master Marine Consultant

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3475 Posts

Initially Posted - 05/14/2012 : 09:29:30

Talk about a hack job.. so I wanted to mortise the hinges..and I could get the router down and then not see where I was cutting. I added the hinges and then made the cut, so the hinges are good, but it was not fun routing it out. I'm no carpenter.

Next time I think I'll use the scroll saw to cut out a guide..

Ray in Atlanta, Ga.
"Lee Key" '84 Catalina 25
Standard Rig / Fin Keel

Edited by - on

JimGo
Admiral

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USA
962 Posts

Response Posted - 05/14/2012 : 11:53:29

We need photos!

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redeye
Master Marine Consultant

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3475 Posts

Response Posted - 05/14/2012 : 11:59:10

No Way... all the guys that really do wood working are gonna laugh..

I'll get too embarrassed and end up cutting a whole new board and add a flush hinge.

Way down on the list.. but I do love having easy access to the bilge..

get somebody else to show you how to do it correctly

Edited by - on

dolivaw
Navigator

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USA
109 Posts

Response Posted - 05/14/2012 : 19:38:05

Does anyone have a link to Prospector's hinge project? I've tried to find it, but no luck so far. Definitely want to add this to my ever growing list.

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redeye
Master Marine Consultant

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3475 Posts

Response Posted - 05/15/2012 : 04:42:59

OK... try to do better than this...

I had to grind the end of the screws to shorten them. bedded everything in gorilla glue. I marked the area, routed out the hinge area ( mortise ) and screwed the hinges in. Removed them and then hand cut the board.

The hinges are flush, but the "flap" will not fold completely back as the hinges are too deep. It does not pull them out if you force it all the way back.

Tired when I did the job, just finished another all day wood working project.

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JimGo
Admiral

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USA
962 Posts

Response Posted - 05/15/2012 : 06:59:23

Ray, what was the point of the hinges?

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redeye
Master Marine Consultant

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3475 Posts

Response Posted - 05/15/2012 : 07:13:51

I'm freaky about seeing into the bilge, after an adventure offshore in a hurricane. I wanna know quick and easy if I am taking on water, so the big round hole is so I can see in easily. The hinges are so I can lift up the "hatch" quickly and clean/inspect the bilge.

and hide the rum...

I will be adding a bilge pump just inside the flap and it will make it easy to inspect it and clean the screen on it.

Edited by - on

OJ
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4382 Posts

Response Posted - 05/15/2012 : 07:37:20

Clever, smart think'n

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JimGo
Admiral

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Response Posted - 05/15/2012 : 07:56:56

Ahhhh. So this is sort of a "quick access" point for the bilge? I assume the longer portion of the cover will remain screwed down unless/until you need to remove it all.

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redeye
Master Marine Consultant

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3475 Posts

Response Posted - 05/15/2012 : 08:02:40

Yepper... everything else screwed down... makes a door to the bilge.

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skrenz
Captain

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USA
351 Posts

Response Posted - 05/24/2012 : 09:01:41

Redeye,
This was a nice addition. I will keep it in mind.
As to the workmanship, this is an example of "power doesn't help." I am a carpenter and the easiest/best thing to do in this sort of situation would be to simply cut the recesses with a sharp chisel, even into plywood. By the time you make up a guide for the router, etc. you could cut five of these by hand. Please understand, I am in no way trying to belittle your workmanship only trying to point out to others that the "right tool for the job" applies, and often, even for professionals, the tendency is to grab some power tool when the old school way ends up being faster and better.

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Prospector
Master Marine Consultant

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Canada
3159 Posts

Response Posted - 05/24/2012 : 09:10:36

Dunno how I managed to miss this thread...

Dolivaw - I think I've been meaning to get a photo of our bilge plate for Red for quite some time now. About 3 years. A search of the forum and Iris blog brought nothing up for me as well.

Red - I did it a little different. No mortise.

The way you set it up may be better for your purposes, but by installing the hinges upside down, the barrel gets recessed into teh slot you cut. The bilge plate will open to about 100°. I prefer this for a couple reasons:

1. I don't need the cover opened beyond that.
2. Its sortof a warning to crew not to step in the hole if someone forgets to close the cover.
3. The cover will fall into the shut position underway if it is left open.
4. I can't run a router and it was easier to face-mount the hinges. I got fancy ones.

The downside is that the hinges are proud of the deck plate, and I live in fear of someone slicing their foot on one of the corners. It hasn't happened yet.

After having Chuck break her leg on Georgian Bay in an unrelated event during our cruise a few years back, making sure that teh hole is covered is a big deal to me. If anyone stepped into the bilge and busted their leg mid-shin, it would be disasterous.

The "quick access bilge plate" is a good upgrade if you ever need to check a bilge pump, check for leaks, etc. But it mostly stays shut since there's nothing down there worth looking at (he he)

BTW - make sure you wrap the bottles in bubble wrap or something similar - unless you make a divider to fit in the space - then you just need to pad the bottom. The well water sample bottles from The Ministry of Health are a good size for a round of drinks worth of your favorite spirit, just rinse them well. Nalgene (or similar) is also your friend. A divider is on my to-do list. without it, everything moves forward too much.

Edited by - Prospector on 05/24/2012 09:32:53

PZell
Admiral

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USA
548 Posts

Response Posted - 05/24/2012 : 09:47:07

I am not a carpenter either, but wouldn't a piano hinge on the underside of the cover work? That would only leave a thin cut line on the upper side and the hinge could just be put on flush without any chiseling.

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Prospector
Master Marine Consultant

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Canada
3159 Posts

Response Posted - 05/24/2012 : 09:50:11

I looked at piano hinge. you can get it in stainless I think. I ferget why I decided against it.

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Prospector
Master Marine Consultant

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Canada
3159 Posts

Response Posted - 05/24/2012 : 10:10:12

O/T... Ray - check your email.... now back to your regularly scheduled programming.

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Prospector
Master Marine Consultant

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Canada
3159 Posts

Response Posted - 05/24/2012 : 18:55:33

Here you go Red/Ray. A day late and a dollar short, but hey, whatever...

http://littleboatiris.blogspot.ca/2012/05/easiest-mod-ever-quick-access-bilge.html

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redeye
Master Marine Consultant

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3475 Posts

Response Posted - 05/25/2012 : 07:50:43

<< simply cut the recesses with a sharp chisel >>

Yepper... I agree Steve.. I was trying out a new router. I even had a mortise guide for that exact size hinge hanging up that is easy to bang in and mark the cuts.

I've gotten lazy about sharpening my chisels flat as I just destroyed my last pad on my sharpener. Hacked them up pretty bad with the grinder.

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redeye
Master Marine Consultant

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3475 Posts

Response Posted - 05/25/2012 : 12:52:11

I got in a hurry and just knocked the job out after finishing up another project. Something to keep the squirrels out of the plants for my grlfrnd.

I really wish I had taken a little more time and used some flush hinges like these.

http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=1182&site=ROCKLER

Edited by - redeye on 05/25/2012 12:54:47

benmatthew
Deckhand

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1 Posts

Response Posted - 09/01/2012 : 00:49:53

For the proper functioning of the hings its also very important that it should be installed at the right place for its effective working...

[url="http://www.alliance-express.com/adjustable-feet"]leveling feet[/url] | [url="http://www.alliance-express.com/"]plastic tube caps[/url]

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