16 cruiser seat

J

Jackie

New member
I'm a bit ashamed to say that I have not actually gotten out on the water in my new boat, but I did get it to my house, removed the Washington numbers and put mine on. That was a pain. I have been sitting in it off and on and noticed that it really bothers me not to be able to swivel all the way sideways in the helm seat. It catches on the controls. I'm used to sitting sideways so I can watch my pole on the port side rear and would like to either replace the current seat, or move it some.

I have searched the site but haven't found exactly what I'm looking for. Is there a smaller/different seat folks on the 16's like that would allow me to swivel around? I'm sure I could move the current one back some and toward the center, but I really don't want to encroach on the center aisle. My daughter got on and did the same thing I did - we all swivel around and get the seat stuck. It is a family trait to watch our pole from that angle I guess!

She thought the boat was too small, and I had to remind her that was my plan! I did get one offer to buy it while I was scraping off the numbers! You were all right: it is a conversation starter. The guy left me his card and said to call him when my aluminum boat is out of the shop. It would be great to get that sold as the C-dory is like new in more than just its shape. There was nothing on it so I have been slowly acquiring all the safety equipment, lines, fenders, still need an anchor. I'd forgotten how much is needed before I can go out. Well, the coast guard safety stuff anyway I need before launching. We used to have someone from the CG Aux that would check your boat and give you a sticker, but he's retired and not been replaced. With the sticker the CG wont stop you during the year. Without it I manage to get checked at least 4 - 5 times per season while out on the water, so I want to be legal.

But back to the topic: any thoughts on the seat would be appreciated!

Jackie
 
There are some slide or slide/swivel mounts that one can put under the seat. They add a little to the height of the seat so depending on your height etc, the don't work for everyone. But with a slider under the seat, you can slide it a little into the aisle way to swivel and then slide it back when you don't want to swivel. Do a google search on slide and swivel boat seat mounts to see what I'm talking about.
 
Hi Jackie,
The same thing has bugged me, too. I've often thought about getting an engine control/shifter that was the surface mounted type. The console has a fair amount of room. Maybe someone knows enough about shifters to chime in on such an installation.❓
Rod
 
Rod, that's an interesting approach to the problem, but too ambitious for me. I hope someone has some insight for you.

Roger, Google is usually my forte and you are right: there are quite a few seat slides to be found. I checked Amazon since Prime shipping is important to me. I noticed that for the cheapest one, there were 8 wall mounted beer bottle openers listed in the 'sponsored products related to this item'! I am going to measure carefully tonight and see if I can move the seat back enough to clear the controls. It's not like my feet have to reach the gas pedal. :wink: If not, then I'll go for the mid priced slide by Springfield. It looks low and sturdy and locks - and its related ads were for a variety of boating/fishing items! (Not that I'm opposed to a few beers.)

Jackie
 
Hey Jackie,

Cabela has them, I have them on both seats and they made a big difference in using the boat. They are made by Springfield, Universal Seat Slides part number ST-01-3926-003at $82.99. You may be able to find them cheaper on the internet. Good luck, Spuncopper
 
I think I even have a new in the package one from Cabela's that I wound up not installing on my boat when I put in the new seat. It's probably hanging around someplace in my garage and (if it would work), could be purchased at a substantial discount.
 
Check out my photo album under Modifications - Suspension Seats. These are Attwood seats that are able to swivel around and just miss the controls. But I would really, really recommend the more expensive "suspension" version that I bought and can't say enough good things about them. I actually had a sore back the first couple of times I took my CD 16 out. I haven't even thought about that since I put these seats in. Now I slow down to not hurt the boat, not to not hurt me. They are amazing.

They are still a tight fit and can rub against the window frame when rotated and I am leaning back. I was concerned about the "Naugahyde" type cover getting scored, so I made some canvas seat covers (album is Canvas). Glad that I did. Several times now I've had adventures where I returned to the Limpet covered with mud, pitch, clam juice, whatever. Not a problem. Pull the covers and wash them. Plus the seats now slide by the window frames without issue. And I when solo I can sit in the pilot seat with my feet up on the passenger seat and watch the world go by. Decadent.

I just spent several hours in some nasty waves just inside the Westport bar as it was getting dark. Honestly, I think they were 3 foot at 3 second intervals. The one thing that I didn't worry about was my back.

Mark
 
Jackie,
I had the same issue you have, and installed a good quality slide. The reason I went to the slide is that I figured out that if you permanently back up the seat enough to clear the controls you will likely not be able to install and snap the backdrop in the event of nasty weather. The slide allows me to quickly move the seat forward to install the backdrop. Since we are discussing seats, I determined that the deckhand (me! Ellen is the pilot) seat is too close to the table. An easy fix is to move the table forward and only use the two forward studs and hand knobs to secure it to the side. Then I precisely cut a dowel and fitted it with a couple of rubber chair leg tips on each end and installed it under the table to floor to provide solid support. I have some photos but was never smart enough to post them. but could email them to you if need be.
Jack
 
While those seats look amazing, Mark, I'm going to have to stick with the cheaper option for now. I'm finding so many unanticipated expenses involved in outfitting a basically new boat! I'm trying to prioritize my 'needs' v.s. 'wants' (though you could argue they are mostly just varying levels of want) and comfort is low at the moment. My family will have about 5 weeks of exclusive usage while I'm out of town, and I know if the seat doesn't swivel away from the controls, the corner of it will be a tattered shred by August, or the back will be broken!

The Springfield slides are what I was looking at online. I PM'd you Roger, and if you can find your spare and still want to get rid of it, I'll take it. Give me a price and how to pay for it.

Moving the table forward would make it easier to get out quickly and make seating feel more spacious. Thanks for the tip, Jack. I think I can visualize exactly your method of supporting the table and will give it a go.

My biggest expense so far has been to purchase one Scotty electric downrigger. I'll get a second manual one when Tongass has their 25% off sale at Memorial day. I've never had an electric downrigger, but I bought my husband an Ace Line Hauler many years ago as a gift for shrimp pots. He used it some, but I never understood why he didn't mount it all the time. I only recently discovered that it was designed to fit the Scotty mount and use its plug for power; we always used Penns. I felt rather bad, but my downriggers are going with my boat when it sells and we started shrimping a lot last year, pulling two pots by hand, so this seemed a good time to make the change. Plus the line puller will be great for the anchor, which I'm not looking forward to doing by hand these days either.

Of course.....now I find that to mount any downriggers on my 16 Cruiser I'm probably going to have to install a hatch in the side to get up under the gunnel for adding my backer plate. That area was open in our 22 so it was easy. I've looked at all the really cool add ons on this site like the built in tackle boxes (which might be too deep for a 16, even though they fit the 19?) and the cockpit storage cubby that R-Matey put in...then I looked at the prices! I'm going to go with a small circular access hatch for the time being. But you see how this keeps snowballing? It's crazy!
 
Hey once again Jackie. On my CD 16 there was an 6"X6"X1 1/2" wood spacer. The Springfield Universal replaced those without losing nor gaining any height. When I mounted the port side seat I slide the Universal as far aft as I could and drilled new mounting holes. It now slides far enough aft that the port seat will face aft without relocating the table. Good luck with your new boat.
 
Jackie,

You don't have to mount the Scotty on the gunnel. My prior owner put them where there was access from underneath without having to do anything to the side panels. Two bolts are accessed from the cubby and two from outside the cubby, but not behind the cockpit panel. That cross piece in front of the splash well is probably plywood core, not balsa core as in the side deck. No backing plate necessary, just stainless fender washers. A rod storage holder mounted in the splash well can be seen just over the top of the mount. This is also an area where you can easily access the backside. I've been happy with both locations.

Two issues. First, wherever you mount it you are going to go through a wood core. I didn't even think about that until I took this photo. My downrigger mounts and fish cleaning table are two more penetrations that I did not pull and fill with epoxy resin. Another project for me.

Second, putting the mounts there means that an electric pot puller probably won't have a long enough arm. My downrigger has an extension arm and, because this mounting on the 16 is low to the water, keeping the wire from the side of the boat has never been a problem. I don't know about a pot puller because I still pull manually for pots and hand crank the downrigger. You can see below the mount that there is a Scotty socket for an electric downrigger (the prior owner kept his). I looked at possibly buying one, but they cost as much as two really nice seats!!! I do a lot more sitting than fishing. In fact, I sit a lot when fishing, so I need the exercise.

Mark

102_0713.jpg
 
I would agree, moving the seat back would seem better than into the isle. but if it blocks the rear cabin curtain, then a slider could work. Alternatively, it may be able to be mounted in slots with quick release bolt handles, no slider therefor not adding height.
 
Hi Jackie,

Check this out... from the album "Ocklawaha Queen"

Seat: Attwood Centric II
Mount: Garelick Low Profile
Seat Slide & locking swivel
Model # 75090
 
That is a sweet seat, James. I installed a slide under the factory chair and am quite happy with it so far. My kids like to lean on the seat back with an arm while watching their poles which is hard on seats. When this one ultimately breaks due to that I will definitely be replacing it with one of those you pointed out!

Jackie
 
Back
Top