I finally cut out my moken hatch!

[FishMoken]

So after a year of owning my moken 14 and being very happy with it...I finally got up the nerve to fix the one thing that was bothering me, the center hatch. Last summer I left the kayak sitting on some pvc overnight and ended up having some warping in the hull. Since then I was worried about the softness of the plastic if I cut out the hatch. I've always wanted to gain that extra storage like the tridents, and cudas have. The center hatch had a molded in area that was only 5" or so deep. Great for a small battery, cell phone and keys, but I just wanted rod storage or quick tackle storage right in front of me. This weekend I finally did it and it turned out great, I don't see there really being any issues later down the road. The kayak is still rock solid and now I have the space I wanted for a camp boat. Now I can pack more stuff into the hull of this kayak. Also I added some rubber weather seal I added to my old tarpon to help keep water out. Hope this gives some other moken owners the confidence to cut out there center hatches as well. Also this gives me a ton of scrap plastic to weld with if I make any deep scratches in the hull later down the road.


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[FishingGeek]

Excellent, looks good.

[jmt1980]

What's that weather stripping you used? I have the 12' Moken, not the 14 like you, but I've thought about doing this to move some tackle weight to the center of the boat. My hatch has a little bow to it and it allows a teeny tiny bit of water to splash in... but that weather strip might be the ticket! I don't get much/any water in there but I've never been a big fan of tempting fate either.

[FishMoken]

http://m.homedepot.com/p/Frost-King-...25BK/202844545
Here is a link to what type I used, it is cheap enough that if some falls off I can reinstall at a later date with a glue. I know this area needed a better seal. After last spring taking some big boat wakes over the bow some water got in the hatch and killed my phone. The ONE time I didn't put it in a dry bag. Such is life. But this seal worked well when I had a tarpon so I'm sure it will do well with the moken.


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