Love the idea Phillip, even less weight with that design

but I'm a bit old school and being in the construction game I like things symmetrical, so I don't know if I could visually except the offset hatches.
Yeah I know ->

As I see your design the actual hatch is a structural component in itself, the side load on the hull is being pushed not only through the deck ring but through the plastic cover aswell... The plastic hatch ring and cover are far stronger then the ply that supports it so yes its structurally very strong across the actual deck line.

This is where the secret lies for lightweight structural strength, its a matter of spreading the load in the right direction, but more importantly knowing which way the load is being sent so it can be correctly dispersed

Phill (Al's dad) and I have had several long conversations on how we should tackle each situation, we're actually way ahead of ourselves at the moment but we're solving each issue fairly easily & way before we need to.
We hit a bit of a wall tonight regarding the way the stringers are to be set in with what we want to achieve (mind you the foams aren't ready to go in yet), but now I've had a coffee and the house is quiet I think I have a whole new plan, Phill's gunna be peaved



The reason I do these threads is mainly for feed back on what I'm doing or thinking but to collectively share different ideas on how to best tackle a design that's light but strong, hopefully others can use the ideas they see from not only me but form others like yourself that add vital info

cheers for that