Transom door hinges wanted

[Brisyboy]

Hi,

I am putting a transom door in our IG - to make life easier getting onto the swim platform and into the dinghy, with or without the dog.

No problem about cutting the "hole" or trimming it with teak, whats causing me grief is locating a couple of hinges. The cut out, which I intend to reuse as the actual door is surprisingly heavy - its a chunk of the transom after all, therefore the hinges need to be very robust/strong PLUS they need to allow the door to swing away from the cap rail so it can lay parallel to it.

There are plenty of marine hinges in 316 stainless available but they firstly dont look strong enough nor are they deep enough to allow the door to swing away from the cap rail so it can lay parallel.

I`m in Australia which may, or may not complicate things somewhat

Can someone give me a lead on a supplier please?

Thanks

 

[mvweebles]

George - similar issue on my Willard 36. Originally, I had one hull-gate on starboard side that was out-swing which was awkward as it would catch on floating docks. I had a port-side hull gate installed and both doors are now in-swing.

Unfortunately, I had to have the hinges custom fabricated. I have no idea what I paid for them as it was part of a much larger project. If I had them done here in the US, I would estimate somewhere in the $500-$1000 range, maybe more. Fabricating them so the hinge-pins align can be tricky depending on how much slope there is to your transom.

Hope you find something -

Peter

 

[SIBERNUT]

Just a suggestion- how about restaurant freezer door hinges? If you look up mfrs, they probably sell parts.

 

[Bacchus]

George
I have found the Mainship hinges & latch in the past.
The MS 34T/HT BOM is searchable so fairly easy to find.
The BOM can be found in the Marlow-Mainship section (parts sticky) or from by Bacchus website. Open the BOM...then FIND...try hinges and step through the choices. Once you find the part the # shown is a photo #. If you go to the photo files they are in numerical order. Open the appropriate part photo and it should show the part and any associated mfg part # & the source.
I'd look them up but currently on the road. I can help later today or tomorrow if desired. The latch should be there as well.

 

[Brisyboy]

Don,

It would be a great help if you could give me the link to the site - for a technical luddite as I am

 

[Sailor of Fortune]

Try Hamilton Marine website. They are based in Maine and serve commercial fisherman ,Boatbuilders and yachts

 

[Bacchus]

George
I'm now off the road and looked at the BOM & Paart Pics. I could not find the pic of the hinge but did find the transom door latch. The supplier was GG Schmidt https://www.ggschmitt.com/. I see they are in FL which makes sense as that's where the later MS models were produced. I would guess that they might also have supplied the hinges but not positive.
I'll attach the latch pic FYI
Hope that helps

 

[mvweebles]

If you're looking for the latch Buck Akgonquin makes a nice one in 316 stainless. About $55.

https://www.deepblueyachtsupply.com/buck-316-stainless-steel-transom-door-latches

Peter

 

[Brisyboy]

Thanks Peter and Don

The latch is no problem - I have ordered one from Jamestown Distributors (similar to the one Peter referred me to). There are hinges avail (at$189 EACH!) once again from one of Peters web site but once again they dont have the reach.

 

[mvweebles]

Recent thread on marine salvage and consignment places. May want to try some of them.

https://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5227

Peter

Edit - found a picture of the hinges made for my hull gates. Note the mounting holes are in different places - one hinge protrudes a good inch further than the other so the hinge pins align. This might help if you contact one of the salvage places above.


View attachment 137784

 

[CharlieO.]

Peter, I couldn't see your picture.

 

[mvweebles]

Let's try again.

 

[Brisyboy]

Perfect, got a couple of spares

 

[CharlieO.]

I see them now. Is that polished stainless?
Thanks

 

[mvweebles]

I see them now. Is that polished stainless?
Thanks

Yes, 304 stainless since 316 is almost impossible to find in Mexico, at least Ensenada. For exterior applications, it's my opinion the added expense of 316 is good value.

Polishing is probably half the labor in fabrication, but only a guess. There are some talented metal workers on this forum - maybe they can comment.

Peter

 

[Bmarler]

Polishing can easily be more than half the labor if you start with mill finish flat bar. You can offset some of that labor by purchasing satin or mirror polished flat bar from somewhere like McMaster Carr. Of course, the price for pre-finished bar is higher, so…I guess it depends on how you value your time.

 

[mvweebles]

Polishing can easily be more than half the labor if you start with mill finish flat bar. You can offset some of that labor by purchasing satin or mirror polished flat bar from somewhere like McMaster Carr. Of course, the price for pre-finished bar is higher, so…I guess it depends on how you value your time.

Bmarler - given your expertise, am I too far off-base in advocating for 316 vs 304 for outdoor applications? I only have basic antecdotal observations. Wonder if you might have a more educated perspective.

Thoughts?

Peter

 

[Bmarler]

Bmarler - given your expertise, am I too far off-base in advocating for 316 vs 304 for outdoor applications? I only have basic antecdotal observations. Wonder if you might have a more educated perspective.

Thoughts?

Peter

316 is always a better choice for marine use. Much better corrosion resistance than 304 or 18-8.
That said, I’ve had 304 hold up just fine if used on locations less likely to get salt spray. Just treat it regularly with something like flitz and it’ll look great for years. 316 requires less intervention to retain its good looks.

 

[Insequent]

Here is a Sydney supplier with some that would work. Google search for "parliament hinges 316 stainless steel" for some other options.

https://www.keelerhardware.com.au/s...OKdOVWeNDIXpLvQlgtAsHDNFgWT1l8DxoCSikQAvD_BwE

 

[Brisyboy]

Brian,

Perfect - great find and thank you for taking the time PLUS in Sydney too

 

[JosieWhales]

Stainless piano hinge

We have an older Mainship that has the transom cut for a n easier access and was done by proir owner.
They glassed in a piece of hardwood and used a 3' stainless piano hinge.
I have removed to do some maintenance and its really heavy. Just a little glass work we did to the bottom but it's held up nicely and hold the door with no problems.
Good luckvon you final choice. Doors are always finicky but with a little tweaking I think that's ( piano hinge) is a good choice as it hold the most of the material.

 

[Circumnavigator]

For any difficult hardware question I always suggest McMaster-Carr (www.mcmaster.com). They offer a hinge in 304 that is rated for 2,000 pounds, and many others smaller, probably closer to your needs.


They happily ship anywhere in the world and are a great company with which to do business.


Jim

 

[Brisyboy]

Thanks Jim and Josie,

I have ordered a pair from a company in Sydney - suggested by Brian of Insequent - the company is in Sydney and therefore "just down the road"

Thanks for being helpful though.

George

 

[kapnd]

Just a suggestion- how about restaurant freezer door hinges? If you look up mfrs, they probably sell parts.

Hah! That’s exactly what my transom door hangs on, they’re ancient, and could carry much more weight than they do.
I found them in a rubbish pile at a long abandoned sugar mill.