Getting on and off a catamaran can be a harder when the dock is sitting between the transom and side deck. To make our lives easier, Trent designed a midway step for installation aboard our Leopard 45 catamaran.
The design would be suitable for most catamarans so we've decided to share it here.
Midway step design
The step was designed to offer a more streamlined and low profile solution to what other owners have had fabricated. By lowering the point of leverage down as far as possible there’s less pressure on the original handle and if fitted correctly, has less chance of leaking and pivoting on the mounting bolts. In our opinion, the step is a must have for docks that are in between the height of the sugar scoop and side deck exit, which is very common.
The top is designed to have whatever synthetic teak decking is on the rest of your boat screwed or bolted to the top. Personally we never ended up installing synthetic teak, so have applied a black, non-skid tape that covers the entire surface instead.
Our steps were fabricated from marine grade stainless steel 316 in Cape Town, South Africa. If you’re having them made in Cape Town we suggest using Marcel from Leopard Catamarans so that you can be sure of the work quality and materials used, or Ryan and Paula from DRM Steelworks.
Measurements
The support bar angle should be determined based on the angle of the installed handle so that the step sits flat. The angle of the handle can vary but the step will look right if it sits close to level and flat against the hull.
Final product and catamaran installation
Here're what the step we had made for our catamaran looks like. As you can see it's a flat plate welded to a handle at the exact angle needed for it to sit flat when installed.
Thoughts on the midway step design
We've now had the step installed for over 2 years and it's been used enough times that we'd recommend getting one if it's something you're considering. There's nothing we would change about the design, all we would say is made sure it's bedded properly with a UV rated sealant during installation.
If you'd like to download this guide for a fabricator just hit the button below.
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