crazed ports and hatches

[butchrobbins]

I am reading a copy of Good Old Boat and there is an article about old ports and windows. It mentions being able to "polish out blemishes", but doesn't go on to say what to use or how to do it.:cry:

Does anyone know how to polish the crazed ports and hatches to get them clear again (or as close as you can)?

 

[Tim R.]

You first need to know what material they are made of to select the proper compound.

 

[butchrobbins]

You first need to know what material they are made of to select the proper compound.

I gathered that from the article, but it seemed there were only two choices:acrylic and polycarbonate. I thought someone might tell me what to use with which and once I checked it out I could just go get it.
Thanks for your help.

 

[Ed Schenck]

Meguiars is the product many use( http://www.meguiars.com/catalog/ ) . They actually have an online forum to answer your question. I think the answer is found in the FAQ under "Marine/RV Care".

 

[zeehag]

my ericson has tempered glass--doesnt craze...my formosa has plexiglass and is nasty--cannot see thru it.....if is too bad, replace them......goood luck.....

 

[Manny]

Per someone's recommendation from this site, I went to the local auto store and bought a kit for polishing car headlights. It came with pads that mount on a drill with some sort of compound that you just needed to wet and then buff out the plastic. I used it on the plastic Gray ports and it made a huge difference. I could actually read the registration numbers from the boat in the next slip... before the polish I could barely make out the boat.
Manny

edit to add: some clarification - the polishing kit removes external haziness in the material, if you are trying to clean up internal blemishes, cracks, etc the kit wouldn't work. I don't think anything would at that point.

 

[woodster]

you can also try buffung with a polishing pad and som light blue DICO polishing compound ...look it up on the web ...try googleing DICO ....

regards

woody

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

.................. there really isn't a solution as the countless number of cracks appear to penetrate quite deeply into the acrylic. I'm assuming yours are acrylic, the same as I have on my 1999 Hunter 310.

This winter, I decided to see if I could replace the lenses on my two Lewmar and one Bomar hatches based on an article I had seen in DIY Boating. The article was supposedly written by an expert but was "rough " in the finishing to put it mildly. I did the first hatch lens replacement using his grouting method and would up redoing it again after I worked out a few bugs myself. The finished products are identical in every way to the original ports when new. Problem is, most people at the marina just roll their eyes when I say that I just finished replacing the lenses. No one believes me :bang:.

Without going into great detail at this point, I will say that anyone with a small hobby woodworking shop and a reasonable knowledge of woodworking will find hatch lens repalcements to be a simple and enjoyable winter project. Actually, for what new hatches are worth these days, it would still be cheaper to buy the router, router bits, drill, drill bits, small drill press, etc, etc, do it yourself, and save loads of money.

I had figured on installing snap-on covers when the new hatch lenses were installed to protect the lenses against UV, but I think it's easier to replace the lenses every 7 - 8 years as required.

Maybe someday when I have the time (and ambition) like Maine Sail, I'll put together a pictorial on how to replace hatch lenses.

 

[stephen Penny]

If the port windows are Beckson you can purchase replacement lenses from hunterowners.com (that is what I recently when I replaced 7 crazed lenses) or maybe directly from Beckson. Hatches can be replaced by Selectplastics (selectplastics.com).

 

[Richard Bryer]

I posted an article on replacing fixed port lenses in the "Modifications" section last year. Might be of help

 

[Barnacle Bill]

Most deck hatches are made of Lexan, which is stronger than plexiglass. Lexan is a bit softer and hence can scratch more easily, while plexiglass is harder and doesn't scratch as easily, but because of the strength factor, Lexan is more popular. One should use a compound designed for Lexan. But, Meguair's, as someone mentioned, does make a compound for getting scratches out of hatch lenses. I think there are a number of other products out on the market as well designed for such jobs. I have used Meguair's Oxy remover, which seems to work well, but I suppose I shouldn't recommend it because it might be too abrasive. But, Meguair's products, unlike most fiberglass rubbing compounds, the material breaks up into smaller granules as you use it so it gets the job done, without harming the surface as much.

 

[Hermit Scott]

I have used rubbing compound and polishing compound on the lenses on my wife's car. Now I get flashed because people think I am driving with my brights on.
Be sure to get something without wax or silicone to do it right. Use a buffing pad on a drill or actual polisher if you have one. Take your time and do some tests on the ports that face your neighbors you like the least.

 

[sailingdog]

Actually, most deck hatches on boats are made of acrylic, since it has significant advantage over polycarbonate, like higher UV resistance, and doesn't foreshorten under impact...

Most deck hatches are made of Lexan, which is stronger than plexiglass. Lexan is a bit softer and hence can scratch more easily, while plexiglass is harder and doesn't scratch as easily, but because of the strength factor, Lexan is more popular. One should use a compound designed for Lexan. But, Meguair's, as someone mentioned, does make a compound for getting scratches out of hatch lenses. I think there are a number of other products out on the market as well designed for such jobs. I have used Meguair's Oxy remover, which seems to work well, but I suppose I shouldn't recommend it because it might be too abrasive. But, Meguair's products, unlike most fiberglass rubbing compounds, the material breaks up into smaller granules as you use it so it gets the job done, without harming the surface as much.

 

[Blitz]

try the polish first

I have used Flitz on my 26 year old Bomar hatches last summer and was pleased with the results - I'm not affiliated with the company, think I saw it used on the Ship Shape TV show. It is sort of polish/fine compound that shines them up and takes all the surface imperfections out. Might be worth a try for hazed hatches, but won’t help cracks.

BTW - It didn't work as great on my boss's vehicle headlights though.:bang:

https://www.flitz.com/

I then bought fitted sunbrella covers for the two hatches to protect them from further deterioration which I bought right from this site. Also very pleased with these!

Good luck - Neal

 

[Glenn17467]

I used Novus. It is a 3 step process. First is a gritty creme that will take out scratches if not too deep, second creme is fine like tooth paste and third is a liquid that polishes. Has work on my '84 C30 with original Bomar hatches. I need to do it again, then make new covers to keep them out of the sun.

 

[rardiH36]

Yesterday, while on a home plumbing shopping expedition at a "got-just-about-everything" hardware emporium, I ventured into the auto section where I noticed and bought a product for restoring auto headlight plastic called "PlastX" by McGuire. Only $7.99 for a reasonably sized bottle. http://www.meguiarsdirect.com/product_detail.asp?T1=MEG+G12310.

I had been maintaining the plexiglass hatch-covers and OEM Gray ports every few months on my 1980 Hunter 36 with a mirror glaze rubbing compound followed by a marine fiberglass wax. After each effort the hatches/ports looked great as the plexiglass isn't crazed deeply or cracked. But dullness always returned after a month or so. The PlastX much more quickly removed the oxidation than my previous method with only about 5 minutes of hand rubbing per hatch/port and the product seems to have a luster chemical/polymer (maybe like Armour-All?). The hatches/ports now look great.

I'll report back in a month or so whether the PlastX effort is looks to be long lasting.