portlight mfg for 1982 CP 33

[rick]

greetings,

the bronze portlights on my CP 33 need to be rebedded and have new glass installed.  the existing glass consists of 2 panes laminated together.  water intrusion has caused delamination around the edges, giving a cloudy appearance.  any help/experience in this project would be appreciated.

[Allure2sail]

Hi:
I replaced all the glass in the ports on my 27/2 with I believe tinted Lexan (I will check with the shop I purchased the material from). I found the ports to be from two suppliers, some were marked with the ABI brand and the four ports I added did not have any brand cast into them. All of them were from 1987 ComPac's so I have to assume they used different suppliers during the production run for that year. The replacement glass (Lexan) was bedded in two different ways. My initial batch was done with a tube of black sealent that I purchased from the shop that sold me the Lexan, it applied with a caulking gun and was very messy. The second batch I used some sealent that I purchased from an automobile glass shop. It came preformed, stuck to a waxy like paper (like a spool) and was also black. I found it much easier to work with and less messy. A couple of things that people working on these ports should be aware of:
!. You can not get Lexan as thick as the glass you take out. I believe that what I used was 1/4". I made up the thickness difference with the black "stuff" from the glass shop by putting it in front of the Lexan and in back of it. You will find a retainer ring holding the glass in the frame. It is held in place by tiny flat head screws, be patient in getting them out. Some of mine broke off and I had to find replacements (I think they were #2 screws and I used whatever I could find, SS I think). The ones that I broke the heads off were easy to get the remains out once you got the glass out.
2. DO NOT MIX UP COMPONENTS FROM THE INDIVIDUAL WINDOWS. They are not exactly the same from port to port (trust me on this one). I created a nightmare for myself when I brought all the frames and retainer rings to a machine shop to be put in a degreasing tank over night. Get your self a cheap engraving tool or a set of number stamps and mark everything not only assembly wise but orientation wise.
3. I cleaned them all up and clear coated them, it was only good for a few months. Perhaps there is another process that could be used, maybe a clear powder coat. I wish I had looked into it, but trust me I am never going to take them out again.
4. I used liberal amounts of 5200 (six tubes), under the frame flange, the external retainer ring and the teak veneer to the cabin walls inside the boat itself. You will be surprised when you see how thin the fiberglass walls of the cabin structure are and how little sealent/adhesive was used between the teak veneer and the interior walls. DO NOT SCIMP ON SEALENT WHEN YOU PUT IT BACK TOGETHER !!
5. I used a band saw to cut the Lexan to size. I was lucky enough to be able to purchase scrap pieces left over from other jobs they had done. Leave the protective paper on it untill you are ready to assemble them into the frames. IMPORTANT TO KNOW that the expansion rate of the Lexan is greater than the origonal glass, so when you cut the Lexan make sure you have at least a 1/32 to 1/16 of an inch clearance around the Lexan and the frame pocket that it fits into. You should be able to wiggle the the Lexan all around when it sits into an empty frame with no sealent yet applied. If you make them to tight they will warp once installed in the boat when the sun heats them up. YES, I have one port I made the Lexan to close to the frame size and it's got a slight distortion to it when you look through it at an angle.
I took all the ports out in the fall, sealed the openings up by using the external retainer rings and plastic sheeting under them (screws holding all of it together) to seal it up for the winter, (wish I had marked all of them then).
Also.......when I put the 5200 between the teak and the inner cabin walls I used a bunch of small "C" clamps to squeeze it all together until it set.
Also......with all the added  sealent  between the teak, frame and retainer ring, to ensure that you get no leaks you may have to get slightly longer screws. Some of the original screws were to short and others broke when I tightend it all up. I ended up replacing all of them with stainless steel ones I could not get everthing tight enough (for me) with the bronze factory original screws (they would break).
For me the most daunting thing was putting a sawzall to the cabin roof for the extra ports (I HATE CUTTING HOLES IN BOATS).
If I think of anything else I will add it as another post to this thread or if you have any other questions just let me know. We can chat on the phone if you'd like to discuss this project more.
Good luck with you project.....
Bruce
S/V Allure
Narragansett Bay

[rick]

thanks for the detailed response.  sounds like the same ports i have, with the bronze retaining ring and tiny screws.  did you use the automotive "stuff" for the gasket seal? and how long did it take to set up?  im in miami and it has been raining every day.  i tryed some 3/8 x 3/8 neorene gasket material, but it leaves little spaces all around.  i only did one port realizing that the glass needed to be replaced.  when i dug out the old gasket material, i thought it may have been made by some sort of liquid or putty like material since there were no gaps and no seam.  good point about not cutting the plastic too tight of tolerance.  ii also need to research the best type of plastic to use.  im pretty sure i will not be able t find tempered glass or laminated glass.  im thinking these ports were made by perko, which to my knowledge do not make portlights anymore.

[Bob23]

Rick:
   I bought the gasket material from Fawcetts Marine store when I was at the Annapolis show one year. They probably have a website. The gasket material comes in a roll, more than enough to do all 6 portlights on my cp23.  I had to caulk it in place. This is the same as the original gasket that Perko used.
   Bob23

[Allure2sail]

Hi Rick:
The gasket stuff I got from the glass shop comes in a roll (like a coiled dockline) laying flat on a wax type paper. It is very easy to shape and doesn't make a mess like a caulking gun does. Stop by a shop that does automobile windshields and ask to look at the "stuff". Three years later it is I think what you call it malleable (doesn't dry out), and has never leaked a drop. It's been a few years but I think I used the old glass and a few small "c" clamps to push the gasket material into the groove and flatten it out before putting in the Lexan. I'm trying to remember each step but it has been a few years. In a posting here awhile back I think someone said that the other source for the ports was a company named "Newfound Metals" or something close to that. I think  another thing that gave me a problem with this job was the two little springs behind the hinge pin that the port opens on. The two set screws I believe were to adjust the opening portion of the ports so that it was parallel to the frame when you closed it and tightend it down with the two clamps, I ended up losing some of the springs and assembled those ports without the springs.
The thread continues.....anyone else do this repair?
Good Luck
Bruce
S/V Allure
PS I probably should clarify that the 5200 sealant was used when reinstalling the ports into the boat. The windshield "stuff" was used to install the glass into the frame itself.

[wes]

All good info. I have just been through this project on my 19, with four of the 4" round bronze portlights. I opted to go with glass instead of Lexan. I just trotted down to my local glass shop with one of the old (cloudy, delaminated) lenses for them to measure. They offered two options: tempered glass, which is a single piece of glass that will never delaminate but must be heat treated after cutting and therefore was more expensive and longer lead time, or laminated safety glass similar to the original which is less expensive and doesn't require heat treating. I went with the safety glass. Cost me around $100 for all four, due to the labor involved in cutting the round shape. I happily paid it. Tempered glass would have been around $160 with a two week lead time.

I bedded the glass with silicone caulk (the silicone contacts the glass and bronze frame only, not the fiberglass hull) but bedded the port light to the hull with 3M 4200. The finished product looks great and the re-assembly went smoothly due to the replacement glass being exactly the same thickness as the original.

- Wes

[Allure2sail]

Hi Wes & Rick:
Yes, I agree it is all good info for anyone needing to replace the glass in the portlights or stop a leak from the frame itself. I never went to a glass shop, perhaps I should have compared prices. I went to the local marine shop because he does the ports and hatch inserts for allot of O'day owners in the area and has all the templates and the material for them. Do the frames have any marking on them as to who manufactured the units?
Fair winds
Bruce
S/V Allure