The cockpit sole in IP 26's, 27's and perhaps others consists of two inverted fiberglass pans each held down with fasteners in each corner. The forward one is also the engine compartment cover and can be improved by holding it with hinges on one side and a latch on the other, so one doesn't have to deal with a loose piece in a sea way. The aft one can't be hinged since it supports the compass stanchion and is under the wheel. The previous owner of my boat discarded the fasteners so I don't know what type of fastener was used by the factory. Customer service at IPY also doesn't know. They must have been some type of 1/4 x 20 machine screw since that is the tapped thread in the supports, but I'm really looking for some clever idea for the head, and hoping that someone can tell me what the factory thought was a good idea originally, or perhaps an even more clever idea from an owner.
Of course, anything could be made to work - hex head, round head, truss head, socket head etc. However, it would be nice if it was friendly to bare feet and required no tools or only a simple readily available tool. Flat heads won't work since there is not enough thickness for countersinking, let alone watertight sealing. I suppose one could build up the thickness underneath with epoxy, but that wasn't what the factory did. The best I can think of is a slotted truss head but what else has anyone seen?
