New cabin sole width

Jan 22, 2008
309
Hunter 34 Herrington South, MD
I may have already posted in the wrong place, but wondering where to cut replacement dole panels so that they can fit down the companion way. Don't really want to put seam in main walkway and not sure how to connect panels so they don't move and leave a gap or ridge once they are in place.
 
Oct 19, 2017
7,732
O'Day 19 Littleton, NH
Pictures?
What are your measurements?
You've posted in the big boat forum, so I'm thinking you're companionway opening is pretty large.
If you need to, you can cut and fit the parts and glue it up on the boat once you've taken the panel parts down below.
You looking to make the cabin sole out of plywood? It's easy to hide a glued seam when the plywood looks like this.


-Will (Dragonfly)
 
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Sep 4, 2007
764
Hunter 33.5 Elbow, Saskatchwen, Can.
I cut mine under the water tank so you wouldn't see the seam. The seam is just inside of the cabinet that hides the water tank. You can also see a seam under where the septic tank sits.upload_2019-1-23_7-38-14.png
upload_2019-1-23_7-38-14.png
 
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Jan 22, 2008
309
Hunter 34 Herrington South, MD
Don,
THANKS! Just what i needed to know. I see that my sole may already have a seem in the same place. I have most of the cabin pulled out and will be removing the holding tank this weekend. is the sole attached in any way? Or do I just pry it up?
 
Jan 22, 2008
309
Hunter 34 Herrington South, MD
Don,
THANKS! Just what i needed to know. I see that my sole may already have a seam in the same place. I have most of the cabin pulled out and will be removing the holding tank this weekend. is the sole attached in any way? Or do I just pry it up? Did you connect the panels in any way or just rest them next to each other?
 
Oct 19, 2017
7,732
O'Day 19 Littleton, NH
where would one acquire marine sole plywood like you have pictured above?
I would get mine at Boulter Plywood near Boston. For the PA area, I don't know, but it should be available.
A quick Google search for "marine plywood teak holly" gave me Jamestown Distributors https://www.jamestowndistributors.com/mobileportal/show_product.do?pid=51940
Adding "Pennsylvania" to the search, I got Thompson Mahogany Company 225 Lincoln Highway Fairless Hills, PA 19030. http://thompsonmahogany.com/teak-plywood/ .

-Will (Dragonfly)
 

Gunni

.
Mar 16, 2010
5,937
Beneteau 411 Oceanis Annapolis
McIlvain in White Marsh, MD sells teak and holly ply,
Exotic Lumber up in Annapolis (and now Frederick) also distribute.
The sailboatowners.com boat store sells a 1/4” holly and teak ply, not sure if they can source you the sole material, typically 3/4”.

Once you recover from sticker-shock you migh also want to consider LonMarine ply, a common, tough sole ply with a synthetic top composite that simulates teak and holly. Tough as pig’s snout.
https://lonseal.com/products/product-details/line/LONMARINE® WOOD/
I know defender sells the stuff.
 
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Jan 24, 2017
666
Hunter 34 Toms River Nj
Mike,
Unfortunately the cabin sole was installed before the top decking was installed. I just recently replaced mine, and I kinda cheated.
I used plasic sheething to make exact templates of only the sole sections that were visible around all the cabinetry. My sole was not rotted it was just stained and veneer was just delaminated . So I made the templates out of marine grade 1/2 inch play wood that I bought at and then glued teak and holly tongue and grove on top of it. The teak and holly wood flooring I got from maritime wood products. Worked out great, looked just like factory but better because it is solid wood instead of the cheep veneer garbage the the factory installed 35 years ago.
Only one big miss calculation!

The templates I took so much time and effort to fabricate.
Did not fit thru the companion way!! CRAP !!
They missed by at least a foot or more.
So I had to cut them in half to fit. That really sucked because that was what I was trying so hard to avoid.



Capt Robbie, 12 minutes agoEditDeleteReport
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Jan 24, 2017
666
Hunter 34 Toms River Nj
Mike,
as I said in the previous post the sole was installed before the top deck was fitted to the hull. The seam you see Don Crowther's photo is the 4x8 sheet that was installed at the factory and then seamed. There is no way that you can get it thru the companion way opening. When I did mine I found that I would have to make to many seams with the teak and holly veneer plywood. Plus I was afraid that it would delaminate and ware as poorly as the original did. The shipping cost was also extremely expensive as opposed to maritime wood products. The teak wood flooring is a much higher quality. The tongue and grove flooring was really easy to install.
 
May 6, 2010
472
1984 Oday 39 79 Milwaukee
If shipping sheets is prohibitive, you can always make your own. I did a repair on a section of our sole where there was damage from a mast leak a long time ago. I bought a sheet of thin teak veneer (shipped rolled), and a roll of white oak thin veneer, and after rebuilding the damaged plywood with thickened epoxy, laid up the veneer strips. It's pretty evident in the photo where my repair is but as the varnish has aged it is hardly noticeable now. I also made a piece for a step in the v-berth which I veneered over Baltic Birch plywood. It wouldn't be hard to do it on a larger sheet and it is quite a bit less expensive than sheets of 3/4" teak and holly.
 

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Sep 4, 2007
764
Hunter 33.5 Elbow, Saskatchwen, Can.
Mike
The old floor was screwed down and the screw heads hidden with plugs. I never bothered screwing the new one down. The weight of the cabinetry holds it down just fine for a fresh water sailor.
 
Dec 14, 2003
1,393
Hunter 34 Lake of Two Mountains, QC, Can
I cut like Don did under the port water tank and then on starboard side where the joint is under the settees just leaving a short section of the seam exposed under the table area, which sees a lot less traffic. I sail often in the Gulf of St-Lawrence and therefore screwed the floor sections but none of the screws are showing as I put them all under the settees. I painted the under floor side with an epoxy based paint to help delay rotting as long as possible. I did the job in 2009 and have not had to touch it since. Good luck
 

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Jan 22, 2008
309
Hunter 34 Herrington South, MD
I think I have the main cabin sole sorted out, now for the forward and aft soles. Are these also 3/4 inch? Can you use 4 x 10 foot 3/4 Holly and teak plywood and use the remaining 4 feet or just buy another sheet or two as needed?
 
Jan 22, 2008
309
Hunter 34 Herrington South, MD
Part II - I've finished 6 coats of Awlgrip, Allwood Satin on the teak and holly main floor. I used the seal that goes under the holding tank and cut another seam on the other side just under the port side seat. This left me with one board under the water tank and another forward of the hull rib (?). I also painted the bottoms with an epoxy paint.

Has anyone replaced the other two cabin soles forward and aft of the main cabin? Pictures? Thoughts?
 

HMT2

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Mar 20, 2014
899
Hunter 31 828 Shoreacres, TX
I think I have the main cabin sole sorted out, now for the forward and aft soles. Are these also 3/4 inch? Can you use 4 x 10 foot 3/4 Holly and teak plywood and use the remaining 4 feet or just buy another sheet or two as needed?
Mike, I replaced my front and back soles on my Hunter 31, and refinished the center pieces. My H31 is very similar to your Hunter 34. What I found was that the aft and middle soles are 3/4 inch and sit on a lip (to which you screw into) and that the sole near the vberth is 1/2 inch and is glued directly to the fiberglass and screwed down as well. It was delaminated so I pulled the teak and holly part off for a pattern and then got after remaining plywood with a scraper.
70EEF887-32B7-45D1-BCE2-E590BC4A1DCC.jpeg
 

dakno

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Jun 22, 2009
209
Hunter 41DS new orleans
The last time I did a sole I purchased 1/2" marine plywood and 1/4" teak and holly plywood and bonded them together to yield the required 3/4". 3/4" teak was not available locally.
 
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