Continued optimization: livewell and storage

Greetings,

This is my first post, and hope I’m “doing it right”. My apologizes if not, or if anything is unclear.

I’ve completely refurbished and customized a 1986 Lund Pro Angler into my dream walleye/muskie machine. If I won a billion dollars, I’d still prefer my boat over any available on the market. But, I’m also chipping away with additional modification. Against that backdrop, I’ve decided to take out the very large livewell, and install a smaller one centered about where the larger one was located, and add small dry storage compartments on each side of the smaller livewell (please see "current" and "future" figures)

And, I’d like to have carpeted hatch lids that are flush with the rest of the non-hatch surfaces.
Three questions:
1. Does anyone know of a good book/link/resource providing advice these sorts of projects?
2. Has anyone done something similar, such that I can learn from your experience?
3. More specifically, have advice on how to ensure there is no leakage from the (presumably wooden) hatch top?
I’m thinking I’ll this livewell: https://tinyurl.com/zvqvkaf (as pictured in the “Future” figure)

Thanks ahead of time for any and all advice!

Best regards,
Brian

Rainproof hatches are a challenge... I'm working through some ideas myself for the same thing...

Tempress and t and h have hatches that can be sealed pretty well but I don't like how they're raised up, not flush with deck...

The thing you gotta do is create somewhere for water to go rather than through the crack in to the storage compartment... Think gutter/raised lip... Pretty complex to build but doable.

One of the guys that does job boats in YouTube has a pretty neat system for rain proof boxes.. (Michael Lopez I think). I just don't like how it's a drop in/removable box system...

This is a doodle I've been falling with trying to get my head wrapped around the concept of rain proof hatches... Some kind of combo of channel/angle, lots of silicone....

Cabela's has aluminum hatches. A little pricey, but they are solid. You can carpet over them. https://www.cabelas.com/product/Custom-Hatch/699966.uts?searchPath=%2Fbrowse.cmd%3FcategoryId%3D734095080%26CQ_search%3Dhatch%26CQ_st%3Db.

I am planing on using them and drilling a hole in the recessed area and running a drain tube down into the hull area.
Hope this will help

https://youtu.be/kepX38DsqOE

Watch this video, and others, this guys rocks on his boats.

R and r hatches

Sent from my SM-G920T using Tapatalk

Greetings All,

Been traveling for work, just getting back to the important aspects of life…Thanks very much for the replies!

marshman and mrdrh99, thx for pointing me to Michael Lopez. Amazing stuff, and if I was starting fresh, I’d have to think about going his route for the interior frame.

I’m thinking I’ll try the Cabalas hatches suggested by Mjmj. And will experiment a lot with ideas such as you suggested, marshman, regarding routing water. Will report back when I get that far…

In the meantime, a more mundane question: If I get compartments for the Cabalas hatches to cover, unless they are made specifically for those hatches, it seems they wouldn’t fit perfectly. Any experience/advice on
1. Finding compartments that would “snap” fit
2. How to attach/patch discrepancies between the hatch and the compartments, if they don’t fit perfectly?

Or, maybe I just need to buck up and build my own?

Thanks again for helping me think through this!