i agree about the sliding doors !!! I love my teak doors tothe aft deck.

about the hatch, i think it's part of the boat, i don't think a modern hatch would look good there on that foredeck. The vent is nice to get a little air in but i dont' like the orangy semi transparent material on the forward half, I've been thinking about replacing it with lexan...

about the weight, how about adding some gas struts ? that shoudl work...