Stealth Live-well hatch

My livewell hatch is funky on my fisha 500 as well. It’s mounted on a contour which makes threading the lid on a bit of a pain.

that’s the same issue I have.  I complained about it to Tray, the SoCal stealth rep, and about a week later Brett sent me a new hatch assembly.  The issue however, as you mentioned is not the hatch assembly it’s the mounting position of the hatch.  So my options are to live with it, which I have been doing, or to design and machine or print a riser that will allow the hatch to sit flat.  An adapter of sorts.  It probably wouldn’t be super difficult to do, but it might be more hassle than it’s worth.

I actually took my hatch lid out put it in the oven and put the lid in it to straighten it when it was soft but it was then that I realized it was the hole being ona. Contoured surface that created the issue for me.

My first reaction to seeing the curvature of the deck as to the relation of the mounted hatch was wtf? I’ve been going back and forth as to keep my fisha 500 or sell it. It’s still not been in the water. Anyway a person could fabricate a deck mod out of wood then glass over it. That would be a pain. If you figure out a way to invent something of plastic to mount to the deck then the hatch assembly to that it would be pretty slick. I would be interested in collaborating or purchasing. Thanks. Craig.

My livewell hatch is funky on my fisha 500 as well. It’s mounted on a contour which makes threading the lid on a bit of a pain.

that’s the same issue I have.  I complained about it to Tray, the SoCal stealth rep, and about a week later Brett sent me a new hatch assembly.  The issue however, as you mentioned is not the hatch assembly it’s the mounting position of the hatch.  So my options are to live with it, which I have been doing, or to design and machine or print a riser that will allow the hatch to sit flat.  An adapter of sorts.  It probably wouldn’t be super difficult to do, but it might be more hassle than it’s worth.

I actually took my hatch lid out put it in the oven and put the lid in it to straighten it when it was soft but it was then that I realized it was the hole being ona. Contoured surface that created the issue for me.

My first reaction to seeing the curvature of the deck as to the relation of the mounted hatch was wtf? I’ve been going back and forth as to keep my fisha 500 or sell it. It’s still not been in the water. Anyway a person could fabricate a deck mod out of wood then glass over it. That would be a pain. If you figure out a way to invent something of plastic to mount to the deck then the hatch assembly to that it would be pretty slick. I would be interested in collaborating or purchasing. Thanks. Craig.

If I knew it was an issue with fisha 500s in general and not just mine I would have already made one.  Ill work on something when I get some time to spend on it.  Probably an intermediate that will interface between the hull and the hatch lid.  I think the difficulty is going to be making it aesthetic and ergonomic, but I don't think it will be difficult.  I will report back in a few days with what I come up with

My livewell hatch is funky on my fisha 500 as well. It’s mounted on a contour which makes threading the lid on a bit of a pain.

that’s the same issue I have.  I complained about it to Tray, the SoCal stealth rep, and about a week later Brett sent me a new hatch assembly.  The issue however, as you mentioned is not the hatch assembly it’s the mounting position of the hatch.  So my options are to live with it, which I have been doing, or to design and machine or print a riser that will allow the hatch to sit flat.  An adapter of sorts.  It probably wouldn’t be super difficult to do, but it might be more hassle than it’s worth.

I actually took my hatch lid out put it in the oven and put the lid in it to straighten it when it was soft but it was then that I realized it was the hole being ona. Contoured surface that created the issue for me.

My first reaction to seeing the curvature of the deck as to the relation of the mounted hatch was wtf? I’ve been going back and forth as to keep my fisha 500 or sell it. It’s still not been in the water. Anyway a person could fabricate a deck mod out of wood then glass over it. That would be a pain. If you figure out a way to invent something of plastic to mount to the deck then the hatch assembly to that it would be pretty slick. I would be interested in collaborating or purchasing. Thanks. Craig.

If I knew it was an issue with fisha 500s in general and not just mine I would have already made one.  Ill work on something when I get some time to spend on it.  Probably an intermediate that will interface between the hull and the hatch lid.  I think the difficulty is going to be making it aesthetic and ergonomic, but I don't think it will be difficult.  I will report back in a few days with what I come up with

Well, we will see how this prints and fits.

Zee arteest!  Mad skills...

Sign me up!

I made a few revisions after printing a couple of cylindrical test sections, the parts shown are only for fitment testing of the curvature and threads, and do not represent the final part in exterior form (I didn’t print a complete unit yet because I needed to test fit the faces and geometries of the critical components first, that is what you are seeing below.). The renderings are accurate to the final part.

My hatch design will replace the existing hatch.  The clear lid can remain in use if desired, additionally, my bucket is a drop in fit for this hatch. 

My kit will include all hardware necessary, seeing as how the front of the hatch will be higher, the existing screws will no longer reach into the hull at the stern side of the hatch where it’s elevated.  The final parts will weigh about 125g each (excluding hardware and other accessories)

The hatch is designed with a lip in the ID for you to fill with silicone and create a gasket, if you don’t want to do that it’s up to you.

The bottom of the hatch will be rougher than the exposed face.  This is intentional and intended to give your sealant something to bite into.

Here are a few photos for proof of concept as it relates to the fitment in our 500s.

Picture notes:
Pic 1, the mating faces match well and silicone will seal them, the height from the deck to the top of the hatch will be about 1/2 as tall as it is seen here in the final model (final height about 3/16” above deck at the shortest point)
Pic 2, clear factory lid from BG boats screws in tight

Pic 3, my bucket screws in tight

Pic 4-7 visual representations of a final part.

Test fitted and installed.  I need to refine the radius on the bottom a bit as there is a short stretch around 4 and 8 o clock on the flange they don’t sit flush.  However you can see how it installed,  I’m going to fish it tomorrow and see if there are any other adjustments I may need to make. 

If my Fisha Duo has the same issue with the hatch, I'll probably be getting two of them. I'll know early next year, lol.

Went out yesterday on the kayak and tested the new hatch, bin, and adapter.

Everything worked well.  The lid from the bin collected water in the pockets on top, similar to how the factory lid does.  I had to remember to take the lid off slowly so I didn’t dump the water into the bin with my hooks.  I tested the buoyancy of the bin and it floats when full of tackle, and the lid keeps it upright and easy to spot should it fall over board. 

I used the livewell for bait and for storage of some rockfish after I ran out of bait.  I didn’t want to put them in the fish hatch because they were small enough to fit in the livewell and that rinses itself so it was just easier lol.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CW3sJnuAL6Q/ <- video from OTW yesterday

Quick look at the LWTB