FINALLY, getting my seats recovered

[The_Hellbilly]

Since we have so many new members, I guess I should start from the beginning. I apologize in advance for the length

About three years ago, the maroon colored material on my seats began to deteriorate at a rapid pace. First, it dried out, then it began flaking off like grains of sugar. All of the rest of the material was fine, so it was really odd. (I've got lots of pics of the seats going bad if anyone is interested.) When I uncovered my boat in the spring of '10 it was significantly worse. I began the research, talking to locals, my dealership, and eventually Voyager. They had me send them a sample of the fabric for testing. I think they wanted to see if it was my fault somehow. Towards the end of the summer I contacted Voyager and got the runaround. First they said that my boat wasn't under warranty (which was true), then they said they lost the sample I sent them, etc. Eventually, the owner of Voyager himself decided to replace it., even though they never admitted fault. I told them that if they would send me the material, I would have it installed. I was clueless about how much that would cost. They sent me the material to do ALL of the boat: seats, sides, back, everything, which was alot more than I expected. I proceeded to attempt to find someone willing and qualified to install the material. Quotes ranged from $1,200 to $2,000 which I thought was outrageous since all of the seat covers are sewn and just need to be installed. Well, after attempting to use to sets of tweakers, and one asshole, I have decided that they don't have any particular skill, tool, or talent that makes them more qualified to do this than me. Afterall, with the internet providing sites such as wiki, google, youtube, and thereIfixedit, I can learn to do anything in a matter of hours. It appeared that all of skill is in sewing the material, which was already done by Voyager.

Over the next week or so, I will keep those who are interested in my progress updated with photos & pics. My "so called" friends , have dubbed this project Whiskeybent.

Last night, I removed all of the seats (5 minutes and about 20 screws) and drug the boat to the carwash to clean the carpet. Damn, I wish I had vinyl.

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Anyone ever run their toon without any furniture just to see the difference?

[chill'nthemost]

Is there any where you might be able to rent a industrial sewing machine like the upholstery shops use? I think they have bigger feet, can use stronger thread and make a stronger stitch. I bet You'll do a great job. You're patterns are in good shape, just take your time and keep a heat gun handy.

[The_Hellbilly]

Is there any where you might be able to rent a industrial sewing machine like the upholstery shops use? I think they have bigger feet, can use stronger thread and make a stronger stitch. I bet You'll do a great job. You're patterns are in good shape, just take your time and keep a heat gun handy.

Thanks, Chill'n but everything is already sewn. I just have to remove the old material and staple on the new. I've already done a few cushions and there doesn't seem to be much to it.

[chill'nthemost]

Well, that's just too damn easy Good for you, that will be sooo nice

[PlaynDoc]

Show some 'before', 'during', and 'after' pics

[jimrs]

These are going to stretch a lot so read up on this before you start or after a day installed in the boat they will look worse than the old ones. A heat gun or install them outside in the sun to help stretch the material. Your a lucky guy getting that from the manufacture.

[The_Hellbilly]

So far so good....... We'll see if I change my mind by next Friday. I need to be done by then because of a poker run on Sat. 7/30.

I'm disappointed in Voyager. I would have thought a manufacturer would use the correct screws for marine usage. These screws were used to attach the seat cushions to the plastic seats

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here are some pics of the progress. NOTE: I haven't attached anything back to the rotomold seats. That's why the head cushions have sooo much slack in the ends. I just sat the cushions on for picture purposes. Most of the wrinkles you see SHOULD come out when I attach them.

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And, here are some pics of what the seats looked like before

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[tooned out]

I was thinking about doing the whole hog poker run myself.. not to hijack your thread. It will be the first one for me if I do it. Seats are looking great by the way

[The_Hellbilly]

I was thinking about doing the whole hog poker run myself..

The poker run is a blast. We treat it as a "booze cruise". So far we're up to twenty folks which will take two pontoons.

[The_Hellbilly]

I've developed a new technique that has made everything ALOT easier and quicker. I remove the old material, put the new material on, and take measurements. I, then, compress the cushion, pull the edges an additional 3/4 of an inch, and attach. Remove the weights and the foam expands. This is soooo much easier than trying to stretch the material evenly. Attached is a pic of the most difficult piece I've had to do so far, because of the curved edge.

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[The_Hellbilly]

one down, two to go......... and the sundeck, DAMMIT If only I had another two weeks instead of about 40 hours +/-. My only major gripe so far is that all of the head rest seem to be about 1"-2" too long and I can't find a good way to take the slack out of the ends.

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NOTE: the seats are not attached, just set on for the pic

[tooned out]

Looking great. you will be a pro by the time you get them all done.

[The_Hellbilly]

I'm FINISHED!!!!! Well, sorta. I did all I could before the poker run last saturday. I wasn't able to finish the sundeck because one side has rusted up screws and they didn't send me the material to cover the part over the fuel tank. I left the rusted side off and wrapped the other side with a piece of vinyl directly on the wood. All in all, it came out ok. Two pieces were sewn incorrectly. I fixed one, and will have to fix the other at a future point. I spent about $120 on stainless staples, another $25 on stainless screws, and about $30 in plastic to wrap the foam in. I definitely learned alot and will fix some of the flaws as I go. I figure I saved about $1,300 +/-

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My only real gripes with Voyager are the fact that they didn't use stainless screws, didn't send one piece, and the top piece in the back was 2 inches too long (see red arrow) I plan on taking that top piece loose, sewing the crease on the inside, trim off the excess, and reattach.

All in all, it passes the three beer rule, so it will work.... for now.

[bassn386]

Hellbilly, nice work! The recovered seats look like something that just came off the showroom floor in a new toon.
I'm sure your head will swell when folks come aboard and ask what year the boat is.
Very, very nice.

[Tully]

You were on the right track using weights to compress the foam. I work for a school bus manufacturer. We build our own seats. On the bottom cushion we put down a piece of upholstery good side down, then a piece of foam, then a piece of plywood and finally a press comes down and compresses it. The upholstery is then pulled up and stapled.
You seats look great. Nice job.

Tully