CONTINUOUSWAVE

Q1: what vendor is a source for exact replacement plexiglass for the windows of the console of a NAUSET?

Q2: from what archive can a template for the window glass be obtained?

No templates exist that I am aware of for the glass pieces.

I would make cardboard templates and then take them to a glass shop and have them cut.

If you have the window frames from the NAUSET console you should be able to make your own template for the plexiglass window panes from the actual window frames into which the panes must fit.

As a general question about where to obtain OEM replacement parts, an article in REFERENCE provides a list of sources for various components. See

Original Equipment Manufacturers and
Recommended Vendors
https://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/OEM.html

With regard to the windshield of a NAUSET, read this entry:

https://continuouswave.com/whaler/refer ... tml#gasket

I assume the rubber gasket material takes some space.

Q3: how much smaller than the absolute largest opening does the glass have to be?

Q4: is there a ledge the glass sits on?

Q5: does the gasket overlap on both inner and outer sides of the console, with the glass, being held in place by this overlap of the wood?

Sorry, but I don't have the console in front of me.

When you next have the console frame in front of you, you probably can answer Q3, Q4, and Q5 yourself.

If you make the windows from Plexiglass, you can cut them a bit large and then trim them to shape to fit. This method is known as the "fit-and-assemble on location" method. The beauty of working with Plexiglass is the ability to easily trim it to fit, particularly if the trimmed edge will not be visible.

ASIDE: I first came across the terms "fit-and-assemble on location" on a detailed drawing showing the construction of a 1,000-foot radio tower. At some point about 950-feet up the tower a bracket was to be attached to hold some other element in place. The designer indicated that the bracket was to be "fit and assembled on location." In other words, make-it-up-as-you-go method--not the best approach at 950-feet in the air.

Jim, have you done this repair to an old mahogany console?
Thanks
Dave

Dave_a wrote:Jim, have you done this repair to an old mahogany console?

I have not.

DAVE--do you have any experience in working with Plexiglass or with making templates or with using a disc sander?

Let me explain the basis for my advice that has been offered.

My advice on suggesting you make a template from the original frame was not based on having made a template from the original frame of a NAUSET console, but it is based on using other original parts of other components to make a template for a replacement part for those other components.

My advice about fabricating the replacement window panes to be slightly larger than anticipated and then trimming them down to the exact size need was based on making replacement components that need to have an exact fit into an opening. From that experience I learned that to trim down a slightly oversized part to exact size is easier than to make an undersized part grow larger to fit exactly.

My comments about working with Plexiglass are based on my experience in working with Plexiglass. If you do not overheat Plexiglass when abrading its edges, you can easily trim the edges of a part made with Plexiglass using a disc sander that is in a fixed mount and has a table to support the workpiece.

After further thought, you can make the initial window pane to be slightly larger and trim it to exact size. Once you have the exact size you can make a duplicate to that exact size. I suspect on the NAUSET windshield the size of the window panes will be the same for the corresponding Port and Starboard sides of the windshield openings. Or, at least, you would expect the window frames to the same size, but 50-years after they were made and 50-years of exposure to weather, the size of the window frames might vary. That possibility of variation is another good reason to make a template FROM the actual windows on your particular 50-year-old boat.

Further in regard to making templates:

Two boat artisans have mentioned that a good material to use for making templates is 1/8-inch-thick Luan plywood, which is apparently known among artisans or other wood craftsmen by the term "door skin."

One artisan writes:

The template making material should be dimensionally stable, easy to work, weather resistant, and capable of being bonded with hot glue. Through our experience, we have found 1/8-inch thick Lauan plywood (door skin) to be the best template material.

Source:https://www.teakdecking.com/wp-content/uploads/HDO-050-TEMPLATE-MAKING-INSTRUCTIONS.pdf

Another artisan who works professionally as a boatwright demonstrates using "door skin" in multiple instances in his ongoing series of excellent presentations demonstrating his massive reconfiguration of a 60-foot ocean racing boat into a cruising sailboat. Source: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheDuracellProject

Disclaimer: I have not used this method myself, but, based upon the above information, my inference is that these boat artisans seem to know what they are doing and their use of a particular material for making a template may be considered as a reasonable source of good information about what material might be used to make a template.

Thank you for all the information. I'm sure it will come in handy.
I'm assuming the Petro Plastic gasket trim material will dictate the sizing and retention method of the plexiglass. We haven't discussed thickness, but again the trim should indicate that as well.
Much to think about.
Thanks