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> I have the the deck of my Coho ready to attatch to the hull. It seams to
> me it would be much easier to cut my hatch openings now so I would have
> better access to the inside hull/deck joint for glassing. I remeber
> reading (but couldn't find) a post saying this was a bad idea. Why?
> I also remeber reading abouta handle for a jig saw blade that makes this
> job easier.I haven't been able to find this tool at any local hardware or
> woodworking store. Where can I find one?
The primary reason not to cut the hatches BEFORE attaching the deck is that the hatch covers are made from the piece you cut out. Since the deck is not truly in it's final shape before being attached, if you cut out the hatches, then attached the deck, the hatch covers you have would then not be a perfect fit to the shape of the hole. They would certainly then be leaky. By all means there's no rule that says you have to glue and tape the inside shear seam before you cut the hatches, though. Using the syringe-on-a-broomstick jig that Pygmy recommends was a pain - and don't even try it unless you have bent tip syringes. But once the deck is stitched on and the outer shear seam is glued, and even if you've glassed the outer deck with the overlapping over the shear, you can cut the hatches at that point and use the additional access to make a better glue/tape joint on the inner shear - as the deck is now in its final shape.
The Pygmy instructions said something about taking a fine-toothed jigsaw blade and putting it in some vice-grips and sawing that way. Sounded to me like a recipe for frustration. I definitely wouldn't recommend using a power jigsaw, not enough control. I bought a cheap keyhole saw with a finetooth blade and sawed my Coho hatches out by hand. Worked fine, had slightly more than a 1/16th inch gap between the edges of the cover and the edges of the hole when I was done. Spent one blade per hatch, as they tended to get dull and a little bent - but they were cheap.
Hope this helps, C
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Guillemot Kayak - High
Performance Wooden Sea Kayak Designs
