"Crystal Clear" vs off brand "Marine Vinyl"?

[ERTF]

Need to replace FB enclosure. I see the brand name "Crystal Clear" (made by makers of strataglass) is apparently just a "regular" vinyl, although supposed to be the clearest of the regulars. Meanwhile I can find "marine vinyl" for 1/3 the price elsewhere.

I'm specifically looking on marinevinylfabric.com. They call their's "Flexa Clear".

Can anybody attest to if Crystal Clear is significantly better than off brand "marine vinyls"?

 

[SIBERNUT]

If it's "sheet" vinyl clear, it will be clearer than"roll" vinyl of the same mil. Sheet 40 is 2 20's pressed together, and in a fixed size sheet (waste). Regular 40 is made in one continuous roll, and has very slight distortions. Strataglass is scratch resistant, but not worth the money IMHO.
EZ2CY is a polycarbonate , and very clear but stiff.
On Phelps I'm going to experiment with EZ2CY knock off. EZ2CY is not sewn in, it is glued into the vinyl and everything else is sewn.

 

[Bmarler]

I don’t skimp on enclosure window materials. Regular vinyl will work, but it’s not pleasant to look through like good polished material, or even better, polycarbonate. I’ve had fabricators stitch in polycarbonate with great results. Only downside is, it doesn’t roll up like regular vinyls will. So choose the materials that fit the job. Maybe polycarbonate on the front and polished vinyl on the sides?

 

[ERTF]

I'm not a stickler for perfection. Plus I'm in Florida so it can be open about 95% of the time. The stuff thats on there now was Crystal Clear (previous owner). Not sure when it was installed, but good enough for me for about 4 years. I bought a sailrite sewing machine, so labor $ isn't a factor.

 

[ERTF]

If it's "sheet" vinyl clear, it will be clearer than"roll" vinyl of the same mil. Sheet 40 is 2 20's pressed together, and in a fixed size sheet (waste). Regular 40 is made in one continuous roll, and has very slight distortions. Strataglass is scratch resistant, but not worth the money IMHO.
EZ2CY is a polycarbonate , and very clear but stiff.
On Phelps I'm going to experiment with EZ2CY knock off. EZ2CY is not sewn in, it is glued into the vinyl and everything else is sewn.

Ok that's good info. Crystal Clear is sold in sheets, so it's probably more expensive for a reason -- and not just for the name.

I don't do any rolling. Can polycarbonates do the bends like the smiles in the photo? What about the rounded corner of the enclosure?

 

[Bmarler]

I think polycarbonates in that thickness have like a 8inch bend radius. It’s hard to do complex bends with it. Corners are ok as long as you don’t make them too tight. You can still do the smiles like that, but the window will be stiffer and not sag in the middle. You need to use either the zipper or material for a hinge to swing it up.

 

[SIBERNUT]

What you see in the pics is polycarbonate. EZ2CY or similar is hard lucite, NO bend. Can't sew thru that, but can thru poly with the correct needle and lubricating the thread. Go
s l o w .

 

[SoWhat]

If I ever drove from the upper helm in rainy weather (I don't) I would opt for Strataglass in front. It's a 40 gauge pressed, polished and coated vinyl material, scratch resistant and UV protected. It also requires maintenance and is expensive. Side and rear curtains get the cheap stuff. They are usually up all summer.
Site doesn't give any specifics on FlexiClear so it's properties are unknown but I put it in the cheap stuff category.

 

[ERTF]

Strataglass is "Crystal Clear" vinyl with a coating on it. I have no experience with it, but I'm generally skeptical of paying up for a coating on anything.

Looks like I'll go with the Crystal Clear. We'll see how laborious the replacement process is. Then I should have 4-5 years to decide if i want to do it again.

 

[SIBERNUT]

I can replace your 40wt p&p 3 times for the price of Strata once.