Hatch Pulls

[CaptPatrick]

For those that missed the discussion of hatch pulls on the "Swap and Sell" section of the board, and as a follow up for those involved, here a quick series of images on how they are made and work:



This example is for the double pull that would be needed for a larger hatch cover such as a fish box lid.

I've turned down the hex heads of two 1/4x20 2" bolts to be about 1/16" high and 3/8" in diameter. The parts are clamped tightly to a welding table and TIGed at 1 amp fusing with a series of 1 second shots.







The holes in the hatch cover are drilled slightly over sized and heavily counter sunk to accept the fillet of the weld, allowing the plate to lay flat.





Next, using a hole saw, cut out pockets on the underside of the hatch to accept 3/4" PVC end caps.





Flatten the top of the PVC cap and embed it using thickened resin,





Clean up excess resin including the countersunk holes on the hatch top.



Flush the caps down nearly to the hatch surface and re-drill the holes from the top surface.











The rest is cosmetics....

For lighter/smaller hatch covers, just a single round disc is used and as small as a #10 flat head machine screws can be used for the pin.

Br,

Patrick

[Harry Babb]

Thanks for the visuals Pat. I intend to copy exactly what you have shown.....so simple yet so effective.

Harry

[JeremyD]

That's GREAT - thank you.

Anybody know a source for the clear plastic "tabs" that the B28 has on the single pulls? This is definitely on my project list as I don't want water intrusion in my hatches and them getting soft.

[CaptPatrick]

Jeremy,

Remove the carriage bolts, over-drill the holes, and sleeve the holes with PVC pipe... See: Hardware Mounting in Composites in the Tips Section.

Br,

Patrick

[Navatech]

What's the purpose of the 3/4" PVC end caps?

[CaptPatrick]

Mainly to keep any water from the core... They also make a more cosmetically appealing execution and allow for shorter bolts and less hanging down below the hatch cover.

[Bob H.]

Slick trick Capt. Pat, do you buff n polish the pull or paint to match? BH

[CaptPatrick]

Haven't tried painting them, Bob, since they get a lot of foot trafic, same with high polish... Mostly they're sanded totally flat and brought up to a sheen through 600 wet. Sharp edges are beveled with a fine file.

I prep the bolt head by turning it on a lathe to leave just a smidgen of material and then fuse it with the TIG torch using no filler material.