Bimini and other deck options

[DuckDogTitus]

After our first full season with the C-Dory, we understand the value a little better in a full camperback system. I'm not sure we "need" the full system, but I am thinking just the top portion, the bimini, would be ideal for rainy day fishing. Does anyone run just a bimini in that scenario? I hate when the aft deck area starts collecting rainwater.

 

[thataway]

It depends. I started with just a Bimini on several of the C Dory's--and ended up getting full canvas. Rain will come in thru the sides, if there is any wind. The full camper canvas gives you an extra dry room. You can take off the foul weather gear and put it in the cabin. You can still troll with just the side or back open. So, I have gone with full canvas in all of my boats.

 

[Don and Brenda]

I had the bimini made a bit oversized and had the zippers placed so later on I could easily add the full canvas.

 

[johnr]

With the bimini on, rainwater STILL gets into my aft deck because rain running off the top of my bimini drain into parts of the aft deck. In other words, my bimini does not cover the entire aft deck such that rainwater coming off the bimini will run into the ocean. For that, I would need a bimini that extends past the aft deck, or perhaps have gutters on the bimini that could direct the rain drainage overboard.

The bimini is still nice in the rain because you can stand and sit under it and stay dry, but it's not keeping the water out of the aft deck. To keep my deck dry I need to add the full canvas (sides and back).

 

[DuckDogTitus]

With the bimini on, rainwater STILL gets into my aft deck because rain running off the sides of my bimini drain into parts of the aft deck. In other words, my bimini does not cover the entire aft deck such that rainwater coming off the bimini will run into the ocean. For that, I would need a bimini that extends past the aft deck, or perhaps have gutters on the bimini that could direct the rain drainage overboard.

The bimini is still nice in the rain because you can stand and sit under it and stay dry, but it's not keeping the water out of the aft deck.

noted, thank you for bringing that up. If I go with a custom made bimini then two things I think I'll need to consider is:

a. overall height
b. full rain protection. (so oversized bimini probably)

 

[chriscarrera]

Camperback was the first thing we did when we got the tomcat, I consider it essential in the northwest and makes the living space much bigger. Worth every penny.

 

[PaulNBriannaLynn]

That custom cantilever design where there is no rear poles appeals to me alot more.

The standard camper back looks really nice to have, but I am worried it would really effect my fishing. How do you deal with a big fish spooling your reel and going under the boat? Normally I'd just switch sides but don't those poles for the canvas really get in the way? I guess I just don't have any experience.

We were in Panama and hired some panga type boats with similar tops to the camper backs. It was really nice to be out of the blazing sun and rain(sometimes at the same time!) until we got into the fish. At that point the top bows really became a PITA.

 

[thataway]

A bimini can be made so that it folds down completely out of the way. Sea Pelican had this feature when I owned the boat. My Caracal center console also has the feature which allows the Bimini to be folded completely out of the way when fishing.

 

[thataway]

A bimini can be made so that it folds down completely out of the way. Sea Pelican had this feature when I owned the boat. My Caracal center console also has the feature which allows the Bimini to be folded completely out of the way when fishing.

A good canvas maker should be able to make a full camper back with the cantilever system, which could be the best of both worlds.

 

[Montana Kev]

Here is a picture of our camper back. It extends to the back of the motor well which is great for getting into the rear hatches. We can also store gear in the well. The camper back doubles our living space. Since this pic was taken I added zippers and a role-up door on each side panel. We also added a zipper on the top starboard side next to the cabin roof. The top zipper enables you to zip the top back 16 inches and clip it back so you do not need to duck down while going in or out of the cockpit. We leave the top up and the port panel on most all the time then at night hang the rear and starboard panel. We also have a full privacy curtain that can be hung with clips.

 

[DuckDogTitus]

if your camperback systems get wet, do you remove them from the boat and set them up in the garage or something to dry later? I'm assuming they dont get rolled up and packed away wet on the boat. (or do they?)

i'm thinking of when I'm deer hunting and my camping gear gets soaked every year... I tend to come home and lay it out in the garage a few days to dry before packing it away.

 

[Sunbeam]

Here is a picture of our camper back. It extends to the back of the motor well which is great for getting into the rear hatches.

The camper back extending aft like that appeals to me. Could I ask you a couple of questions?

First I was wondering what the after/lower edge is attached to, and how. Second, what happens if/when you want to tilt up the main engine - does it tilt up just fine as-is? Or is there an adjustment you make?

Thanks,
Sunbeam

(My boat came with a bimini, but no camperback (yet).)

 

[Sunbeam]

Here is a picture of our camper back. It extends to the back of the motor well which is great for getting into the rear hatches.

The camper back extending aft like that appeals to me. Could I ask you a couple of questions?

First I was wondering what the after/lower edge is attached to, and how. Second, what happens if/when you want to tilt up the main engine - does it tilt up just fine as-is? Or is there an adjustment you make?

Thanks,
Sunbeam

(My boat came with a bimini, but no camperback (yet).)

 

[Montana Kev]

Hi Sunbeam,

The bottom of the back panel is the clear material, I did this so I could see the motor or if towing the kayak. It can be snapped at the bottom. The motor can be tilted but not let all the way up with everything zipped but the panel could be modified to let the motor up. We bought the boat 2nd hand and it came with the Bimini and side panels, I made the rear panel and installed the roll-up side doors. We store the boat with a slant back cover and only set-up the bimini when we are on board. In the photo you can see how the bimini stores with the slant back cover in place.

 

[Sunbeam]

Kevin: Thanks for the detail. Good looking pair of boats :thup

 

[NODAKID]

Great boat photos.
I am looking for some additional experienced advice on canvas. We are in an area that does not have good custom suppliers of canvas products. The current thinking is that our 19 Angler needs a bimini for fishing and cruising and a mooring cover similar to the picture of the two boats docked. The bimini storage with the mooring cover in place looks perfect. We have seen less than satisfied postings about King Marine products which were referenced as the OEM supplier. Is there some positive experience with some good suppliers that have patterns? Also what about experiences installing your own hardware once you have your canvas shipped to you?

 

[thataway]

A google search shows Bismarck Canvas and Bill's Upholstery Specialists listed as boat canvas shops in Bismarck ND.

Although my impression of King's Canvas that is there are better, they do have patterns and if you explain exactly what you want, and how you want it built I am sure that they can do a decent job. My complaint was that it was not as good as my local canvas shop for a unit I ordered from the C Dory 25. It worked fine, but fit and finish was not as good. The canvas which came with my current C Dory 22 made by King is not bad--again maybe not quite as good as a custom job, but acceptable for a slant mooring cover, and the Bimini top.

 

[Sunbeam]

Not sure if this is an acceptable (and maybe even useful) tangent or a hijack, but for those of you who have biminis, I'd be interested to hear what you do with it while trailering.

So far I've just been taking the whole kit and caboodle down (bimini and frame) and stowing it in the cockpit. The good is that it's out of the wind and most of the dirt, nothing chafes on the boat or the bimini, and there is no stress on the brackets*. It fits pretty well with the legs aft. The bad is that it's a bit of a pain to take down with one person, and once it is down I can only open the door a wee bit, and have to sort of "suck it in" to get in and out of the cabin. While not great, this is acceptable because I don't camp in the boat while trailering. However, once I fasten the fiberglass covers in front of the fuel tanks.... the legs won't be able to extend aft like they do now (I made temporary canvas covers for while I let the new tanks expand - I can just flip them up and get to the tanks to adjust the shimming).

I just spent an hour or so experimenting with other ways to trailer the bimini and frame, and didn't come up with anything too exciting, so I'd be interested to know how others set things up when trailering.

For that matter, how do you handle it with a full camperback/frame? I hope to need to know that soon (waiting to be in the right place at the right time vis-a-vis a good canvasmaker and scheduling).

Sunbeam

*My bimini frame is aluminum and the brackets plastic, so while I have taken care of the boat in the way of the fasteners, the parts themselves are not as sturdy as they could be. I would like to get a camperback in future, and that would have a stainless frame and brackets; so I don't have a lot of motivation to modify this bimini.

 

[potter water]

Still Crazy came with a nice bimmini installed. The frame stays in place, though, I could release the whole thing if needed as it doesn't use screws to hold it to the feet. The whole frame is stainless. The bimini front edge snaps to the top of the cabin rear. When stowed, the frame that supports the canvas midway just folds back against the rest of the frame, and the canvas wraps around that bow, then a nice cover zips over the canvas, and I tow to my hearts content. The bimini in towed store allows me full access to the door on or off the water. The bimini has the sippers sewn in for the camper back. I do not and would not tow at my normal 60 to 65 with the camper back zipped into place. That would just be plain suicide on the canvas within a few miles.

I'd be very quick about doing away with the plastic parts of your bimini as they will deteriorate pretty quickly with the solar UV. Stainless or aluminum is best, but I like stainless a lot and think it is well worth any premium costs. The cost of the frame is a small part of major canvas work on a boat in my experience.

Good luck.

 

[Sunbeam]

Still Crazy came with a nice bimmini installed. The frame stays in place, though, I could release the whole thing if needed as it doesn't use screws to hold it to the feet. The whole frame is stainless. The bimini front edge snaps to the top of the cabin rear. When stowed, the frame that supports the canvas midway just folds back against the rest of the frame, and the canvas wraps around that bow, then a nice cover zips over the canvas, and I tow to my hearts content. The bimini in towed store allows me full access to the door on or off the water.

That sounds like the same design as mine, except for two things. One is that mine attaches to the cabin with an awning rail and boltrope vs. snaps (not that that affects trailering), and the other is that mine has an aluminum frame and plastic attachment feet. If I had designed it the frame would be stainless, as I find it preferable. I could get an identical stainless version of the plastic mounting brackets, but then I might just be moving the stress to the other parts of the frame (which are still aluminum and plastic). Since I plan to get a camperback with a different (stainless) frame as soon as I can, there is only so much I want to overhaul this one (i.e. I don't want to get a new frame for it). But when it comes time to buy the camperback, I'll go with the good stuff for sure. This bimini came with the boat, so it was basically a freebie (and for that, it's fantastic as compared to no bimini).

I'd be very quick about doing away with the plastic parts of your bimini as they will deteriorate pretty quickly with the solar UV.

I guess the one "good" thing about the plastic brackets is that it's cheap and easy to carry spares (for now). They're like $2.75 apiece. Since I have them bedded in butyl and fastened through epoxy, it's not a problem to change them out from time to time. So far, so good, but I think I'll order a set of spares.

I did trailer with the bimini stowed like you do yours one time. I made a "cat's cradle" of parachute-type cord from the frame to the after cleats, so there was diagonal bracing -- then it was steady as a rock. I guess I may have to go back to that method (for now) once I get the fuel tank covers in. It is less of a pain than having it in the cockpit (and it won't fit like that once I get the covers in place).