MORE THAN YOU EVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT DODGERS
Definition and Common Terms:
A Dodger is a self-supporting canvas covering a frame which provides shelter and protection for the companionway as well as the cockpit from wind and spray. It is valuable in offshore conditions providing sun protection to people who are concerned about skin cancer. In rough seas the dodger helps deflect green water away from the companionway. In rain the dodger will provide a warm, dry place for one or two people to sit under. The companionway dodger allows the companionway to be kept open for easy access below or as a “portable pilot house” to keep watch during passages using self steering.
Frame: metal structure which supports the canvas. The frame is comprised of the Forward Bow, Aft Bow, occasionally a Center Bow. Each bow has two eye ends attached with set screws. The eye ends are mounted to jaw slides which allow the frame to be adjusted by loosening their set screws. The frame is secured to the deck with a hinge using ¾” # 10 flat head screws which have been bedded with silicone sealer. Compression is downward on the frame and through-bolting is not warranted or desired. The frame may have metal Struts which support it aft to eliminate downward compression when you use the aft bow as a hand hold when going forward. Every part of the frame including set screws and fittings are stainless steel. It is important to remember that the frame is not a structural part of the boat and should not be used as a secure hand hold.
Canvas: The fabric cover of the dodger including windows, zippers, bindings, window covers, screens, and everything that is sewn or attached with snaps to the fabric.
It is important to ask yourself why you want a dodger on your boat as well as how you use your boat. “Every dodger is a compromise,” According to The Complete Canvasworker’s Guide by Jim Grant (copyright 1992; page 95). “No dodger can do everything that you might want; but the ideal dodger would:
- Keep the companionway dry in all wind and sea conditions.
- Allow easy access to the cabin.
- Protect the cockpit from sea and spray
- Provide as much protection from the wind as possible.
- Not interfere with the helmsperson’s visibility.
- Fold down compactly out of the way when not in use.
- Be strong enough to survive someone’s falling into it.
- Not detract from the appearance of the boat.
- Permit easy access to the foredeck around the sides.”
- Allow use of all winches, hatches, halyards, and sheets.
Form - vs. - Function
The form (or style) of the dodger should generally reflect the lines of the boat. A Hans Christian will have rounded lines, while a Cal series will have straight and angled lines. The frame of the dodger is an extension of the cabin top and should flow naturally, as if it were part of the structure of the boat.
You may be tempted to desire a dodger with full standing head room for ease of access through the companionway; but if you stand back and look at the boat as others see it from their yacht, you will see that adding a “second story” to your cabin house may be less than desirable. The standard range for height of the aft frame is 60 to 64” above the cockpit sole (floor). The forward frame is always about 2” lower than the aft frame. This varies with each application because every dodger is custom built to your needs. The rule of height is that you should be able to see over the top of the dodger because when you need to see where you are going you may not be able to see through the windows.
There are limits to the size of the dodger that are dictated by the shape and use of the boat.
- The height of the boom when going to weather (close hauled).
- location of the traveler aft will limit coverage of the companionway and forward will limit the dodger’s ability to fold.
- The width of the cabin will limit the dodger width.
- The shape of the cockpit combing and placement of the winches will affect the shape and where the side curtain ends.
- The placement of the companionway: center or off-center, affects the size of the center opening window.
- A splash rail can be added if one was not provided by the manufacturer of the yacht. Canvas Services can provide you with names of wood workers we have worked behind. We will be happy to meet with them on your boat to design the shape and location of the splash rail.
By it’s nature a dodger is convertible so that it can be folded forward or removed completely when unwanted. The hinged frame is only as strong as it’s loosest set screw. Part of your maintenance schedule before going offshore should include checking set screws for tightness and making sure the tubing is secure in each fitting.
Canvas Services uses 1” stainless steel tubing with an .065 wall thickness as a standard dodger frame. The standard of the industry generally considers 7/8” tubing with an .049 wall thickness acceptable. And it is not uncommon to find ¾” as well as aluminum tubing used. We build dodgers that are meant to go off-shore and we want you to feel secure that, just like your stern pulpit railing; you can lean against the dodger without it collapsing under your weight. For that reason, we do not recommend splitting the frames so they will break down into a easy to store size. Every slip fitting is the possible source of a frame failure when you least expect or want it to fail. If ease storage is imperative on your boat; consider slip-fitting the up-rights rather than the horizontal section of the frame. Splitting the horizontal section eliminates all strength in the frame. Through-bolting the frame is a source of chafe in the dodger top or front.
The one thing that has always been true about the sea is that no matter what precautions you take, Mother Nature can produce conditions that will make you feel like you are adrift in a match box. But, under most conditions, you can be confident that “Canvas Services builds Dodgers that YOU can stand behind!”
