Practical Boat Owner – August 2019

Fitting the plastic window panel into the
canvas is tricky, as both materials are
slippery and the window can easily
become distorted when stitching.
To overcome this, place the old, intact
window panel over the new plastic sheet
and draw around the outer edge before
cutting it out.
Now lay the new plastic window directly
onto the underside, or wrong side, of the
new, uncut canvas panel. Use double-
sided tape to hold it in place while you
sew them together.
Only carefully cut out the canvas
aperture once the plastic is in place.

3

Cut small nicks in the canvas
around all the curves in the windows
then fold the material back underneath to
form a neat edge. Hold the fabric flat
against the plastic.

6

Here are the four sections of the
sprayhood prior to being joined
back into one three dimensional structure.

9

Reassemble the sprayhood on the
boat before making a hole for the
mainsheet. A laser pointer from the pulley
block to the winch accurately positions it.

1

Sew the new window onto the

reverse side of the panel. It’ll help

with the next step to first cut a small guide

hole in the centre of each window panel.

4

Sew around the whole of the window

sections, from the front, to firmly

attach the plastic into the window cut

outs. I used quilting clips to hold the

backfolded edge in place while machining.

7

Sew the sections, right sides

together, with a single seam, and

then over-sew a second layer of stitching

on the right (or outside) of the canvas for

additional strength.

2

Having marked the window aperture

(allowing for a seam), the small hole

now gives access to cut around the

canvas to reveal the window underneath.

5

I lined the front lower edges of the

sprayhood with plastic material to

prevent wear to the canvas from rubbing

on the coachroof, then attached the new

webbing strips (not forgetting to

incorporate the clips before sewing).

8

The final sewing task is to secure

the prefabricated bolt rope tape into

the base and sides of the front window

panel. The bolt rope slides into a

permanent plastic fitting on the coachroof

and holds the sprayhood down at the

front of the cockpit.

My detachable

bridging piece joins

to the sprayhood

by the three front

zips (the gaps are

where the sprayhood

handhold are) and

then to the bimini by

the one long rear zip

To cover the gap

between the

sprayhood and

bimini when we are

not sailing we have a

bridging piece,

which is attached

with zips.

PRACTICAL

SPRAYHOOD-BIMINI BRIDGING PIECE

FITTING THE WINDOWS