342 transom storage door

DanW

The transom storage door on my 2002 342 cracked in half today. I checked Great Lakes Skipper and they don’t have them. Any ideas on where a replacement could be found? I know it’s probably impossible. Alternatively, any ideas on how to get one made?

Thanks,
Dan

aero3113

Is the door fiberglass? I’m sure you or a repair shop can fix it.

DanW

It’s plastic. I’m going to try a plastic shop but I don’t think they can do something like this. I’m also going to try to glue it back together but it broke right at the hinge  

aero3113

There is a way to stitch or weld plastic back together. Hopefully the plastic shop can fix it.

YYZRC

If you plan to keep the boat for a while, I would take it to a fiberglass guy and replicate it in fiberglass. Would cost a fair bit but it would match the gelcoat and be much more durable. 

If not then just have it plastic welded and painted. 

DanW

YYZRC, that’s not a bad idea. Maybe I’ll look into getting it made in fiberglass. I’ve never had anything like that done. What would you think the ballpark price is? Anybody know a good fiberglass person in the Sacramento area? I don’t think there’s a lot of members from Northern California on here - I’ll ask around at my Marina. 

Thanks!

raybo3

On my 342 it's fiberglass. I had a fiberglass guy repair it and he had to gel coat his repair. Came very close to a perfect match. 

Aqua_Aura

Is it made from HDPE Starboard? Seems like you could buy a new panel of it and then warm it and flex it to that bend then drill the holes you need for hardware.

YYZRC

To me it looks too smooth to be starboard. Are you sure it’s not fiberglass @DanW ?

Liberty44140

Post some up close pics of the break?

Ian

YYZRC said:

To me it looks too smooth to be starboard. Are you sure it’s not fiberglass @DanW ?

I doubt it is, these always seem to be off color.

DanW

I’m no expert but isn’t that plastic? It’s not fiberglass.  (The pic is of the broken off piece on top of the door. I took it off the boat.) I’ve wondered about this door for a long time. It doesn’t match the hull color of the boat. The door is bright white while the hull color is an off white. Could this door have been replaced by a previous owner once already? But my cabin door also is bright white. I thought it was unlikely both doors had been replaced at some point. I figured Rinker built them like that on purpose. Some people are saying their transom storage doors are fiberglass though. Not that it’s super important but I wonder why the difference? Were they fiberglass or plastic in different model years? 

YYZRC

Agreed. Looks like plastic to me. Not sure why Rinker did that as it would never match the gelcoat. 

raybo3

That looks totally different than mine. The one on my boat is definitely fiberglass. Maybe the PO swapped out the doors??????? It's the same year as mine.

LaRea

Looks like the same acrylic as the cabin sliding door.  Rinker probably had one vendor that made both doors.  

Liberty44140

I know that Larsons sliding acrylic doors were made by Spartech. Not sure of Rinker but Spartech is worth a try.

aero3113

Spartech is who made the cabin door on my 08 330.

DanW

Just to close this thread, I was able to find a plastics company near me that repaired the door. You can still see the crack if you look really close, but I think it looks ok. They said they could remake the entire door if I ever wanted to. I also changed out the latch from the old yellowed plastic one to a stainless latch.  Small thing but looks nicer.

Dan

YYZRC

You could get someone to vinyl wrap it to match the gelcoat and hide the repair. 

Liberty44140

Awesome that you were able to get it repaired, looks good! Good idea from YY also on the vinyl wrap. They sell kits online and you could even give that a whirl as a DIY first to see how that goes. Thanks for posting the results!

aero3113

Nice @DanW !

DanW

A lot of people think the door has been replaced. I don’t know why rinker didn’t match the gel coat color on that door. The cabin door is white and doesn’t match either. But it sounds like Rinker put some plastic doors on and some fiberglass doors on the 342. Thanks for the suggestion. Maybe I’ll try the vinyl wrap a try. Thanks!

YYZRC

That would be a very easy part to wrap. 

https://www.vinylfrog.com/products/super-glossy-ivory-white-vinyl-wrap?variant=39540038697093

TonyG13

It'll probably be hard to get a wrap to match your hull color - and you'd still be in the same boat with it looking out of place.

What about getting a custom printed wrap for the door in a complimentary color that matches your existing color scheme and includes some graphics and your boat name at the same time? (Since you'd have to redo the boat name anyway if you do a wrap.) That may look more cohesive.

davidbrooks

I can definitely state that this is the first one i have seen with a slightly different color door.  My boat had been painted by the PO so maybe not a good example.  I didn't have a great luck with wrap.  The sun and water was just too harsh.  It became brittle and easy to chip a little.  I have been told you cannot put gel coat on plastic.  Definitely not on starboard.  You can prime and paint it though.  Once you get the right color match it would likely not be too expensive to pull it and give it to someone to paint.

Liberty44140

I’ve noticed in pics, some pre 2004 342s with with a slightly off color door. 

DanW

Then again, this all seems like a lot of work. It’s been off color for 22 years. What’s a few more years. 🤣 I think I’ll grab a beer, head out on the water, and admire my repaired door. But I appreciate all the suggestions. Thanks everyone!

diggin2day1

I find it crazy that Rinker has different colors sizes for the exact same model/year boat… Rinker has a bright white gelcoat and an off-white gelcoat. Even the Radar arch plates have different screw hole locations for same model/year boats. There’s no rhyme or reason!

LaRea

Supplier for that build week, I suppose.  To me, it's all part of how Rinker kept the boats affordable.  If mismatched finishes really bothered me, there are other brands that make everything match.  And the price of my 342 would have bought me a 21-foot center console!