The windows on my 78 are fairly sun damaged plus some sort of coating is coming off...not sure what is is, it almost seems painted on. What I really want to do is get the panes out and replace them with tinted lexan. I unscewed the interior covers only to find the panes held in with enormous amounts of silicone. Any tips for getting these things out? Thanks for looking.
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Get ready to dig
You have to cut the sealant away from the core all the way around the pane. We are in the process of replacing all the opening portlights in our 79 H30 & they don't come out without a fight. Good luck.
You have to cut the sealant away from the core all the way around the pane. We are in the process of replacing all the opening portlights in our 79 H30 & they don't come out without a fight. Good luck.
I saved this link from another thread for this
very same work. http://www.amtexchemical.com/pages/1/page1.html?refresh=1067351487284 double luck to you.
very same work. http://www.amtexchemical.com/pages/1/page1.html?refresh=1067351487284 double luck to you.
The secrete is to . . .
start a hole thru the sealant and then thread a heavy fishing line thru the hole. Wrap each end of the line around something stout, put someone on each end of the line and saw thru the sealant all the way around the window. The window will pop right out. You still have to clean ALL of the sealant off the boat or the new sealant won't seal properly and will probably leak. You may also want to consider plexiglass instead of lexan. Plexiglass is stiffer and will span a greater distance for the same thickness, and is harder and more scratch resistant. The best sealant for rebedding the windows is probably Dow 795. It is used by most boat builders for bedding windows, and is used in skyscrapers to hold and seal plate glass windows. Its designed to withstand hurricane strength winds, and is still flexible enough to allow movement of the windows during expansion and contraction due to heat cycles. Good luck with your project!
start a hole thru the sealant and then thread a heavy fishing line thru the hole. Wrap each end of the line around something stout, put someone on each end of the line and saw thru the sealant all the way around the window. The window will pop right out. You still have to clean ALL of the sealant off the boat or the new sealant won't seal properly and will probably leak. You may also want to consider plexiglass instead of lexan. Plexiglass is stiffer and will span a greater distance for the same thickness, and is harder and more scratch resistant. The best sealant for rebedding the windows is probably Dow 795. It is used by most boat builders for bedding windows, and is used in skyscrapers to hold and seal plate glass windows. Its designed to withstand hurricane strength winds, and is still flexible enough to allow movement of the windows during expansion and contraction due to heat cycles. Good luck with your project!
My experience
I had to replace one of the opening ports on my 1980 Hunter 30 last year. I also found lots of sealant when I remove the exterior trim ring. I found that my wife's hair drier softened the sealant enough so that it was easy to remove the port.
I had to replace one of the opening ports on my 1980 Hunter 30 last year. I also found lots of sealant when I remove the exterior trim ring. I found that my wife's hair drier softened the sealant enough so that it was easy to remove the port.
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