Snap rail failure

[hank clow]

Just returned from a great trip to Isle Royale. We had noticed that our snap rail that holds the bimini in place was beginning to crack and by the time we had trailered home the center section had completed cracked off.
Called the folks at Proctor Canvas and they no longer carry the composite snap rail. Suggested we do a replacement in teak. This we can do, but would prefer finding a ready made snap rail so we can continue enjoying our very limited boating season on Lake Superior.

Any suggestions???

Hank and Pat Clow
Meri Aura

[Sunbeam]

Are you talking about the type of rail that fastens to the boat (usually screws) and then has a 3/4" open "tube" that the corresponding bolt rope of your bimini slides into? That's something that many RV stores carry in various colors of plastic or in aluminum. But you say "snap." I can picture snaps, and I can can picture the bolt rope "rail," but I can't quite picture a snap rail (?). Usually with snaps, the male studs are just screwed into the boat individually. Maybe yours are on a rail? Could you post a photo?

In the meantime, have a look at www.sailrite.com They have many, many items for fastening canvas to the boat, and you might see what you need. You might even be able to use Snads (self-adhesive snap studs).

If it is actually a bolt rope rail (as first described), you should have any easy time getting one through an RV place, Sailrite, or other.

Now I'm curious to see what you do have!

Sunbeam

[thataway]

I suspect what you are describing is called awning rail:



The bolt rope which slides into this open awning rail, is usually 5/16 or 3/8" in diameter, not 3/4" (perhaps Sunbeam is confusing the width of some of the vinyl bases of this awning rail, with the size of the bolt rope. 3/4" diameter bolt rope is huge.)

It is readily available. If your local canvas shop will not obtain this then you can order it from Sail Rite, or any RV shop.

I am also puzzled by the term "snap rail"--snap rail, is a material used for hanging poster boards for display. It would not be suitable for a Bimni.

If by chance you have been snapping the bolt rope into this grove, rather than sliding it in place, might account for premature failure. Awning rail lasts many years under normal use. Perhaps you have some which degraded in UV light.

[Sunbeam]

Geez, I guess I needed more coffee! I said "3/4" open 'tube;" when what I meant to say was that it was a tube that was 3/4 closed and 1/4 open (i.e has a slit of sorts). Sorry, that came out totally wrong! At any rate, it's what Bob shows that I was describing. It's a very common RV or boat part, so you should not have any trouble getting it (if this is what you have). The "composite snap rail" part of your description, and the fact that your canvas place doesn't carry it make me wonder what you have though!

[hank clow]

It looks like our verbal description wasn't very clear and we're not in the modern age of instant photos, so we'll try again.

The snap rail is 6'X3/4"X1" and attaches to the region just above the door and forward of the combing. It is gently curved to fit the shape of the roof line. The snaps are on the forward side and the bimini is easily attached, This makes it very convenient when preparing for trailering. We assumed all C-Dorys had this set-up.

When we had a C-Dory dealer in Superior, WI the Proctor Canvas folks did many canvas jobs. They used teak for the snap rail to begin with and later found the composite product.

Looks like we'll be investing in teak. Will check with Sailrite on the chance that they might have a similar product.

Hank and Pat

[Sunbeam]

So if I'm reading (plus a little guessing) correctly, it sounds like you basically attach the forward end of your bimini to the cabin top with snaps, but instead of attaching the male snap studs to the cabin top, they fabricated some sort of rail, attached that across the cabin top, and then put the male snap studs in that. I can see why that would have to be a custom piece.

Perhaps they did this to emulate some of the "keeps water out" functionality of the awning rail, but with snaps. I say this because if the rail is raised, then less water could "slide" under the gaps between snaps. The awning rail keeps basically all the water out, but then you have to slide the bimini in from the side. The way this is usually handled is that that piece of canvas that slides in is a separate small strip with a zipper, then the main bimini zips onto that with two zippers - one running from each side to the center. This is so you can easily unzip half, flip the bimini corner back and embark/disembark.

So I'm thinking you do not have the strip, or the zippers, but instead you unsnap/re-snap a few snaps in order to flip part of the bimini back for extra clearance embarking/disembarking, and then they put the snaps on a rail to provide a bit more water-path resistance than snaps alone. (Of course most larger boats, you don't have to do this attaching/removing of the flap to embark/disembark because there is more headroom under the bimini to begin with.)

If you are happy with the functionality, then you could have the snap rail re-created (it could be teak, or perhaps fiberglass board milled to shape, or something else). If you think the extra water-tightness of an awning rail would be nice (and you like the idea of zipping a section open and shut instead of individual snaps), then you could have your bimini modifed by a canvas shop (we could show you photos of how it is done). Since you need to do something custom either way, this may be a chance to decide if you prefer the snaps or a zip (the canvas would have to be modified, but on the other hand the awning rail is an off-the-shelf item).

I definitely prefer the awning rail/zip combo, but that's not to say everyone would.

Sunbeam

[thataway]

It is rare to secure Bimini's with snaps, as Sunbeam says. Why not buy some teak and make your own? There are several ways to do this, if this is what you want. One is to get oversized teak and band saw (best) or saber saw (second best) to the contour of the top of the boat. I have done parts of dodgers with "wash boards" or "combings" which are fairly high (4 to 6") with Lift the dot fasteners (much easier to manage than snaps). I made this out of 3/4" wide teak, band sawed to match the contour of the cabin top, and hatch cover. It was screwed from underneath with flat head screws and finish washers thru the fiberglass of the cabin top (and hatch cover when it was off).

Another way to fit teak is to cut it in 1/4" thick strips and laminate it with Rescorcinol or Epoxy glue. Apparently the way your "snap board" was fabricated it did not last--and needs to be better engineered.

There is another material (I I am not familiar with the "fiberglass board" which can be milled which Sunbeam refers to), and that is PVC lumber. I just fabricated a motor mount using it and G Flex epoxy. It is strong, cheap and works well with wood working tools. You can probably bend it to fit the contour of the top of the cabin.

The awning rail works so well, as Sunbeam describes. Here is a photo of the Tom Cat 255 with the Bimini free standing, and the segment between the the free standing Bimini and the awning rail, which is attached to the very aft end of the cabin top. There is velcro as described over both the first zipper aft of the awning rail, and over that section over the where the first panel zips in to the Bimini. All of these zippers zip from the outside toward the middle, so it makes it easy to open up for easy access from the dock or the side deck,







The last photo shows awning rail used on the side of the cabin, with the same zipper/velcro which keeps spray or rain from getting in from the front of the boat. The fasteners at the bottom are the lift the dot, rather than snap fasteners.

Lots of ways to do these things, and nothing is "right". Some are well proven.