Cockpit Locker to Engine Access

[MikeAmorgos850]

Cobra 850 designed by David Feltham, Cockpit Locker to Engine Access.

Has anybody had any experience in opening up (increasing the Horizontal Size) of the engine access panel in the cockpit locker port side of a Cobra 850.

I was in the engine bay yesterday and I did a stupid thing!

Usually I go in barefoot no shirt and only a hat and shorts. If you don't know why then you have never been in your engine bay.

Everything is so confined it is easy to catch an item of clothing etc. on something that is very hard to release and you find yourself unable to turn or exit through the access panel.

This time It happened to me. Luckily there were crew on board but they could not help, until I got myself through the access panel there is no room in the cockpit locker for more than one person.

This time I had on the sandals, my right foot went alongside between the starboard stern engine mount and the hull as I twisted to exit through the hatch, unfortunately though my foot could go further into the opening on attempting to withdraw the offending foot it was trapped by the heel of the sandal and (I don't know what I was not in a position to see) eventually I got out panic free because as I said I was not alone on board.

A mobile handy in the cockpit locker is a good idea if you are alone on board and you are stuck inside.

So though there have been discussions here regarding the pros and cons of access/maintenance hatches in the cockpit sole.

To get to the point the question is can I increase the size of the access panel horizontally in the ply bulkhead or will this jeopardise the structural integrity of the Cobra 850.

 

[Stemar]

Since no-one with any expertise has replied, her's my 2p'th.

With suitable framing, you can cut pretty much any sized hole you like in a panel. I assume it's a matter of making it a few inches bigger rather than doubling the size, so I wouldn't be too worried about enlarging it. However, I wouls ensure that the new hole has some substantial framing round it, I't also consider whether the cover needs to be sealed to keep the 'oggin out of the "engine room" if things start to go a bit pear-shaped.

On Jissel, for a hole big enough to get a fatty like me in - and, more importantly, back out , I'd be thinking about hardwood framing, 2" X 1" flush on the outside and 3" X 1" on the inside of the cutout, to give a 1" rebate for the cover to fit in.

Come to think of it, I might add something like that to my to do list as my increased girth means I'm no longer sure of getting out if I squeeze in between the bridgedeck and the top of the engine to access fuel lines & so on