diy hard top bimini

Gunni

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Mar 16, 2010
5,937
Beneteau 411 Oceanis Annapolis
On a 34’ boat that would be equivalent to a small aircraft stabilizer. It is nice to be able to reduce windage on a boat.
 
Jan 19, 2010
12,362
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
@Gunni
He is most likely sailing Guntersville Lake in which case you just go tie off when the weather gets bad.
 

Sailm8

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Feb 21, 2008
1,746
Hunter 29.5 Punta Gorda
I thought about one before I went with the traditional canvas. I had looked at greenhouse roof material and even prepainted metal roofing. Places like Home Depot carry a thin plastic material for shower walls. I just decided I wasn't skilled enough to make it turn out as I envisioned.
 
Jan 5, 2017
2,263
Beneteau First 38 Lyall Harbour Saturna Island
Our friend with a Bene 34 did a hard Dodger, male mold, carbon fibre lay-up, vacuum bagged etc. He wanted it strong enough to walk on. That seems a lot of work for a bit of shade!
 
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Jan 19, 2010
12,362
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
What about re-purposing the hard covers on golf carts?.... or having a fiberglass guy from a body shop make you a custom one. I can imagine really liking one if it was designed to fit my boat well, had a traveler installed on the top, had fair leads that brought all of my reefing lines, sheet, outhaul and topping lift line (and in my case dagger board lift line) through to the cockpit is a highly organized way... I know a guy who makes custom aluminum racks for pick-up truck beds. I've often thought that it would be nice to have a "rack" made for my cockpit of my boat. But in this imagination of mine I was still going with a cloth bimi that I could roll out and snap to the frame.

 
Mar 26, 2011
3,401
Corsair F-24 MK I Deale, MD
I've had both, and hard top is nicer and cooler. But building a light, strong molded hard top is not simple, and many turn out ugly. Of course, many canvas dodgers are ugly too! Stick with light colors (cooler and looks smaller); I find navy biminis hot in the sun.

There is really no reason it cannot be removable. Most are bolt-on constructions, and removing a small hard top is often easier than removing a canvas dodger. But you won't.
 
Oct 19, 2017
7,733
O'Day 19 Littleton, NH
The only problem with a hard top bimini is it is harder to stow, so once it's up... no more windage than a soft top.
B crites, it sounds like you are on a freshwater lake. How wet is your sailing? You can probably get away with an inexpensive sheet of 1/4" luan from a local box store. Cut to size to include a light frame rabbetted around the exposed edges made of something like spruce or cedar (also available at the box store). Use a strong waterproof glue, Gorilla glue, Titebond 3, epoxy. Finish the whole top with epoxy base-coat, then paint or varnish.
Erect your superstructure and bolt the top down with ss carriage bolts bedded with a rubber gasket or butyl tape. Not complicated. Design it with camber to shed water and improve strength.

-Will (Dragonfly)
 

capta

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Jun 4, 2009
4,766
Pearson 530 Admiralty Bay, Bequia SVG
I've been thinking about it and looking around for years. I've seen some really well-done dodgers, but I haven't gotten the name of the plastic sheeting used. My real problem here is how to attach the cloth that holds the Eisenglass windows onto the top.
For a hard top, it has occurred to me that it is quite possible (in our case) a full-size truck fiberglass Tonneau Cover would be just about perfect, especially considering I'd add a clear/tinted section down the middle, so I can see the sails, and maybe a hatch. They are well made, low maintenance, lightweight and come in lotsa purty colors. And dirt cheap when you compare them to the cost of having a cloth bimini made!
One for a smaller pickup could do for a smaller boat?
 
Nov 26, 2008
1,966
Endeavour 42 Cruisin
PVC sheets are light weight and easily curved to fit in place over the bimini bows. Taco Metal makes a nice trim called Flex Trim that can be fitted to the edges. There is also Flex-A-Rail at sailrite that is a track you slide piping into for your windows, sort of like the luff track for your genoa. As soon as my bimini top gives out I'm on this.
 

capta

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Jun 4, 2009
4,766
Pearson 530 Admiralty Bay, Bequia SVG
PVC sheets are light weight and easily curved to fit in place over the bimini bows. Taco Metal makes a nice trim called Flex Trim that can be fitted to the edges. There is also Flex-A-Rail at sailrite that is a track you slide piping into for your windows, sort of like the luff track for your genoa. As soon as my bimini top gives out I'm on this.
I wish it was that easy. The people I've talked to who have used the track you slide piping into, say it won't do the job on a cruising boat. It gets weak and bends. Not strong enough to take green water on the dodger windows.
 
Oct 10, 2011
619
Tartan 34C Toms River, New Jersey
I wish it was that easy. The people I've talked to who have used the track you slide piping into, say it won't do the job on a cruising boat. It gets weak and bends. Not strong enough to take green water on the dodger windows.
I've never had that happen to any of the hard tops that I built over the years. I used it on Sportfishermen and performance center console fishing boats. Some of those boats were in some real nasty seas. Maybe I am thinking of a different product.
 
Nov 26, 2008
1,966
Endeavour 42 Cruisin
I've never had that happen to any of the hard tops that I built over the years. I used it on Sportfishermen and performance center console fishing boats. Some of those boats were in some real nasty seas. Maybe I am thinking of a different product.
Would you mind linking to the specific product you're using, there are several types available.
Thank you
 
Dec 28, 2015
1,837
Laser, Hunter H30 Cherubini Tacoma
I've seen blogs were people have used fiberglass sheets for shower walls and corrugated plastic sign board stock as ideas...