Buyer's Remorse-What to do about seats?

[paul40269]

I bought this boat the other day and now I'm thinking "What the hell was I thinking?" It's a 16 ft. V Haul Mirrorcraft. For some reason, there are no aluminum bench seats, just modified wooden bench seats with aluminum boxes attached. Has anybody ever seen a boat like this? I got the boat, trailer, a 50lb thrust Minkota, a battery, and a 400tx Hummingbird Fishfinder for $750. I feel like the accesories made it a good deal, but these seats are bothersome. Was it worth it? Again, I'm not sure about the seats. Is it possible to install aluminum bench seats?

 

[scoutabout]

Re: Buyer's Remorse-What to do about seats?

First, welcome to iboats!

Second, don't beat yourself up -- it looks like a nice boat and there's a couple of options open to you. The easiest would be to buy some portable boat seats that are designed to either clamp or bolt to what you have there. They are nicely padded, some swivel, and will be just about perfect. Consider what you have as a real solid base from which to start.

Do a search on this site for boat seats and you will see what I mean.

The other option, depending on your skills, is to fabricate and bolt back rests on to the bases you have there, add some padding, and upholster it all in a nice, durable marine vinyl. It might be a bit tricky with the back one as you will need some clearance for the tiller of the outboard and it would make flipping the boat over tricky, but something could certainly be done along those lines.

*edit*

Here's what I was thinking of in terms of option 1. Availalbe right here for about $50

 

[Baylinercapri1987]

Re: Buyer's Remorse-What to do about seats?

Looks like they are removable bench's, previous owners probably had problems with bait/fish rotting under the original bench's. Also it looks really easy to wash out the inside after a fishing trip, the deck gets nasty quick. I non-skidded my capri for that reason, carpet sucks in a fishing boat.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Buyer's Remorse-What to do about seats?

The structural integrity of this boat has also been somewhat compromised by removal of the original aluminum seats. Someone apparently wanted a more open interior and removed them. Other than finding a damaged boat similar to this and removing the benches from it and installing them in your boat, I don't see a solution short or going to a metal fabricator and having new ones made.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Buyer's Remorse-What to do about seats?

I agree with Silvertip. And it doesn't look like those 2x4's are holding up real well.

 

[David Greer]

Re: Buyer's Remorse-What to do about seats?

Hopefully those boxes have foam floatation blocks in them. If not, add them to whatever you do.

 

[lakeorbay]

Re: Buyer's Remorse-What to do about seats?

I'm not sure how handy you are with tools or how much you want to do or spend, but you're real close to having a great boat. A lot closer than some of us, so don't feel bad.

Here's what I would do. I would cut and throw down a floor in the bottom. Then you could start from scratch and put down whatever kind of seats you choose. If you cut the floor tight fitting you wouldn't need to fasten it to the hull. If you plan on being in some seriously rough water, not having the floor fastened is probably a bad idea, but you shouldn't be (in rough water), in a boat like that. You could even cut the floor into sections for easy removal and cleaning underneath. I did it in my 12' Porta-Bote, if I find time I'll snap some pics and send them to you. Good luck.