Thank you Moe; i used your measurements today and put in the vent. 'Was enlightening to see inside the deck .... took photos, and kept the cut-out cross section intact, from deck to liner. Marked the deck where the hole should center, and the liner too. Made a single pilot hole from below thru both liner and deck, checked the resulting holes... almost exactly matched the mark i made on the deck and the Moe-given measurements. One stringer of the re-inforcement eventually got cut thru, but i really was careful not to go further from each side with the cup of the hole saw until i could see the wires, moved them aside thru the liner's circular cut with a plastic spoon-handle before i proceeded thru the stringer. The plug dropped clean as i finished the cut from above. Will post photos for everyone who wants to know what to expect on cutting a hole in the deck. But for the record, in a 2000
there is no balsa in the deck that i could see, just the foam used by the factory to support the stringer until the deck was attached and the resin cured.
I was on a roll - lol, so i set another Nicro into the fore-hatch, where there WAS a balsa core.... no problem to rabbit it back away from the hole-s edge with a burr-bit on the Dremel, and seal it glass to glass before setting the deck-plate. Set the red fan to blow inward at the hatch and let the upper vent near the mast do exhaust. After hearing of the complaints about too much breeze on the sleeping berth at night, i just kept the battery out of the hatch vent, so it stops at dusk or when it's raining.... don't need to suck in air while it's raining anyway. Exhaust runs "day and night"
I keep the flat deck plate in a net just inside the hatch, so if i am rigging the boat, and want the hatch to be flat, the vent can be popped off and the plate put on.... nice feature, the deck plates mounting.....
Thanks again for the info that made me comfortable enough to undertake that mod... 'Though the process was scary at first, now when i look at the deck hole, the bedded ring, with the vent removed, it looks "right" and not such a huge gaping hole as i feared, although those big stainless steel mushrooms are kinda obvious. Well, form follows function, and i will soon get used to the look....
's head window.
