Ranger 25 cockpit hatches

[bobsboat]

The rear doors beneath the fish tank/cushioned seat at the rear of the Ranger 25 cockpit are very small. This makes it difficult to reach into the hull area to acess the stern thruster or macerator pump or three way waste water seacock. I have considered removing the center fiberglass vertical member and the teak verticals attached so that the entire hatch opening becomes twice the size. This probably means replacing the center fiberglass vertical piece and the two vertical center teak pieces with something removable that will support the seat and will provide latches for the two hatch doors.
Has this hatch size problem been encountered by anyone else? Has anyone solved this?
This is my first post so I hope I do it correctly!

[Island Ranger]

Yep - I would agree that access through that hatch is a pain.

I'm not sure I understand the modification you plan, but will sure be interested to see how it works

I also don't care for the latch that holds the fish well cover down - it is a pain to open/close when the seat cushion is attached. I'm open to ideas....

mac

[TimOb]

Bob, Your post got me thinking about this. It's a mod I want to make. So, here's an idea. Instead of a temporary post for the larger opening, you could reinforce the top of the opening on the inside with a piece of mahogany, teak, oak, stainless steel, etc. It's would be like a lintel on a building opening. The more difficult task will be to build a nice louvered door. Maybe one could use the 2 old doors and connect them to make 1 panel via an additional section in the middle. If done properly, it should look very similar to the current setup.

Another thought is to use the section to connect the 2 doors as the temporary brace. This would not require the lintel setup. The thickness of the section between the doors would extend into the cabinet and be tight against the opening.

Tim

[bobsboat]

Tim, I like your approach. Perhaps a large piece of teak vertically to hold the two hatches together and then hinge the whole thing from above. I need to see how many holes will show from the old hinges and see how difficult it will be. Thanks. Bob

[drjohn71a]

A variety of sizes of ready-made teak louvered doors is available in catalogs. You could find a set, or single door that would fit the sight prior to making any modifications, then prepare an opening to fit the closest available door.

John

[EDBRADY]

Gents,
I recently renoved the center strip from between the two access doors to gain better access to the stern thruster. I thought that after I changed the shear pin in the thruster and put everything back together that I would have to come up with an idea to replace the strip. However while reassembling I just shifted the doors so that they butted together at the center and there was still enough overlap on the outside edges so that no filler was required.
Ed Brady, Hull #4

[thataway]

H & L marine makes Teak louvered doors (Gardena Calif, I believe). They also have stock teak and many other fixtures. This company has been around a very long time, and made much of the teak for many boats built in Calif. Relitatively new owners but they seem to be co-operative when I visited last year.

[bobsboat]

OK, I started this and here is how I finally made the change to get full access. First I sawed through the vertical central teak pieces and the center fiberglass strip. Then I glued and screwed the teak pieces to each of their respective doors. Finally I glued and screwed the fiberglass strip to one of the teak pieces attached to one door.
Now I can open first one door and then the next door and have full opening under the seat box. The only visible change from the original arrangement is a small horizontal gap above and below the center of the doors. [I used a hacksaw blade to make the cuts to keep the cuts thin]. It is all setting up with 3M 4200 sealant and the screws. Tomorrow I will see if it all holds together. Bob

[TomRay]

Can you post pictures, Bob?

[TimOb]

Bob,
Nice mod. Seems simple and effective. I would like to see a pic or 2.

Tim

[bobsboat]

Sorry, I took three pictures but cannot figure out how to attach them to this reply. bob b

[bobsboat]

Hey, I finally figured out how to add photos to my photo album, thanks to the "help" messages and my son. My grandson is the first picture, in case you are wondering. The other three pictures are the cockpit hatches with the center frame pieces cut through so the entire opening can be exposed.

[Sea Wolf]

Bob-

Here are the three photos:








Nice Job!

Joe.