Hunter 38 Engine Cover/Stairs Latch Repair

[mpearce]

Hi All,
The latch on my companionway stairs/engine cover has eaten away the floor wood and now the engine cover will not stay down. I’m not able to readjust the latch to make it work. Has anyone encounter this and found a fix? Maybe a different type of latch?
Marty

 

[MarcinS]

Fix it, order a nice cover made of polished A4 with a hole cut out and it will last forever. This lock can be adjusted, I have the same thing in mine and recently I had to adjust it after replacing the gas shock absorbers with new ones. Best regards M

 

[P12nash]

Check to confirm the latch is the problem. I've had the threads on the hinges come loose and combined with the gas strut, it pushes the top port side of the companionway steps away from the bulkhead. This left the latch not working well because it was more forward of where it should have been. Since fixing I've gotten into the habit of stepping on the bottom step before latching it to make sure the steps are pushed into position.