Re: Boarding ladder for 1995 Glastron SSV175
Some more explanation is probably in order. First off, you'll see two screws (each side) on the front side, at the top. They hold in place a "plug" that will keep the ladder afixed to the boat. The plugs are not glued in, for obvious reasons. OK, I can hear some say, "you can't glue HDPE." Historically correct. But, with 3M DP-8010 adhesive you can glue it. The screws are 10 x 2" stainless. There are two screws holding each of the plugs in, and two screws at the bottom of each vertical piece, screwed through the bottom of the step. The cross bar at the top is to keep the vertical pieces from splaying. All edges were rounded w/ a 1/4" radius round over bit. HDPE cuts well w/ most woodworking tools (table saw, band saw, router, jointer, drill).
The vertical pieces are approx. 10.5" long, on center from the hole to the bottom of the horizontal piece. There is 7 7/8" space inside between the verticals. This was done to have the holes in the vertical fall on the flat part of the existing ladder rung. The horizontal piece was dado'ed 5/16" deep, to accept the vertical pieces. The two holes are off set, placing them closer to the back side of the verticals, hopefully so the ladder will fall into place better when it's raised (acting as a hinge).
I currently have a rubber bunge cord acting as a restrainer, so the ladder stays up when not in use. I'll probably need to tighten that a bit to compensate for the weight of the new step.