posted 07-11-2009 09:37 AM ET (US)        

These black molded plastic opening hatches were originally made by GRAY. GRAY was taken over by BOMAR, who then was taken over by POMPANETTE. A suitable replacement hatch is now available at pompanette.com. [See more hyperlinks below.]

The appropriate size is G910---1111. This hatch lists for about $216.

I ordered one of these hatches some time ago, but I did not get around to installing it until now.

I thought the old hatch might be difficult to remove, but it was not. The old hatch came out very easily after its mounting screws were removed. The sealant was mainly around the perimeter of the hatch ring, and it broke loose easily. I cleaned up all the old silicone from the deck. There was a noticeable difference in the color and luster of the gel coat which had been under the hatch for 19 years. I wet sanded with 600 emery paper to help blend the transition and conceal the line. I polished the deck area after wet sanding to restore its lustre.

The POMPANETTE G910 hatch is almost an exact replacement. Once you have one installed, it will blend very well with the original hatch. There are some notable differences.

The dimensions of the opening in the deck needed for the POMPANETTE hatch are just slightly smaller than the original hatch. The difference is about 1/8-inch. This means that a new POMPANETTE hatch will fit into the existing opening and the existing lower trim ring.

The latching mechanism of the POMPANETTE hatch is a lever; the old GRAY latch was a toggle bolt design. I like the new design.

The lifting arm friction lock on the POMPANETTE hatch is a rotating collet; the old GRAY hatch was a sliding friction lock with a knob. I like the old design.

The lid of the POMPANETTE hatch has a generous soft rubber gasket that is compressed when closed to seal the hatch. Time will tell if this stays supple and resilient. The old GRAY hatch had a much smaller and firmer rubber gasket. We never had any problems with a leak.

The lid of the POMPANETTE hatch when closed covers the base ring of the hatch; the old GRAY hatch had a larger base ring flange which extended about 1/8-inch to 1/4-inch beyond the hatch lid.

The POMPANETTE hatch base is pre-drilled for eight mounting screws; the old GRAY hatch was drilled for 12 mounting screws. None of the existing holes in the deck align with any new hole location.

Boston Whaler molded into the deck a raised island for the hatch to be installed on. To guide the carpenter fitting the hatch, the inner portion of the island that has to be cut out was indented. On my boat the cut out for the lower ring of the hatch was just about a perfect fit. There was only a small gap between the lower ring and the deck in one corner where the radius of the cut was slightly too large. Because this lower ring fit so well, I decided to leave it in place. The new hatch fits into it with about 1/8-inch clearance. The lower trim ring on both the new and old hatch did not have pre-made holes. As a result, the hole locations on the old trim ring were slightly non-uniformly spaced. If I had used the new lower trim ring it would not have fit into the deck cut out as well, and I would have had to drill eight new holes into the deck from below. Also, the old lower ring is taller and it covers all of the cut in the deck. The new ring is not as tall and would have left the upper portion of the cut in the deck exposed. I reinstalled the old lower ring and sealed it to the deck with a generous bead of silicone sealer. It appeared to me that the original had been sealed with silicone sealer, so I was guided by that choice in selecting a sealant.

After I had the lower ring back in place and the silicone sealant was cured somewhat, I repaired all of the existing (12) holes in the deck that would not be re-used. The screw holes were for No. 10 x 3/4-inch sheet metal screws. They were carelessly drilled and no relief was made for the gel coat resin layer, so every existing hole had chipped out segments of the gel coat layer, some quite large chips. I pried out the loose chips and removed any other loose material. I carefully masked with tape all 12 holes. I mixed some WEST System epoxy resin using a small repair kit foil squeeze package. I dripped resin into all the screw holes and covered the exposed laminate where the gel coat resin had chipped away. In this way I was certain that these old holes were now sealed and would not let water into the wooden core of the deck surrounding the hatch area.

As I mentioned, the cut out for the old hatch was perfect, that is, it was as small as it could possibly be. However, even with this perfect cut out, the portion of the raised deck island that remained was just wide enough to accommodate the slightly smaller new hatch base flange. The hole layout on the new hatch base put the forward and aft flange holes into solid material. The port and starboard side holes, however, fell right at the point where the deck was molded into the depression for the cut out. I carefully marked all eight new holes.

To mark the holes, I first marked and drilled two holes. Then I set the hatch base ring back in place and fastened it with two screws. Then I marked the rest of the holes. I figured that this technique gives me more accurate hole placement.

Because there was such a tight fit of the holes, I decided to use No. 8 x 3/4-inch sheet metal screws. They also fit the recessed holes on the new hatch base better than the existing screws. The old fasteners were oval head; the new pre-made holes were for pan head.

I carefully drilled the eight new holes. I worked up the hole size 1/64-inch at a time, starting with a 5/64-inch drill so that I could spot the hole center precisely. One or two of the holes ended up having to be drilled in the slope of the deck as it recessed from the island to the cut out. I drilled the holes up to 9/64-inch. I then relieved the gel coat resin layer to a larger 13/64-inch diameter. In spite of my best efforts, I cracked out some of the gel coat on one or two of the holes as I installed a screw. It appeared that there was an air void between the gel coat resin layer and the laminate which contributed to the brittle nature of the gelcoat in those instances.

I used a sacrificial fastener to pre-thread all of the holes. In this way I roughed up the head of that fastener in driving it in eight times. Then when I put in the finish fastener it does not have to cut all the threads. This makes it easier to drive and less likely to get the head damaged. Once I had the eight new holes drilled I test fitted the hatch base. The hole alignment was excellent.

I gave the deck a thorough cleaning so that the hatch and its sealant would have a clean surface to adhere to. I used acetone for the last wipe down. I put a generous bead of sealant on the hatch base ring, and I set the hatch in place. I installed the eight fasteners, trying my best to not mar their heads. As the hatch base was tightened a small ring of sealant squeezed out all around. I wiped this up with a wet cloth.

The project took most of the day, in part waiting for the sealant on the lower ring to cure and for the epoxy to set. I also wasted some time removing and then reinstalling the lower base ring in the cabin.

A plastic scraper is used to remove all of the old silicon sealant from the hatch mounting area.

posted 07-16-2009 09:24 AM ET (US)            

Both of my hold down toggles are broken. My hatches are held down by the tension knob. I have found that after a hard rain while underway or by taking a wave over the bow I get water in the cabin.

I plan to purchase and replace both of my hatches in the off season.

posted 07-16-2009 01:02 PM ET (US)            

Without the interior trim ring and scree, the list price is $188. The part number becomes G910---1100

My curiosity piqued by Jim's account, I just removed one hatch form my 1988 Revenge 25 Walk Through. It is branded as "Gray by Pompanette"

It very closely matches the description of Jim's new hatch so I wonder if it is not original to my slightly older boat.

Also of note on the hatch's label is the very first sentence:

"USE ONLY 3M #5200 CAULKING COMPOUND FOR BEDDING PURPOSES"

posted 08-14-2011 04:14 PM ET (US)            

The original hatch and inside trim ring are caulked with clear silicone rubber. I have not experienced any leaks in my boat, and I have slept aboard it, directly under the hatch, for hundreds of nights and in some very intense rain. If clear silicon rubber caulk was good enough for the first 21-years of this hatch, it will likely be good for the next decade or two.

There is a small tag on the new hatch--very hard to read and I had to use a magnifying glass--which says:

"USE ONLY SILICON BASED CAULKING COMPOUNDS FOR BEDDING PURPOSES."

The label also says, "Gray by Pompanette."

Based on this, I will use GE Silicon II clear sealant for bedding the trim ring and caulking the hatch to the deck. Having experience with the adhesive power of 3M-5200, I would never use it for this hatch. You'd have to cut the hatch away or chisel the hatch trim ring away from the boat laminate if you bedded it with 3M-5200.

posted 09-03-2011 09:30 AM ET (US)            

When we finally reached our destination and launched the boat--mercifully without any further rain--I was curious to see if there were any leaks from the new hatch. No leaks--the hatch seal was completely weather tight, both the silicon seal of the hatch ring to the deck and the rubber seal of the opening portion of the hatch.

posted 09-12-2011 06:30 AM ET (US)            

The water I'm speaking of is actually under the trapezoid shaped forward cushion. It puddles inside the storage locker of the same shape underneath the cushion. Even when setting in the driveway, it will leak through the anchor hatch and into the cabin space. And this is when the trailer and boat are 1-2 inches higher than the stern

Before I redo the work I've already performed, I was curious if anyone else has had a similar dilemma and if so, how have they solved the problem.

Norm

posted 03-30-2013 09:37 PM ET (US)            

http://pompanettellc.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Bomar_Catalog-rev.09.13.2016.pdf

posted 04-04-2013 10:02 AM ET (US)            

Here are some photos of my 1990 Revenge 22- W.T. foredeck OLD hatch repairs of 2007. I have nothing on the new hatches.

http://smg.photobucket.com/user/jimp/library/ Revenge%20Foredeck%20hatches

posted 04-04-2013 10:23 AM ET (US)            

thanks for posting the pictures.