With the tack welds completed, next step is to cut out the hatches. The tricky part about this step is the cutouts are the hatches. So one cannot drill a big hole for the jigsaw blade, but rather a series of small ones just big enough for the blade to fit in.
At this point the deck is temporarily wired to the hull. This sets the shape of the deck and and makes it stable enough to cut out the hatches
But before any drilling or cutting the hatches need to be marked using the hatch spacers shown below.
Notice the position of the hatches lines up to the deck / sheer seam. A sill and spaces will be fitted into the cutouts and the underside of the deck reinforced with fiberglass cloth and epoxy.
Now it’s time to cut out the hatches, I moved the boat outside for this and thankfully it was nice weather.
Next steps are to assemble the hatches and glue in the hatch sills
Building and Restoring Small Boats 