Ok here we go...PMF!

[dales133]

cheers kc and brian.
I agree its worth messing around a bit longer here because its where i and others will spend most of our time.
My hinge should be here in a few days so i can hang it and play with the struts.
I realy want to set the lock and everything up prior to skinning it will make my life a ton easier

[OP827]

Really enjoy watching your nice wood work.

[dales133]

Cheers op

[dales133]

Why is it that you just cant be happy with a polyurathane finish.
I must admit its looked better every coat but i just had to now go hit it gently with 600 wipes to take the dust particles that settled in it since this mornings coat....yes thats right i did another one then!
I need to borrow a hermeticly sealed USS Enterprise pod chamber for the last coat it seems.
Im not usualy that anal about things but im a perfectionist with my work and it transfers through to other jobs,passions.
Ill post some pictures of the job im currently doing.
Infact id like to hear and or see what others do for a living/passion be nice to have a thread on it?

[dales133]

Heres a quick look at the inside hatch skin

uploadfromtaptalk1441777468132.jpg (53.24 KiB) Viewed 1289 times

uploadfromtaptalk1441777455407.jpg (72.3 KiB) Viewed 1289 times

[KCStudly]

That's going to look great! Very contemporary and masculine. I like it.

[dales133]

Thanks mate.
Ive always liked the look of aluminium,stainless ect with timber.
One sets the other off perfectly.
This is 0.5mm so it weighs less than a kilo per m2.
Ive got a 3mm ply skin on the outside of it witch im doing some experimental waterproofing on.
Ive used a thin bandage i use to reinforce joins and corners waterproofing showers at work and glued it around the edge of the ply skin with tb2.
Its already been flush trimmed to size.
Im going to paint the PMF bandage on the inside face where it gets laminated to the ply to protect and seal the ply edge then apply pmf over the outside in a more traditional mannor once they are installed on the ribs.
Its the best method i can come up with given my situation.

[Ridjobradi]

Beautiful work showing dedication and patience

[dales133]

Thank you kindly,i can still see some faults in the finish but its a complicated shape to brush paint without the odd run

[dales133]

Found a place localy that sells,fits and services gas struts.
Unfortionatly they are 40 bucks each but thats with your choice of any fitting kit you want and they are fuĺy servicable and he can gass up or down to make them exact and thier korean made not chinese.
Hes got them in stainless shaft and body including all stainless fitting kits and hell fit them and garuntee them to work perfectly with a 5 year warrunteee for......84 bucks a piece.
Might go for them they just look so much better

[OP827]

Hey Dale, if I recall correctly, you in my build thread called yourself a "slacker" and then I saw you've made this beautiful piece of wooden hatch there, so where does this place me then?!?

I do not think I am this much good with my wood work, patience and finish like this, Dude! You just forced me into an eternal struggle for perfection! Thanks, but no, I am not going there, I instead choose to be a happy slacker for myself!

Great work and attention to detail, buddy!

Oleg

[Atomic77]

Man that's some really nice work!

[dales133]

Thanks oleg and mike,
I said im a slacker because im verry self critical of myself and my work and theres realy no good excuse (except some financial hurdles) why i should be this far behind.
I tend to over think and procrastinate alot faced with some decisions.
Im more than capable of turning out good work but i tend to seek perfection at the cost of productivity at times.
Especialy in untested waters i stare aimlessly at the task at hand then think about it for days and after a couple of false starts i do the job,it turns out fine and ive wasted good time.
One of my less redeaming features

[dales133]

My "two way rod latch"( thanks frank for the link with the part description) arived today and its 2 meters long so i need to cut it down.
I went to bunnings after ringing some places to get some bushes in stainless or similar to run through the ribs similar to noseoils set up but had no joy in the late afternoon after work.
I got some 12mm 1mm wall tube in my haste but decided later i might get a reaction with the aluminium and the zinc steel....kc feel free to add your wisdom.
My huricane hinge is on its way and im chomping at the bit as my hinge spar is dry fitted until i get all my parts together

[KCStudly]

... im a slacker because im verry self critical of myself and my work and theres realy no good excuse (except some financial hurdles) why i should be this far behind.
I tend to over think and procrastinate alot faced with some decisions.
Im more than capable of turning out good work but i tend to seek perfection at the cost of productivity at times.
Especialy in untested waters i stare aimlessly at the task at hand then think about it for days and after a couple of false starts i do the job,it turns out fine and ive wasted good time.
One of my less redeaming features

In this we are brothers.

On the rod receivers, I'm more of a strike plate kind of guy. With a strike plate that has a couple of screws and a hole in it, if the hole needs to be adjusted, even if the plate is let into the wood flush, you can always make a new strike plate to adjust the location of the hole (leaving a slightly larger clearance hole behind the plate. With a tube or bushing you are pretty much locked into the location that you drill. A strike plate can have however wide a surface is necessary to prevent inadvertent gouging of the wall by the end of the rod; whereas an off the shelf bushing will likely have a limited flange diameter.

While I can see the allure of a single handle that both locks and secures the hatch, I have also read about several skillful builders who have had problems getting the balance of seal compression and rod alignment just right; many resorting to draw latches. So I avoided them altogether and just went with draw latches from the beginning. Sure, I will have to go thru a few more steps to get my hatch open, but that's the choice I made.

Another option, kind of late for you, is the spring loaded style of bolts with cable pulls. Again, strike plates would keep the bolts from scarring. If the seal holds the hatch up, rather than pushing hard in the middle against the handle, you could just bump each side until the bolts catch, without having to turn the handle back.

Maybe I'm over complicating things in my mind and it is just not that hard to make these rod systems work well, but I went with what I feel is a simpler solution.