Hard top dodger

[Irek]

I have made a lot of changes to my Hunter Legend 40.5 built in 1987 boat since I bought her (6 years ago). The boat came with a rug/sunbrella cockpit enclosure (almost complete), but it is a nuisance to keep clean due to sea-birds activities in the area. No way to keep them out from high altitude bombing! Also season in Vancouver is rather short and weather can be cold. I am thinking about making a hard top dodger with extension for the bimini part going over the steering position. Plan would be to have rolled side enclousre to keep the cockpit "warm".
I wonder if anyone ever tried to make such a "roof over the head". Or know workshop that fabricates hard dodgers. The best will be made out of fibreglass. But an option could be an aluminium-made./ik

 

[colemj]

Yes, hard dodgers are great and many people, including me, have made them. Fiberglass would be my choice, and I would core it for strength and weight reasons if there is any overhead load on it.

You just make a template/mold of the shape and orientation you need using material like thin pvc board or doorskins, etc, with battens and stringers where needed to define the shape, then either use that as a male plug to build on top, or as a female mold to build inside. Choice would depend on both the situation and which side you wanted to work less on when finishing.

Search the web for youtube examples of people making these.

Mark

 

[fred1diver]

Please do not use aluminum poles, they are cheap price wise and strength wise as well!!!
When I made dodgers (fabric) for people, they wanted to save money, but please do not forget that a dodger is often used as a handhold in severe weather and other times as well, aluminum tubing will simply not be sturdy enough

 

[colemj]

The OP said he wanted a hard dodger, and he suggested an aluminum one as a possibility. That would be more than aluminum poles, and would be sturdily locked into place throughout the entire structure by design and material.

But aluminum would be a poor choice for reasons other than sturdiness.

Mark

 

[Irek]

Hi guys
Thx for feedback. My choice would be fibreglass; the only worry is the cost of building the moulding, either internal or external for one off job. I wonder if anyone tried to use a core material to build the dodger on the boat and then fibreglass it? There is a lot of curves that must be "taken out" and straightened for building the shape and connection to the existing deck and cockpit form. Therefore making a plug will not be easy. Any experience with it?

 

[Richard19068]

I assumed you have searched the internet for how to make a hard top dodger? Lots of info there.

 

[Irek]

Hi Richard, I did. Did not find the method which will avoid building a plug, which the most expensive part of the whole exercise.
Frankly, I hope that I will find someone who did project like this and knows a company that has a form and plug that I could use. Or group could be formed to share in the cost of the plug for making the dodger suitable for Hunter 40.5./ik

 

[jssailem]

Ideas for a hard top.

Making a Hard Top for an H336 Sailboat

By Kevin Lennon There are little customizations we do to our boats that set them apart from all the others out there like it. For my Hunter 336, it was replacing the original dodger with a hard top. The dodger was from 1996, and it had so many repairs that it was starting to look […]

www.epoxyworks.com

Tartarooga Hardtop Dodgers for Sailboats - hardtops for pleasure boats

If you’re looking for a dodger that provides aesthetics, strength and functionality, think TARTAROOGA! dodgers Looking for a combo that provides a reliable…

tartarooga.com

Hard Dodger Hardtop System

Building a Dodger for our Sailboat | Sailing Avocet

Another DIY Project, Brought to You by the Avocet Crew After all of the projects we have done aboard our sailboat, Avocet, I am pretty positive that Chris’s biological makeup mostly consists of fiberglass- just think about all the reconstruction, sanding, and fairing we have done… It is hard to...

www.svavocet.com

 

[Irek]

Hi everyone
I think that I have used a wrng expresion; what I am looking for is not the hard top but also the front and part of the sides and roof should go where nrmally bimini goes. Only side would have canvas with cellulite windows. Idea is to extend boating time, which in PNW is rather short. I should call a cockpit enclosure with hard top. Did anyone tried something like this?/ik

As aftertought I will try to down load the sketches with measurements that I prepared. I hope it works.

 

[jssailem]

If I read the drawings correctly, it will serve as a dodger/Bimini combination. I will function much like the structures for many Catamarans. Several thoughts are involved. You will need to minimize the weight of the structure. So perhaps a foam core is needed. I have seen foam core used with a fiberglass skin on some boat designs. You will need to build an arch to support the hardtop at the stern. The design will hide the main sail, making sail trim a bit of a problem. The rig will raise the CG of the boat, making it a bit tender in a strong breeze.

Such is the nature of compromises as you alter a boat to meet your desires.

 

[jssailem]

Here are a few links that may help you.
sailboat-dodger-diy.html

A High Latitude Dodger.

The dome needs abit of "De-icing" I was Lucky when I bought Reiger, Jim Dilly had already put a canvas spray dodger on her. If he hadn'...

snowpetrelsailing.blogspot.com

Perhaps this one only extended like your drawings to a stern arch.

Making a Hard Top for an H336 Sailboat

By Kevin Lennon There are little customizations we do to our boats that set them apart from all the others out there like it. For my Hunter 336, it was replacing the original dodger with a hard top. The dodger was from 1996, and it had so many repairs that it was starting to look […]

www.epoxyworks.com

Building a Sailboat Hard Top Dodger | Sailing Avocet

 

[colemj]

Hi guys
Thx for feedback. My choice would be fibreglass; the only worry is the cost of building the moulding, either internal or external for one off job. I wonder if anyone tried to use a core material to build the dodger on the boat and then fibreglass it? There is a lot of curves that must be "taken out" and straightened for building the shape and connection to the existing deck and cockpit form. Therefore making a plug will not be easy. Any experience with it?

I probably didn't describe myself well above, but I wasn't suggesting making a plug or mold in the sense that it could ever be used again, or cost a lot of money.

If you use cheap doorskins, or thin PVC boards, with some sticks and other random wood to make your shape, you then start building on that. The only thing this is doing is providing the needed shape. Spray the form with PVA just to make things easier, fasten core material around the form, then glass the outer skin on. This is pretty much doing what you suggest above, but using just core material to make a shape often doesn't work well unless the core is thin enough to take a lot of multidirectional bends.

Once set, the shape will hold, so you remove it from the form, then glass the inner skin on. Now it is a matter of cutting out any windows you want, and creating any flanges needed to fasten it to the deck or other structure.

If this dodger won't see much loads from solar panels, walking on, etc, then you might consider using thin PVC board for the form, and glassing the outer skin right to this. The form will be the core, but it won't add a lot of stiffness like structural core would. Nice thing about PVC board is a heat gun will allow it to form almost any shape.

Mark

 

[jssailem]

Ideas for a hard top.

Making a Hard Top for an H336 Sailboat

By Kevin Lennon There are little customizations we do to our boats that set them apart from all the others out there like it. For my Hunter 336, it was replacing the original dodger with a hard top. The dodger was from 1996, and it had so many repairs that it was starting to look […]

www.epoxyworks.com

Tartarooga Hardtop Dodgers for Sailboats - hardtops for pleasure boats

If you’re looking for a dodger that provides aesthetics, strength and functionality, think TARTAROOGA! dodgers Looking for a combo that provides a reliable…

tartarooga.com

Hard Dodger Hardtop System

 

[Terry Cox]

Also season in Vancouver is rather short and weather can be cold.

Oir sailing season just south of Vancouver lasts all year. We've had some wonderful winter cruises over the years. Our boat has a Sunbrella dodger and bimini, which I prefer rather than a fulll enclosure, so not of much help with your endeavor. Sorry.

 

[Irek]

Hi Terry
Indeed, we are operating in the same climate zone. I now have a full rag cockpit enclosure, but last year we gave up on the traditional Xmas harbour cruise due to the cold. What heating system do you have in the cockpit? We use an LPG radiator using small camping gas bottles. But it was not enough and one has to be careful with the eggnog as Police is all over.
That is why I am looking at solid enclosure which will have only sides and back rag cover.
Another issue is with sea birds. The cleaner your boat, the more likely they are to use it as their toilet. Cleaning the soft cover is time-consuming. One of our fellow boaters was arrested by the police a few weeks ago because he was walking around the marina with a double-barreled hunting gun. When interviewed, why he is in public space with a gun, he said that birds are making his boat dirty, so he wants to teach them a lesson! I must say that I have the same issue with our birds.

 

[Terry Cox]

What heating system do you have in the cockpit?

Hi Irek. No cockpit heating system, we just bundle up, but our furnace keeps the interior warm. Our boat came with a full canvas cockpit enclosure, but I tossed all the side curtains and kept the bimini and dodger. Disliked the closed in feeling while under sail. Have you considered changing boat brands to a pilot house cruiser rather than modifying what you have?

We've spent a lot of time in BC over the years. Just love your country. Getting ready for another cruise north in a few weeks. Getting pumped.

 

[Irek]

Hi Terry
You are brave guys! Unfortunately, I spent more than half of my life in warm areas: 8 years in Bermuda, almost 30 years in the Far East, where I did a lot of sailing. Needless to say, BC climate is not what I like, even if it is a hell of a lot better than the East Coast.
The changes that I did to my boat allow for single handling and now I am trying to get closer to motor sailer, but not quite being a stink boat. Maybe I am looking for some elusive solution? Anthow, thx for the info on yr cold weather sailing./ik

 

[Irek]

And by the way, if you happen tb in one of Vancouver mainland marinas give me a call at 604 505 5593. I might be at home and shall be glad to take you around./ik

 

[Terry Cox]

And by the way, if you happen tb in one of Vancouver mainland marinas give me a call at 604 505 5593. I might be at home and shall be glad to take you around./ik

Thank you, Irek. We tend to steer clear of marines when we're out cruising; too busy, too noisy, too expensive, etc., except when we need water, fuel, beer, ...

 

[Irek]

That is exactly my approach. I have built my own chain counter to know how much is in the water, and changed windlass to reversible and remore control. Now working on GPS geaofencing anchor dragging alarm so can sleep in the night knowing boat is safe.
But than, you never know./ik