A Question on Dodgers

[Nautek]

Who has got a companionway dodger on their or ??
Is it a wide one or a narrow one??
Are there any pitfalls with it eg. can't use the winches properly etc??

Allan

[Québec 1]

Small dodger on an M . All lines and winches are funcional for sailing and it allows for at least 8 feet of headroom under the sliding hatch.

[ukauction]

Good question - I was looking at the large v small for my X but was concerned the large one would interferre with the winches / lines a lot

[Wind Chime]

We have the wide BWY Dodger that came with the boat.

We also had a local company make us a Bimini with connector to the Dodger. A full enclousre. A replacement companionway door panel (for the one I lost overboard) Companionway screens doors and screen hatch cover.


Advantages of a Narrow Dodger:
- you have better access to the winches when sailing, as they are outside the dodger.
- more footroom when going forward.

Advantages of a Wide Dodger:
- more protection from the wind, rain and sea spray, when underway. Leisa usualy sits on the lee-side behind the dodger. She says it is much warmer and dryer.
- more room inside the dodger on top of the cabin, to put things like extra line, etc.

Either way, a full enclosure is worth the expense for us. At the time we chose it over an autopilot. (well after 9 straight days of rain in the San Juans one trip, it was an easy decision)

Darry

[Duane Dunn, Allegro]

Mine is a wide one (outside the winches) from Dowsar Marine. It also extends further back into the cockpit than most others out there giving better protection. You can sit completely dry at the forward ends of the cockpit seats with the dodger alone. I have no visibility problems with mine and we keep it up all the time. Mine gives a shoe width of deck outside which is just enough for going forward. Some go all the way out to the cabin top sides and you have to unzip the side window to get room to walk forward. There a re many other differences in the Dowsar dodger from most; SS tubing and deck fittings; free standing with a SS bow support; no straps needed or used at all; Interior pockets; Exterior grab loops; zip open front window.




Any dodger, wide or narrow will interfere with the winches. With both types you cannot spin the winch handle a full 360 degree turn. You get about 180 degrees with both. The only difference is whether this is inside the dodger or outside.

BWY made both wide and narrow dodgers for the X. All I've ever seen on a M from any company is a narrow dodger. While a narrow one protects the companionway it alone won't do much for the cockpit.

[Highlander]

I also have the Dowsar full enclosure with the wide dodger on my here are a coupleof pic's I'll try & post some more later today if I get the time & it does not rain me out from working on the boat again I think the last time I seen this much rain was back in Scotland !!!
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee20 ... 010117.jpg

http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee20 ... 010110.jpg
As you can see I sail cutter rigged & have no issues with winches or lines , the extra wide dodger is no problem to step around to get up on the deck , most guys have their powerclutches attached there so you always have to step over them also so it is no big deal I plan on installing my clutches inside the dodger

J

[Kelly Hanson East]

I have a wide dodger (and a full enclosure that Beatrice talked me into) that is hard to go forward when it is up, frankly.

For 'Harbor stations', when we come into port to anchor, we drop it down forward to deal with getting the hook down.

That would suck in the rain, but since it doesnt rain when we boat, we havent had to deal with that yet.



The enclosure is the only way I can fit this many on for a 7 day cruise...

[crinjac]

Does anyone know if someone makes any of the dodgers and enclosures for the 26 classic?
I currently have a bimini but would very much like to fully enclose the cockpit to add more usable space during cool days and nights in northern Michigan.

Thanks

Chris

[briggs]

Hi, newbie on board. Speaking of enclosures, just bought 2000 X and the windows in the enclosure are very "filmy" looking. What is a good way to restore them? As long as I'm being a pest, how do you remove mildew smell from the material ? Thanks in advance.

[Highlander]

Here's a better pic
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee20 ... 010002.jpg

http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee20 ... 010017.jpg

J

[Duane Dunn, Allegro]

The dodger in the Kelly Hanson East pictures is the one that used to be made and sold by Havencraft. I don't believe it is still on the market. It is the dodger that is so wide that you have to unzip a side window to gain a place to step when going forward.

As you can see on both my X pictures and Highlanders M pictures, the Dowsar wide (outside the winches) dodger still gives you just enough deck space to easily walk forward yet fully protects the cockpit, particularly the X version. Our dogs also find the space sufficient and make the walk alongside it to the bow with no help or difficulty. The Dowsar M version is not as deep as the X version because of the traveler, but it's nice to see a wide dodger on an M. All the BWY dodgers for the M's are narrow (inside the winches).

[Russ]

We have the "narrow" BWY dodger and used it last year. This year we took it off and prefer it.

It doesn't rain here, so the dodger doesn't buy us much. We don't have the "enclosure" so the dodger doesn't add much.

Without the dodger, it's easier to get up on deck and I can see better. If rain and protection is an issue, I'd put it back up, but for now, no dodger is working for us.

--Russ

[Doug W]

We have the "narrow" BWY dodger and used it last year. This year we took it off and prefer it.
It doesn't rain here, so the dodger doesn't buy us much. We don't have the "enclosure" so the dodger doesn't add much.
Without the dodger, it's easier to get up on deck and I can see better. If rain and protection is an issue, I'd put it back up, but for now, no dodger is working for us.

--Russ

Resurrecting a very old post here...

Russ, did you ever end up reinstalling your Dodger?

Doug

[Russ]

Yea Doug,

We took it off for one season. Next season I put it back on and now really appreciate the dodger.
I find it's easy to grab onto going up on deck. I even bought the clear "door" panel from BWY that allows us to have a glass "door" and close up the cabin and still stand up fully.
Also, I bought the connector between the dodger and bimini to make one big panel when it's raining and we can keep the cabin open and go into the cockpit. It's not 100% dry like full enclosure, but it keeps it mostly dry for the captain seat.

Really like the dodger. The glass does get spray and need cleaning a bit. But it does also help keep rain and stuff from coming into the cabin and still have it open.