mac 25 poptop weather seal replacement?

[centerline]

im trying to get the poptop better supported and sealed when closed. some of the seal is missing. should the poptop actually set fiberglass to fiberglass at the outer edge when closed, or should there be a slight gap all around it as it is supported on the weather seal around the inner edge of the deck opening?
what is the recommended replacement seal for the weather seal around the pop top? is it a bulb seal or just a flat, dense weather seal?
also, there should be a splash seal at the forward combing under the sliding hatch, is this formed seal still available? thanks....

 

[THECUSCUS]

BWY has the seal. It only goes on the "inner" edge. I put a piece of "edging" trim on the front of the sliding hatch (and around all my hatch openings) to close that gap up because if you take a big splash over the bow, water will get inside the boat. I got the edging on EBay.

 

[RonRock]

I have been wondering about the seal also. Is there something readily available that could be used? I need to remove and do some work on my pop top and when that is done I will buy the correct seal from BWY. But in the meantime I would like to get something to seal it up. I'd just buy the correct stuff now, but it looks like a one time shot at sticking it down.

 

[centerline]

BWY has the seal. It only goes on the "inner" edge. I put a piece of "edging" trim on the front of the sliding hatch (and around all my hatch openings) to close that gap up because if you take a big splash over the bow, water will get inside the boat. I got the edging on EBay.

maybe im not searching the site correctly, but I searched BWY and could find nothing listed for weather seals.

its too bad someone hasnt taken the time to add photos of the parts and filled in other parts of it and brought the BWY website to life. it seems kind of bland and stagnant to me.... a lot of the prices seem very reasonable but im not one to purchase blindly... I like pictures... IMHO

 

[justsomeguy]

maybe im not searching the site correctly, but I searched BWY and could find nothing listed for weather seals.

its too bad someone hasnt taken the time to add photos of the parts and filled in other parts of it and brought the BWY website to life. it seems kind of bland and stagnant to me.... a lot of the prices seem very reasonable but im not one to purchase blindly... I like pictures... IMHO

Give 'em a call. They're very helpful.

 

[THECUSCUS]

From BWY. $2.20 a foot. Works for the laz hatch & bow hatch also

 

[caguy]

I searched for a long time to try an find a seal that would work and found nothing. The gap on the inside is so big is parts of the hatch that I finally bought a couple of packages of 1" foam seal from Pep Boys. I layed it up 1 and 2 layers in some areas and 3 layers where the gap was wider. That seemed to work. My biggest problem was water coming in when I washed the boat. Rain did not seem to effect it even when there was no seal. I don't know if the pop top warped or if it was always like that, at any rate the orriginal 3/4" foam seam was not cutting ir.

 

[centerline]

I searched for a long time to try an find a seal that would work and found nothing. The gap on the inside is so big is parts of the hatch that I finally bought a couple of packages of 1" foam seal from Pep Boys. I layed it up 1 and 2 layers in some areas and 3 layers where the gap was wider. That seemed to work. My biggest problem was water coming in when I washed the boat. Rain did not seem to effect it even when there was no seal. I don't know if the pop top warped or if it was always like that, at any rate the orriginal 3/4" foam seam was not cutting ir.

the outer edge of my pop top sets down flush and tight all the way around on the cabin top, and inside there is a bit of a raised combing around the cabin top that comes within about 5/8" of an inch from touching the pop top.... this is where the seal is now(stuck to the poptop). 5/8"thick X 1"wide dense black foam type seal, but its not quite thick enough for a good seal. a 3/4"thick piece would be perfect. but the bulb seal may be a better option because its lighter and can fill a larger gap (depending on the size of the bulb). I did not know the fore hatch and the cockpit hatch used gaskets. I have washed the boat with high pressure and have not experienced water getting into either the fore hatch or the cockpit hatch, so i probably wont add a seal there.
BUT, thats not the case with the sliding hatch cover. a little water flow near the front of the hatch cover will dump it right into the cabin.
On my 21 there was a formed piece of rubber under the slider that was glued to the front combing of the cabintop, and it wrapped around the opening a couple of inches on both sides of where the slider stopped (you couldnt see it unless you removed the slider from the boat)..... it dammed or diverted the water flow to the side enough that the water never got over the top and into the cabin.... I need that piece. but the bulb seal may work for that as well.

 

[caguy]

Here is a picture showing the foam gaskets. If I had to do it again I would use a 1" or 1 1/4" firm foam sheet and cut it into strips and glue it on with contact cement. Easier, cleaner and cheaper.

 

[Piotr]

maybe im not searching the site correctly, but I searched BWY and could find nothing listed for weather seals.

its too bad someone hasnt taken the time to add photos of the parts and filled in other parts of it and brought the BWY website to life. it seems kind of bland and stagnant to me.... a lot of the prices seem very reasonable but im not one to purchase blindly... I like pictures... IMHO

You need to call them. You buy it per foot. I replaced seal around the front hatch and lazarete. I want to replace it around the pop top too, but PO put up a cheap RV seal. After I removed it, I was unable to remove the residue, and the )(&*%^%$## seal will not adhere to the residue. I tries EVERYTHING, including several ideas on this forum. I guess I'll have to sand it...:cussing:

 

[Erik V]

To All

Foam pipe insulation glued on with contact cement works for me. Due to its compressibility it fits beautifully. I haven’t had water get into the cabin since I installed it.

Erik

 

[Paul Brinkley]

Erik, What size did you use? Thanks. -Paul

 

[Piotr]

You need to call them. You buy it per foot. I replaced seal around the front hatch and lazarete. I want to replace it around the pop top too, but PO put up a cheap RV seal. After I removed it, I was unable to remove the residue, and the )(&*%^%$## seal will not adhere to the residue. I tries EVERYTHING, including several ideas on this forum. I guess I'll have to sand it...:cussing:

OOPs. Didn't see THECUSCUS' post. But I agree with him. If you are going to bother doing it, do it right with the right materials. The pipe foam will harden and crumble and, overaqll, will not look too good, IMHO.

 

[Erik V]

Paul

I used 1/8” refrigerant line foam insulation it’s held up well (4 years and counting) with no problems at all. It took all of 30 minutes to install and cost next to nothing.

Erik

 

[Freedom77]

The poptop on the 25's and 22's are a terrible fit. I got some teak attached it to the deck with screws and custom planed all the way around the underside. Then I put foam on top of that. Haven't had a leak problem since. If you think you're going to be in some heavy weather just duct tape around the poptop for a temporary fix. not pretty but it will keep the water out. We did this every time we went on long races such as Ensenada.

 

[centerline]

You need to call them. You buy it per foot. I replaced seal around the front hatch and lazarete. I want to replace it around the pop top too, but PO put up a cheap RV seal. After I removed it, I was unable to remove the residue, and the )(&*%^%$## seal will not adhere to the residue. I tries EVERYTHING, including several ideas on this forum. I guess I'll have to sand it...:cussing:

to remove the residue, use "goof off" from the local home improvement store. a slow acetone will work also, but if you get the fast stuff it will dissolve it enough to wipe off but it will dry again before its all off, so you have just smeared it around... goof off works well but sometimes you may need to apply it and give it a few minutes to work before it loosens the residue enough to clean up....
no matter what type of cleaner you use to remove the old glue, ALWAYS use pure alcohol (stove fuel) to wipe it clean before gluing any new stuff to it, as the alcohol will remove any traces of oils and solvents from the other cleaners and allow the surface to dry quickly and clean without residue. your new application will stick very well to the clean surface for a long time.

 

[dawg2]

From BWY. $2.20 a foot. Works for the laz hatch & bow hatch also

THat is what I used to reseal mine. Works great. Once you press it on, it doesn't come off. The prepping and removing the old glue was the hardest part.

 

[dawg2]

You need to call them. You buy it per foot. I replaced seal around the front hatch and lazarete. I want to replace it around the pop top too, but PO put up a cheap RV seal. After I removed it, I was unable to remove the residue, and the )(&*%^%$## seal will not adhere to the residue. I tries EVERYTHING, including several ideas on this forum. I guess I'll have to sand it...:cussing:

I had to remove some decaying foam weatherstripping the PO had used. It left a really hard glue residue. I used a razor blade and scraped it away. Be careful not to cut into thegelcoat. It is a slow process, but works. I cleaned the rest of the residue the razor didn't get with rubbing alcohol.

 

[Piotr]

to remove the residue, use "goof off" from the local home improvement store. a slow acetone will work also, but if you get the fast stuff it will dissolve it enough to wipe off but it will dry again before its all off, so you have just smeared it around... goof off works well but sometimes you may need to apply it and give it a few minutes to work before it loosens the residue enough to clean up....
no matter what type of cleaner you use to remove the old glue, ALWAYS use pure alcohol (stove fuel) to wipe it clean before gluing any new stuff to it, as the alcohol will remove any traces of oils and solvents from the other cleaners and allow the surface to dry quickly and clean without residue. your new application will stick very well to the clean surface for a long time.

"use "goof off"" Tried it. No go.
"a slow acetone" Tried it. No go.
"no matter what type of cleaner you use to remove the old glue" Tried all of them.
"ALWAYS use pure alcohol (stove fuel) to wipe it clean before gluing any new stuff to it" Tried it. Like using water. Also tried Orange, windex, Ajax, naphta, toluene, paint thinner and just about every automotive solvent there is.

 

[Kestle]

Heat gun?

Jeff