My 78 H30 has plastic framed portlights with integral shade extensions at the top of the frame. Over the years, they have been stepped on and broken, resulting in an unsightly mess. The portlights are not leaking, but I am considering taking them out and cutting off the remnants of the shades from the frames, then sanding them smooth and reinstalling. Has anyone done this, or is it best to just replace the portlights altogether?
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Do not remove them!
David: Do NOT remove the portlights. Either get a grinder or a belt sander and do them on the boat. If you remove them you are going to start needing to replace parts. The plastics get brittle and crack. One of the guys in the harbor did this and you cannot tell that they were all screwed up. They look like they came from the factory this way.
David: Do NOT remove the portlights. Either get a grinder or a belt sander and do them on the boat. If you remove them you are going to start needing to replace parts. The plastics get brittle and crack. One of the guys in the harbor did this and you cannot tell that they were all screwed up. They look like they came from the factory this way.
Depends.
Depends if the breakage is confined to that part of the 'spigot' that extends beyond the frame. A couple of mine cracked all the way into the inside frame. So when I decided to fix them I went completely crazy and bought all new bronze ones. Steve is right, you cannot remove and replace them without lots of pieces breaking. So if you plan to remove them you may as well purchase some new ones. The picture is of one that came out whole, but the outside frame was in about ten pieces.
Depends if the breakage is confined to that part of the 'spigot' that extends beyond the frame. A couple of mine cracked all the way into the inside frame. So when I decided to fix them I went completely crazy and bought all new bronze ones. Steve is right, you cannot remove and replace them without lots of pieces breaking. So if you plan to remove them you may as well purchase some new ones. The picture is of one that came out whole, but the outside frame was in about ten pieces.
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Portlight Shades
Good call. They are apparently not leaking and I can just do the job in place. I thought it might be neater to take them out and rebed them just in case there are problems I can't see.
Good call. They are apparently not leaking and I can just do the job in place. I thought it might be neater to take them out and rebed them just in case there are problems I can't see.
If you are going to rebed, then you may as well
David: If you are going to rebed them, you may as well just replace them. The smaller ones are only about $35 and the larger ones about $45 from The Thrifty Mariner.
David: If you are going to rebed them, you may as well just replace them. The smaller ones are only about $35 and the larger ones about $45 from The Thrifty Mariner.
One more thought.
You could do a partial rebed. To do that just buy the outside frames. Trim the spigots flush with the old frames first. Then remove the old frame, probably not possible to get it off in one piece. Now you can clean up the seam between the spigot and the cabin. Fill that with a good caulk and install the new frame. That seam is the main source of water ingress unless you have leaks from the handrails, maststep, or other cabintop hardware.
You could do a partial rebed. To do that just buy the outside frames. Trim the spigots flush with the old frames first. Then remove the old frame, probably not possible to get it off in one piece. Now you can clean up the seam between the spigot and the cabin. Fill that with a good caulk and install the new frame. That seam is the main source of water ingress unless you have leaks from the handrails, maststep, or other cabintop hardware.
Where
Can you get just new frames only? I've been to the Thrifty Mariner online and did not see anything but the whole assembly for sale. And, I was not certain that the Gray portlights were the same as the originals.
Can you get just new frames only? I've been to the Thrifty Mariner online and did not see anything but the whole assembly for sale. And, I was not certain that the Gray portlights were the same as the originals.
Yes, frames only.
And those Grays are the originals. In past months I have called and talked with Thrifty Mariner(Jeff?). But then I saw a recent post that stated they could not get an answer down there(Fla). You could also try pompanette, see "Related Link".
And those Grays are the originals. In past months I have called and talked with Thrifty Mariner(Jeff?). But then I saw a recent post that stated they could not get an answer down there(Fla). You could also try pompanette, see "Related Link".
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