Replacement portholes for 1974 Ericson 29

[julibell]

Anyone parting out excellent condition ( not likely I know ) portholes for a 1974 29 foot Ericson .... or have a suggestion for having replacements made. It's those hexagonal aft ports that are most difficult. I know it makes sense to do all at the same time.
Appreciate all suggestions - thanks

 

[wynkoop]

I am fighting leaking ports on my e-27 as well. Have taken them off and re-bedded them a couple of times with no joy. I am considering running a single piece of 1/4 inch plexi along the cabin from the front to rear covering everything and sealing with good marine caulk and screwing in place.

If anyone has a source of the gaskets in the Ericson windows I think that is where my leaks are coming from!

 

[kapnkd]

I am fighting leaking ports on my e-27 as well. Have taken them off and re-bedded them a couple of times with no joy. I am considering running a single piece of 1/4 inch plexi along the cabin from the front to rear covering everything and sealing with good marine caulk and screwing in place.

If anyone has a source of the gaskets in the Ericson windows I think that is where my leaks are coming from!

The source of our leaks were mostly from the dried out seals between the glass and the aluminum channel.

Catalina sells a kit but it’s a bit pricey compared to this place who handles the correct extruded seal materials for a variety of frame to glass seals.

Here’s the contact for that company and they have a huge selection/variety of rubber and silicone moldings/extrusions. They had the exact seals for our glass to frame ports on our ‘73 vintage Ericson 32.

LK Technology, Inc.
5116 Warrensville Ctr Rd.
Cleveland, OH 44137

BTW, we used flat 1” butyl sealant from an RV store for the aluminum frames to the cabin fiberglass. All are holding up fine. Had one minor leak we easily resolved with Capt. Tolly’s liquid silicone sealant.

 

[wynkoop]

Thanks so much kapnkd! I know what I am doing this summer.

 

[julibell]

anyone able to source new replacement portholes? I'd like to replace the crazing lenses and heavily oxidized exterior frames.

 

[kapnkd]

Thanks so much kapnkd! I know what I am doing this summer.

You’re welcome...IF you’re also replacing the seals on the larger Ericson ports, check out my previous post from a year or two ago on making a jig to properly squeeze the two aluminum halves back together.

The acute angle is difficult to clamp securely so I created a jig that allowed the clamps to create a non-slipping squeeze.

GOOD LUCK!!!

 

[wynkoop]

Kapnkd I just had a look at their web site and they have TONS of things. Do you know which product is for the Ericson windows?

 

[kapnkd]

Kapnkd I just had a look at their web site and they have TONS of things. Do you know which product is for the Ericson windows?

Yes ...and no. ...Sadly, I'm not at home now in Michigan where I have access to the info you need. I'll be in FL till mid April. I still have a piece of the original seal which helped me find the proper extrusion design.

IF you have pulled a port out and disassembled it, look at an old extrusion end for the design pattern of it then select it from their website. DO measure the extrusion widths, height etc. as there are a couple similar ones if I recall. ...Also, a phone call to them might help as I'm sure they've sold to other boaters as well. (The Ericson glass to frame molding is the same as the older Catalina and the Pearson boats.)

IF your luck is like mine, order a few feet more as I screwed up re-assembling one of the larger ports and had to scrap that seal. ;-))

An Extra Thought for You:
How are your aluminum frames? Mine were not corroded but the anodized finish was getting worn out. I cleaned them up, lightly sanded with extra fine sandpaper (220 then 300), sprayed them with zinc chromate primer and finally sprayed them with an automotive silver color touch-up paint close to their original anodized color.



(If you zoom in on the ports in this photo, you can see they turned out fairly well.) Ohhh - and ...Under the old nemesis "While we're At It" axiom, we also repainted the headliner while the ports were all out. PITA but sure improved the look below. Just be careful ...as we found out the project NEVER ENDS!

Fair Winds,
kerry

 

[kapnkd]

Anyone parting out excellent condition ( not likely I know ) portholes for a 1974 29 foot Ericson .... or have a suggestion for having replacements made. It's those hexagonal aft ports that are most difficult. I know it makes sense to do all at the same time.
Appreciate all suggestions - thanks

For what it's worth, back in the late fall of 2018, there was a marina sadly ready to cut up an Ericson 32 MK 2.

We bought a few things off the boat and told the owner at the time to save things like the ports, end rail caps etc. Not sure if he did or not or even cut the boat up yet (???). Most of the ports were the same size on the Ericson boats back in the day.

Here's the info on the marina for you....worth a call.

Lake Point Marina
11234 US Turnpike Rd
South Rockwood, MI 48179
Phone: (734) 379-2904

 

[wynkoop]

I am probably not doing the ports until warm weather. At the moment priority 1 is getting the last of the Diesel install done and priority 2 is finding a new berth before April 1. They are turning my marina into an Amazon warehouse and shipping center.

Your info has given me what I need to know when I do pull the windows in a few months. Thanks!