Translucent hatches

[rsmith]

Hatteras used some type of translucent resin in the hatches. Most are a yellowish color mine are blue. Anyone know what type of resin they used? Must be something UV resistant since mine have lasted 56 years.

[Glory]

My only hatch on the bow started show signs of the UV winning. I put sun screen on it. So far it seems to be working.


Actually I made that up

[madhatter1]

I kinda messed mine up but maybe not so much. Therew were loose fibers everywhere on the exterior so I jus mixed up some resin and coated it. But it made little mountains where the fibers stood up. So had to sand/grind flat and recoat. But has yellowed. Now I see why. At least I stopped deterioration and now I can sand/grind down flat to original material and recoat with proper material.

[Briankinley2004]

Not sure what Hatteras used but there is this stuff. I haven't used it but almost did on an outdoor river table

https://raka.com/product/uv-inhibited-epoxy-kits/

[SEVEN]

My bow hatch was so bad I changed it to poly carbonate plastic with a clear but really dark 1/2” piece. It’s been an alarm for eight years and still looks fabulous.

[jim rosenthal]

My Hatteras has only one fiberglass hatch, which has a molded FRP hatch cover with a translucent center section. As they age, these covers don't look good, and sometimes fiberglass threads get loose.

It turns out that if you just remove the hatch cover altogether, wash it thoroughly, sand it lightly, and paint it with AwlGrip by hand, it looks fine for years afterwards. AND, nearly as much light comes through. The hatch cover appears to be the same color when you view it from the deck, but light does get through it about like it did before. Without the yellowed center section, it looks much better.

[Scarlett]

I cut out the translucent area and installed clear plexiglass. It made a huge difference in the brightness in the forward cabin.

[Vincentc]

Not sure what Hatteras used but there is this stuff. I haven't used it but almost did on an outdoor river table

https://raka.com/product/uv-inhibited-epoxy-kits/

I've use Raka uv inhibited epoxy for years on numerous boat projects. It is a good product at a good price; however, it will not withstand long term exposure to sunlight must have a covering to protect it.

[SKYCHENEY]

The problem is that the thermal expansion rate of any of the clear plastics is greater than the fiberglass that you are attaching it to. So you need to account for that and use the right sealant. I'll have to look for some photos of what I did years ago on mine.