Hatch replacement

[goodnumbers64]

I need to replace the mid-ship hatch on my 1980 Bristol 45.5. It is a Bomar aluminum casting and appears in catalogues as the "100" model. The broken one is aluminum casting and one of the hinges broke. The concern I have is that the opening measures 19 x 19 and the hatch in the Bomar catalog is 19 and 7/16 in both dimensions. I have not removed the old hatch. However, a salesman told me the size of the cutout is larger than the opening I measured in the boat. Has anyone had experience hatch replacement like this?

[Suijin]

You might want to give Bomar a call first and see if they have the broken hinge part. They are pretty good about stocking parts for older models.

The question is not whether the opening is exactly the same size, it's whether the mounting surface for the new frame is adequate in terms of size and flatness. You're only looking at basically 1/4" difference all around for the opening, and you could always make it larger if you insisted, with more or less work depending on the construction.

[goodnumbers64]

I have talked to their customer service. The broken hinge is actually part of the casting, not replaceable.

[Suijin]

Well pretty much all hatches are standard sizes and @ 19.5" is one of them, so no relief from changing brands. A few pictures of the current installation, inside and out, would help in terms of the advice you get.

[travellerw]

Originally Posted by goodnumbers64

I need to replace the mid-ship hatch on my 1980 Bristol 45.5. It is a Bomar aluminum casting and appears in catalogues as the "100" model. The broken one is aluminum casting and one of the hinges broke. The concern I have is that the opening measures 19 x 19 and the hatch in the Bomar catalog is 19 and 7/16 in both dimensions. I have not removed the old hatch. However, a salesman told me the size of the cutout is larger than the opening I measured in the boat. Has anyone had experience hatch replacement like this?

The salesman is correct. Cutout sizes are larger than opening sizes. I just replaced 2 hatchs that had an opening of 16"X16", but the cutout was 16 9/16"X16 9/16"... So a 19X19 bomar hatch should have a cutout of about 19 7/16 (or slightly larger).

[double u]

Lewmars size 60 should fit

[goodnumbers64]

Thanks. Confirms what I was told.that should make it easier.