DIY dodger

[BenBowSirocco]

Katapult Mike,



I honestly have no idea if that would work. Youtube could probably tell you.



I personally would stick with standard cutting utensils on the Lexan because if it cracks: you out all your time and effort up to that point.

A good battery jigsaw is hard to beat with stuff like that. You can use a circular saw as well: both tools need to be fitted with plastic specific blades!

I have gotten away with fine toothed metal cutting blades in a pinch, though the edge was not quite as clean.



NOTE: as soon as you finish your cut, sand the edges a bit round. Otherwise little chips from cutting can causing cracking while handling the plastic. You want all edges made smooth and clean for optimum durability, a touch of rounding is also helpful. Like real glass the hardness of these plastics makes them brittle.


I guess one tool that might work a treat is an oscillator with a carbide tipped blade. Its my go-to battery tool for cutting fiberglass. I have never tried it on plastic.



You need special drill bits for plastics and you will quickly see there are two schools of thought about them:
https://www.mcmaster.com/products/dr...ll+bit+plastic
https://www.eplastics.com/accessorie...ols/drill-bits
In practice, both work fine.



If you use a standard jobber drill-bit, once it bites it PULLS the bit through the plastic and cracks it or at the very least chips out the bottom.



I can tell you based on my experience the special blades and bits are worth the money.

[Kello]

What a fun thread! Every poster has something I could b!tch about or compliment.
I wonder if the OP liked the dodger for it's simplicity or it's cost. ??? Either way, my long-time nickname for Home Depot is HOJ: House Of Junk. Their products are ok for temporary use or prototypes, but they sell little worthy of long-term use on a salty boat.
Aluminum tubing should be anodized, previous posters have discussed Lexan. Ask canvas-makers about bending tubing, I hear muffler folks are good resources for that too.

Life is good.

[Katapult Mike]

Originally Posted by Kello

What a fun thread! Every poster has something I could b!tch about or compliment.

Life is good.

Please! B!tch! Compliment! Love to learn from other's mistakes (and even oaccasionally from other's triumphs!).

[BenBowSirocco]

Originally Posted by Kello

What a fun thread! Every poster has something I could b!tch about or compliment.
I wonder if the OP liked the dodger for it's simplicity or it's cost. ??? Either way, my long-time nickname for Home Depot is HOJ: House Of Junk. Their products are ok for temporary use or prototypes, but they sell little worthy of long-term use on a salty boat.
Aluminum tubing should be anodized, previous posters have discussed Lexan. Ask canvas-makers about bending tubing, I hear muffler folks are good resources for that too.

Life is good.

Anodizing aluminum is only necessary if you are using an architectural alloy. Alloys in the 5000 or 6000 series do fine exposed on their own.

Aesthetically, anodizing is a nice touch- unless you get the "bright" anodized: a bit gaudy in my opinion.

[coopec43]

I agree with s/v Jedi that it would be too hot.

Why build it out of Lexan? What properties does Lexan have that other materials don't have? Can anyone explain?

Why not build it out of fiberglass? You could use "bendy-ply" over a former as a male mold.



I plan to make a f/g dodger but it will look like canvas over a SS tube frame.

[chp]

Wow lots of replies and some great ideas. I agree with the material use. For the top I was also thinking of using some kind of bendy material then glass it. I really didn't like the idea of Lexan for the top. I would use it for the windshield. Bending a frame does not bother me. I've made solar panel arches for my last boat and had no problem using SS and a pipe bender. What I liked about the design is, it's not intrusive. So many DIY dodgers look so boxy. I want something to just break the wind and cover the companion way. Lake Ontario in the spring and fall gets pretty cold.

[chp]

Originally Posted by Kello

What a fun thread! Every poster has something I could b!tch about or compliment.
I wonder if the OP liked the dodger for it's simplicity or it's cost. ??? Either way, my long-time nickname for Home Depot is HOJ: House Of Junk. Their products are ok for temporary use or prototypes, but they sell little worthy of long-term use on a salty boat.
Aluminum tubing should be anodized, previous posters have discussed Lexan. Ask canvas-makers about bending tubing, I hear muffler folks are good resources for that too.

Life is good.

I would not buy Lexan form Home Depot. They charge double for plexi. I have a plastics company around the corner that specializes in all things plastic and a lot cheaper.

[deblen]

An older discussion./Len
https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...ps-175159.html

[deblen]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

Unless in arctic regions, you will quickly overheat when sheltering in it.

Not all of us live in your paradise. / L

[coopec43]

Originally Posted by chp

Wow lots of replies and some great ideas. I agree with the material use. For the top I was also thinking of using some kind of bendy material then glass it. I really didn't like the idea of Lexan for the top. I would use it for the windshield. Bending a frame does not bother me. I've made solar panel arches for my last boat and had no problem using SS and a pipe bender. What I liked about the design is, it's not intrusive. So many DIY dodgers look so boxy. I want something to just break the wind and cover the companion way. Lake Ontario in the spring and fall gets pretty cold.

I'd fit the curved Lexan windscreen, mark out where it touches the deck, sand off the paint , then lay a fiber-glass strip at the appropriate angle. Then bolt the Lexan windshield to the fiberglass strip.

Anyhow by the sound of it you know what you are doing.

[coopec43]

Originally Posted by Don C L

The big question I have is where are they getting their tubes bent? Around here when I have asked in metal shops they look at me and sigh and say, "we don't do that." So that $46 at Home Depot is pretty suspect right off the bat.

I have a pipe bender but it is not a job I would tackle myself. I know a guy in the boat building trade who will do a perfect job at $50 ea.(mates rate). If the dodger looks amateurish it is not good.

And I have been quoted over $1000 for a professionally built soft dodger so $50/bend makes sense.

[j.g.evans]

I have cruised to the Bahamas 12 times and never wanted a dodger. I had a Bimini, which is a must. I made what I called a windshield that attached to the cabin top with snaps and twist toggles, It attached to the front of the Bimini with a zipper. There was no frame.
The viability was better than a dodger. It was easy to remove when I wanted a breeze. I rolled it up for storage.

[mtrees]

You need one inch stainless tubing and all the joining fittings including connections and deck mounts. once bent to shape and installed held together with cord a pattern of the cover must be fabricated. Then go to Sailrite where you will find instructions and all the materials necessary.
I built one a couple of years ago. a little amateurish but it serves the purpose.
A must when beating into a choppy sea and strong breeze.

[Katapult Mike]

Originally Posted by coopec43

Why build it out of Lexan? What properties does Lexan have that other materials don't have? Can anyone explain?

Why not build it out of fiberglass? You could use "bendy-ply" over a former as a male mold.

I plan to make a f/g dodger but it will look like canvas over a SS tube frame.

For me, the appeal of the Lexan dodger in the link is ease of construction. One material, bend it onto the frames, paint and you are done. On further refliction though, I don't like the painting of the Lexan. I expect the paint is liable to scraping and chipping, and the end result is too shiny for my taste. The builder did get a good shape going though. As others have noted, most hard dodgers tend to be pretty squared off and not rounded like cloth dodgers. And a lot of people only do a hard top, meaning you still have to deal with sewing the windows in front and sides, or pay someone to do it.

As for builindg one out of fiberglass, whether laid up over ply or foam, sure, you can get a great result from that. But all the write-ups I have seen say that it is a LOT of work to get a good cosmetic result. A lot of filling, fairing and sanding.

I plan to [attept to] build one using FRP panels like HomeDepot sells for the top, and Lexan for the windows. I haven't decided whether to do the windows in one continous sheet like the guy in the link the OP posted did, or with separate windows and frames like I have seen some others do online. My goals are to avoid sewing, which I have no experience of, and avoid lots of filling, fairing, and sanding fiberglass.

[coopec43]

Originally Posted by Katapult Mike

For me, T

As for builindg one out of fiberglass, whether laid up over ply or foam, sure, you can get a great result from that. But all the write-ups I have seen say that it is a LOT of work to get a good cosmetic result. A lot of filling, fairing and sanding.

.

NO! Making a fiberglass dodger would be very easy if you know what you are doing. And it is NOT a lot of work.What filling, fairing and sanding" would be necessary?

You have been given bad advice.