Okay, so I haven't done this mod yet, but when the snow flies......
I'm not in love with the hatch boards in the galley countertop. Mine came from the dealer with some tiny chips in the formica on one of the edges. I can see that over time, there will be more chips and wear in both the hatch boards and the countertop where the boards fit.
I'm going to Walmart or equivalent to get some wood cutting boards...big ones. Lay the formica covered hatch board on the cutting board (inside of any trough that might be cut into the edges of the cutting board) and precisely trace the hatch board onto the cutting board. Then, cut the cutting boards to the lines, using the table saw for the straight lines, jig or band saw for the rounded corners, and final rounding of the corners with a belt sander mounted on my work bench.
I'll round off the top edge of the cutting board with a 1/8" rounding bit (so when the board is in place, you'll see very little of the white edges of the hole in the countertop) and use a 1/4" rounding bit on the bottom edges of the boards so they're easier to slip into the countertop.
Real easy to use the nice hardware that Catalina used on the stock hatch covers, or I may simpy cut an elongated hole that my fingers can slip into to lift the boards out as needed. In theory the holes could also provide a little venting for the storage areas. 'Might even use the holes to hang the boards somewhere when not in use...if you've used your galley, you've noticed that you end up shuffling the hatch boards around as you access stuff in the storage areas.
Advantage: The softer, rounder edges of the cutting boards are much less likely to cause any chipping of the countertop. Plus, they'll look nice with the cutting board that covers the burners. Cheap to do.
Final thought: If possible, allign the wood strips in the cutting boards parallel to the strips in the cutting board over the burners. That way, you can quickly align the boards in the proper direction when you replace them (you've probably noticed they're rectangles and only fit in one direction).
I'm not in love with the hatch boards in the galley countertop. Mine came from the dealer with some tiny chips in the formica on one of the edges. I can see that over time, there will be more chips and wear in both the hatch boards and the countertop where the boards fit.
I'm going to Walmart or equivalent to get some wood cutting boards...big ones. Lay the formica covered hatch board on the cutting board (inside of any trough that might be cut into the edges of the cutting board) and precisely trace the hatch board onto the cutting board. Then, cut the cutting boards to the lines, using the table saw for the straight lines, jig or band saw for the rounded corners, and final rounding of the corners with a belt sander mounted on my work bench.
I'll round off the top edge of the cutting board with a 1/8" rounding bit (so when the board is in place, you'll see very little of the white edges of the hole in the countertop) and use a 1/4" rounding bit on the bottom edges of the boards so they're easier to slip into the countertop.
Real easy to use the nice hardware that Catalina used on the stock hatch covers, or I may simpy cut an elongated hole that my fingers can slip into to lift the boards out as needed. In theory the holes could also provide a little venting for the storage areas. 'Might even use the holes to hang the boards somewhere when not in use...if you've used your galley, you've noticed that you end up shuffling the hatch boards around as you access stuff in the storage areas.
Advantage: The softer, rounder edges of the cutting boards are much less likely to cause any chipping of the countertop. Plus, they'll look nice with the cutting board that covers the burners. Cheap to do.
Final thought: If possible, allign the wood strips in the cutting boards parallel to the strips in the cutting board over the burners. That way, you can quickly align the boards in the proper direction when you replace them (you've probably noticed they're rectangles and only fit in one direction).