Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

JDA1975

Lieutenant
Joined
Aug 27, 2011
Messages
1,385
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

"If you don't have a 1/2" AIR Crown Stapler, go to HF and buy one."

Not that most of us doing this kind of project dont, but if you dont have a compressor, they do make electric staplers that would work as well! just stay away from the hand cramp staplers!
 

Woodonglass

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Dec 29, 2009
Messages
25,924
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

I have an electric one and it really doesn't cut it very well on upholstery. Just does not have the consistency of driving the staples like the air does.
 

Woodonglass

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Dec 29, 2009
Messages
25,924
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

Well our weatherman was off just a bit. Only got to 40? today. Shop was a tad chilly but I did not fire up the propane heater, I just toughed it out with numb fingers. I got the BenchSeat fabricated and dry assembled. Still need some final adjustments put pretty close. Trying to determine if I need a center brace. I'm thinkin yes but will make that decision once its more complete. The back of the seat will be raised so that it sits about 1" below the top of the base seat. I will be using aluminum angle pieces bolted to the bottom of the frame to lift it up about 1/2" off the deck and then use those to attach the frame to the deck. Here
s some pics of my progress today.


Photo0364.jpg




Photo0363.jpg



Photo0362.jpg



Photo0361.jpg


I also fabricated a pyramid platform for my front seats. I'm going to be making top and bottom plates and a solid 3" x 3" middle core with a 3/4" pvc pipe inserted to accomodate the seat posts. Hard to explain but you will see it when I get it further along. Just in case you're interested. To make a pyramid you cut the bottom and top @ 45? and the sides are angled @ 30? and beveled @ 37.26? Here's a dry fit of how it turned out.

Photo0360.jpg


Gunna try to get the other Pyramid fabbed and both assembled. Hopefully it'll warm up tomorrow or Sunday and I can get em epoxied and Painted.​
 

73Chrysler105

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Sep 10, 2009
Messages
407
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

Lookin Good WOG

keep up the great work. Love the pyramids.
 

Woodonglass

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Dec 29, 2009
Messages
25,924
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

I finished both pyramid bases and the rear seat base with the center brace. Looked so good I had to put it in the boat and take a pic. I also had to rip out the seams on the back rest cover and alter the frame. I forgot about the gunwales and the frame/seat was to wide at the top. Had to make a 1 1/2" recess on both sides of the seat about 6" long. When I sewed the cover back together I got some wrinkles on the right side. I'm hoping a heat gun will help me get rid of em cuz I really don't want to have to sew an entirely new cover.

Photo0383.jpg
 

73Chrysler105

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Sep 10, 2009
Messages
407
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

A little heat and a little elbow grease should take those wrinkles out can you show us a pic of the mod you had to do for the gunwhale?

Good job looks great makes me want to get on my boat and I will be soon enough. Just have to finish a few other projects first.
 

Woodonglass

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Dec 29, 2009
Messages
25,924
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

"can you show us a pic of the mod you had to do for the gunwhale?"

Post #43 shows the cutout pretty well. My problem was I cut off the 1/2" seam salvage when I confirmed the cover fit the first time so it would lay better and not show through. BIG mistake when I had to "Unhem the seams and then resew. I had a heck of time getting enough material to sew the new seam. I won't make that mistake again.
 

JDA1975

Lieutenant
Joined
Aug 27, 2011
Messages
1,385
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

I had considered doing that, glad you did and made that mistake before me so I don't! I have just been manually laying the 1/2" seam allowances all one direction to lay flat and point the piping in a specific direction. It is all looking good even with a couple ripples....as it stretches from use I fear our pretty perfectionism will undo itself and natural ripples will form anyways!
 

jbcurt00

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Oct 25, 2011
Messages
24,829
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

Looks good, wrinkles or no wrinkles. Did you make the rear bench to be a lift in & out bench?
 

73Chrysler105

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Sep 10, 2009
Messages
407
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

WOG

Looks good I think once you get it out in the sun its going to stretch and shrink and eventually settle in on its own. If you take a heat gun to it be prepared to pull and re-staple it so that you can pull the stretch so then when it cools it will pull all the wrinkles just don't pull it too tight or your rip the seams out when it cools. Btw when using the heat gun make sure to use a diffusing tip that spreads the heat in a wider fashion than just in a hot column of air. This way the heat doesn't concentrate in one spot and is evenly distributed across the entire area. You have to think like your painting only with heat sweeping a fan of heat back and forth. This takes longer but ultimately works the best. Might be good to have a helper too that can dot he heat while you tug, pull and staple.

Btw I think it looks great. If mine come out half as good I will be happy but I am a long ways from that right now.
 

Woodonglass

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Dec 29, 2009
Messages
25,924
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

Looks good, wrinkles or no wrinkles. Did you make the rear bench to be a lift in & out bench?

Yes, It will be a lift out seat. My plan is to make some 18" pyramids for the front seats ( I actually have 3 of the seats) and be able to remove the Bench seat and place the Tall Pyramid bases in the boat for fishing. We'll see how that all works out. I have soooo many plans and never enough time to get them all executed. Does anyone want to share the winning lotto numbers with me!:D
 

jbcurt00

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Oct 25, 2011
Messages
24,829
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

Does anyone want to share the winning lotto numbers with me!:D
Wow,

Thanks man,


Really, WOG, I greatly appreciate you generously offering to share your winnings with me


wait, oh, you WANTED to get the numbers....:)


I guess I need more coffee..............

The lift out bench turned out really good. It's only lift out to accommodate fishing seats, not for dockside use?
 

Woodonglass

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Dec 29, 2009
Messages
25,924
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

Hey, Dockside Use, Never considered that. You are a Famn Denius!
 

jbcurt00

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Oct 25, 2011
Messages
24,829
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

Hey, Dockside Use, Never considered that. You are a Famn Denius!

Gamn Denius?

Even a busted watch is right twice a day.

I wish dockside was original thinking. The 60's Glastron's advertised some of the seats in some of the models as 'Dockside Use Ready' and show even single seaters being handed overboard by a woman to another woman standing on the dock. Maybe showcasing a feature for the ladies (convenience, or lightweight?), family picnic seating, removal for fishing. Heck, it was the 60's, it was probably plain ole' vanilla: sexist.

I posted a question in my thread a ways back asking for info/details @ the original look & build, plus building them now as removable and securely fastened down, esp the single seats.

This isn't a very good pix but shows kind of 3/4 seats along the gunnel & no bench in 1 of the layouts of the 60 FireFlite:
IMAG0314.jpg
 

Woodonglass

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Dec 29, 2009
Messages
25,924
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

I'm building Aluminum L-Brackets for the Seat Base and they will screw into stainless inserts in the deck like these... this allows flush mounting and water to flow thru and to the bilge.

 

jbcurt00

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Oct 25, 2011
Messages
24,829
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

This is probably similar to how you were mounting them anyway, but do you think the AL L bracket would stand up to use while out of the boat? And screw knobs per side in the boat?

And through bolt the runner to the L?
Seat bracket.jpg
 

Woodonglass

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Dec 29, 2009
Messages
25,924
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

This is probably similar to how you were mounting them anyway, but do you think the AL L bracket would stand up to use while out of the boat? And screw knobs per side in the boat?

And through bolt the runner to the L?
View attachment 131177


That's exactly How I plan on mounting them. Not sure how the AL will fair for Dock Use since I did not contemplate that on the Git Go. May have some re-thinking to do.
 

jbcurt00

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Oct 25, 2011
Messages
24,829
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

About the AL abuse dockside & can't we use the same theory as attaching the L to the boat, but have 2 epoxied runner dock 'feet' & shorter screw knobs to attach the dock 'feet' when we take the bench out of the boat? Maybe even w/ a rubber pad under it like a chair leg pad/foot. Or your infamous $1 cutting board strips w/ grooves as an abrasion surface?
 

Woodonglass

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Dec 29, 2009
Messages
25,924
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

About the AL abuse dockside & can't we use the same theory as attaching the L to the boat, but have 2 epoxied runner dock 'feet' & shorter screw knobs to attach the dock 'feet' when we take the bench out of the boat? Maybe even w/ a rubber pad under it like a chair leg pad/foot. Or your infamous $1 cutting board strips w/ grooves as an abrasion surface?

And I thought I was creative. I got some of that cutting board left over. That's a Great Idea. Again, a Gamn Denius.
 

jbcurt00

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Oct 25, 2011
Messages
24,829
Re: Making a Bench Seat (Frames, Foam & Upholstery) w/Videos

And I thought I was creative. I got some of that cutting board left over. That's a Great Idea. Again, a Gamn Denius.
Again, busted watch, 2X/day accuracy....:rolleyes:

I had thought to include screwing the dock 'feet' up into the seat bottom, but then the 't'nut screw insert thingy is in the part your trying to screw through not into. A second set of over drilled holes that are bigger then the screw diameter, but smaller then the knob 'shaft'????

Run w/ it, & I'll learn how to do it watching your progress!
 
Top