# Companionway Door Ideas



## JimMcGee (Jun 23, 2005)

Hey Folks,
One of my winter woodworking projects is going to be replacing my existing companionway doors with a new custom set.

I'm looking for ideas, thoughts, suggestions and photos from anyone who's done this. I'll also be checking out the booths of a couple of vendors who make them at the Annapolis Sailboat Show.

What I want to add/correct/improve on my current doors:

The ability to pop out the glass and drop in screens.
Able to quickly drop in hatch boards behind the doors (I can't use hatch boards with the current mounting hardware).
Better weather sealing when I'm aboard in the winter.
Easier to open/close the hatch.
More decorative details (decorative dolphin inlays for the wife on the
inside)
Here's what I currently have and want to improve on.










Thanks,
Jim


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## Faster (Sep 13, 2005)

One of the issues with Catalinas is the size of the companionways - and the bulk of the hatchboards/doors fitted to them.

Hard to tell, but assume those hinges are "lift-off" types? If not that'd be an improvement right off the bat.

I suppose you could have glass/plexi panes and a framed screen that popped in and out, maybe held in with toggle clips or some such.. but it'd be difficult the have such windows be truly weatherproof (makes one of your other objectives hard to reach). We have a solid plexi drop board and a screened one as well - and just use whichever's appropriate. (but our companionway is much smaller, and the dropboards more compact)

Do you have room on the inside of the companionway edges to add another channel for drop boards? They could be wood strips or perhaps an aluminum channel.

btw - the existing ones look pretty nice already!!


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## Cruisingdad (Jul 21, 2006)

Here is what we currently have:










The nice thing is that they come completely out. When bad weather comes, we can remove them and replace with solid hatch boards (the best solution for bad weather I think). For a scre, we cut out screen replacement like you can get at Walmart for $5/roll to fit the hatch size. Most of the other boats that have done this like us also line the edges with sunbrella and sew in weights at the end to hold it down. It is a very cheap, easy solution.

Dad's boat (seen below), has solid teak doors with plexi glass i nthere like yours. It has a really nice knob entry with locking key mechanism. His too are removeable by pulling up. I like his bettter than ours as they are more sturdy - and I really like the knob/locking mechanism. However, as mentioned above, that would be a large set of doors for most Catalinas.










Just some thoughts, Jim.

- CD


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## xort (Aug 4, 2006)

CD
Does dads boat have drop in boards too? I want to switch to a folding door and don't want to carry the drop in too.


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## JimMcGee (Jun 23, 2005)

*A little more detail*

The existing doors are pretty sturdy, and yes they're lift off hinges, which is handy when you have a couple of people lounging in the cockpit, or when you're sailing in mild weather.

The problem is the way they're mounted you can't use the hatch boards at all. There was at least one occasion when I was running the inlet south of Long Beach Island that I would have liked to drop the hatch boards in. Thankfully the original hatch boards were on board when I bought the boat.

Another issue is that the doors are slightly taller than the hatch boards. That means you have to lift the hatch over the doors to unlock the boat. That's a big heavy hatch and an issue for my vertically challenged wife.

What I have in mind is a setup like the one on Cruising Dad's Dad's boat. I'll create a teak frame in place of the existing metal frame. I have new brass lift off hinges and the doors will hinge from that wood frame. This accomplishes a couple of things. The hatch boards can be dropped in quickly, whether the doors are on or not. It will create a wider "threshold", that I can angle at 15 degrees and seal with a rubber strip. That will keep rain from getting under the doors. I'll route a thin groove on the hinge side of each door for weather stripping. And as on Cruising Dad's Dad's boat I'll mount a teak strip on the companionway hatch, so you won't have to lift the hatch to open it.

Rather than make the doors with a standard rail/stile setup, I'll use a mortise and tennon design. This will make the doors stronger, and will allow me to bevel the bottom stile to let water run away from the base of the glass to prevent leaks. A thin strip of butyl tape (sp?) applied to the plexi-glass should provide a good seal. I'm thinking about a simple thumbwheel setup to hold the glass/screens in the doors. But I haven't been able to find a low profile thumbwheel that matches the picture in my head.

I like the idea of a door knob, but I'll probably go for the simplicity of a brass hasp. I'm going to have the local canvas guy make a five compartment case to mount on the vertical wall of the aft berth under the stairs that can hold the hatchboards and the doors.

For materials I'm looking at either teak or ribbon mahogany for the doors and frame. Brass hardware and aqua pearl acrylic to do dolphin inlays on the inside of the doors in the upper right corners. The wife loves the stained glass we saw in a set of doors on a Gozzard but I'm worried about durabililty.

Sorry for the long post, I hope it fills in the details for what I'm thinking.

Now what am I missing and how can I make the design better? I want to do this once.

Jim


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## MJBrown (Apr 1, 2009)

Try this site. A buddy of mine with a Catalina 320 had them make a set and they're very nicely done. Not cheap but then again you get what you pay for.
BTW I too think what you already have looks nice.
Mike
http://www.sailithaca.com/


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## Cruisingdad (Jul 21, 2006)

JimMcGee said:


> The existing doors are pretty sturdy, and yes they're lift off hinges, which is handy when you have a couple of people lounging in the cockpit, or when you're sailing in mild weather.
> 
> The problem is the way they're mounted you can't use the hatch boards at all. There was at least one occasion when I was running the inlet south of Long Beach Island that I would have liked to drop the hatch boards in. Thankfully the original hatch boards were on board when I bought the boat.
> 
> ...


Jim,

Cannot wait to see those doors!!!

- CD


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## Cruisingdad (Jul 21, 2006)

xort said:


> CD
> Does dads boat have drop in boards too? I want to switch to a folding door and don't want to carry the drop in too.


There is not a slot for drop ins. Those are Tayana doors, as I understand it. They do not use drop is hatch boards like other manufacturers.

I will say that, unlike most doors, they are THICK. THey are easily an inch or better thick. I feel that those doors may be as strong as most drop-ins.... or stonger.

- CD


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## JimMcGee (Jun 23, 2005)

Cruisingdad said:


> Jim,
> 
> Cannot wait to see those doors!!!
> 
> - CD


Well it's going to be a winter project so it may be a while. Do you want me to do an article for the forum on building them?


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## blt2ski (May 5, 2005)

Jim,

I have "drop" in boards for a lack of better term on my 85 Jeanneau. I'll try to take a pic this weekend. It is made of two boards, the lower has sliding pin locks that go into the side of the door opening, the upper overlaps and sits on top of the lower, which then fits up and under neath the sliding hatch. Then there is the typical key lock to hold the two boards in place. 

The previous/original owner made some plastic smoke door panels that allow one to open and close said doors if the weather is bad. 

Sounds to me like yours, but opposite in all manners to a degree, but what you may be looking for. If this sounds like something that will work, I'll take some pics.

As far as articles go, keep track take good pics, I've done a few on the Jeanneau owners forum, I am sure teh Catalina sites would like them, along with check with the folks at Good Old Boat. You might get $100 from them or there abouts.

marty


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## Cruisingdad (Jul 21, 2006)

JimMcGee said:


> Well it's going to be a winter project so it may be a while. Do you want me to do an article for the forum on building them?


Certianly! That would be outstanding!

- CD


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## sck5 (Aug 20, 2007)

I would be worried about folding doors. They never stay aligned in my house. On the boat, forget it. They would be history in a week.


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## CaptainForce (Jan 1, 2006)

We've elected to keep a single crib board of three laminations with the center layer cut out to hold some artwork:















...It's true that, as one piece, it's heavier and it is without hinges, but we don't remove it for our normal passage through our companionway. 'a similar crib board is at the entry to our aft cabin. 'take care and joy, Aythya crew


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## JimMcGee (Jun 23, 2005)

Blt2ski, I'd love to see some pictures, I'm having trouble picturing your setup.

CD, no problem I'll write something up and take some pictures as I go. 

SCK5, I agree about folding door. I thought about the idea, then imagined my six foot 270 lbs coming down on them, and never thought about folding doors again.

Captain Force, that is absolutely beautiful! Do you climb over or does your boat have a second companionway through the aft cabin? I wasn't sure from your post. There is a 37 Gozzard that has been at the Annapolis show for the past couple of years that has stained glass inserts in each door. I wondered if the joints in the glass would work themselves loose over time. How long have you had your stained glass?

BTW, we use our boat as a second home at the shore, so having doors rather than hatch boards is a great convenience. I'd never go back. I'm trying to figure out how to have the best of both worlds.

And if you're trying to imagine the acrylic inlays, I'm kicking around using one of these two from my woodworking supplier. The top one looks like mother of pearl, the bottom one speaks for itself. Both provide a sense of deep depth, though the inlays will only be 1/16th thinck. I thought about real mother of pearl, but it would double the amount of time for the project and it would make the doors too delicate.


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## xort (Aug 4, 2006)

I understand the idea that hatch boards can be stronger than hinged doors. But in my 42' CC, I seriously doubt I'll ever see anything close to a boarding wave in the cockpit.

so is there any reason I shouldn't ditch the drop board in favor of folding doors?


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## CaptainForce (Jan 1, 2006)

JimMcGee said:


> ...Captain Force, that is absolutely beautiful! Do you climb over or does your boat have a second companionway through the aft cabin? I wasn't sure from your post. There is a 37 Gozzard that has been at the Annapolis show for the past couple of years that has stained glass inserts in each door. I wondered if the joints in the glass would work themselves loose over time. How long have you had your stained glass?


JimMcGee, Thanks for the compliment. We normally enter and leave at this companionway by sitting on the cabin trunk and swinging our legs over to the steps. The confiquration is simple by chance. I can see how this would often not work on other boats. Of course, we are all accustomed to moving about on our own boats, so we lift it out for visitors. We have had this piece for about eight years without any loosening of the stained glass joints; however, we did replace one small cracked piece of glass that was damaged. 'take care and joy, Aythya crew


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