Butchy Posted March 12 Report Share Posted March 12 Looking to buy this 2006 16’ Redfisher. Wondering about the droop in the seat back. There is an indication in the underside in the back that looks like there was originally a spacer or something to support the seat back in the middle. any ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B Posted March 12 Report Share Posted March 12 Butchy, My '01 has a very similar droop - maybe a little less. I took the seat back off last fall - ground off the old gel ,coat under the back cushion , that was cracked and de-laminating. Re gel coated this area. Also look at the areas where the hinge attaches to the back ...... mine had serious cracks that required re-glassing to get it back structurally sound. Also - pull the bottom cushion and examine the 'gutter' that runs along under the rear of the seat. Mine had major cracking from, I presume, flexing from weight on the seat. I dremeled all the cracks, re-gelcoated and while doing this added some layers of glass cloth on the under side of the gutter to stiffen it up. I'm not wild about the droopy seat back, but after several years of use it doesn't seem to be getting any worse. jb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butchy Posted March 13 Author Report Share Posted March 13 Thanks JB. Did yours have anything, like a support on the area I circled in the picture? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B Posted March 13 Report Share Posted March 13 No evidence of a support on mine - in the area you circled nor anywhere else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanaflatsfish Posted March 13 Report Share Posted March 13 you are looking to purchase a 18 y/o skiff.....it's going to have some issues....all of these things can be fixed with some gelcoat and reinforcement if needed. It's never easy to make the assessment...but, this appears to be minor in the scale of things.... Dc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butchy Posted March 13 Author Report Share Posted March 13 31 minutes ago, Wanaflatsfish said: you are looking to purchase a 18 y/o skiff.....it's going to have some issues....all of these things can be fixed with some gelcoat and reinforcement if needed. It's never easy to make the assessment...but, this appears to be minor in the scale of things.... Dc Thanks for the reply Dc. I bought it today. It needs a lot of work, a very neglected boat. Just looking to see if there’s an easy fix for something that was once there but is not now. My thoughts are on the seat is to use angle aluminum to support it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B Posted March 14 Report Share Posted March 14 I considered the aluminum angle too, but worried that a load applied might bend it - defeating the purpose. Another fix - if there is enough room - make a wood clamp/fixture to hold the seat back flat, then glass in a stiff fiberglass rod or square tube. Max Gain systems in Ga. has all sorts of fiberglass shapes that might work. jb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B Posted March 14 Report Share Posted March 14 Butchy, I'll suggest another modification while you're at it. TH Marine makes a white rectangular access hatch that will fit in the splash well - in place of the existing black round one. If you are doing much work down in the bilge ( pumps, hose, wiring, etc) the large hatch makes tasks MUCH easier. I've seen complaints elsewhere that these TH Marine hatches do not seal well - allowing the potential for water entry. I considered this and concluded that I'd accept that possibility for the tradeoff of decent access. jb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanaflatsfish Posted March 14 Report Share Posted March 14 4 hours ago, John B said: 'll suggest another modification while you're at it. TH Marine makes a white rectangular access hatch that will fit in the splash well - in place of the existing black round one. If you are doing much work down in the bilge ( pumps, hose, wiring, etc) the large hatch makes tasks MUCH easier. I've seen complaints elsewhere that these TH Marine hatches do not seal well - allowing the potential for water entry. I considered this and concluded that I'd accept that possibility for the tradeoff of decent access. I installed this on all my skiffs.....they make one without the hinge that gives you more room....you will get some leakage, but, it's going to drain into the bilge, so, no big deal.....it's a fairly easy install, and yes, if you are going to be working on the skiff, the pie hole is a nightmare.... Enjoy the forum.....lots of cool info here. dc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butchy Posted March 14 Author Report Share Posted March 14 Thanks John. I think I’ll try the tube idea. Boats at the shop now for engine work but I kept the seat back to work on it… Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B Posted March 14 Report Share Posted March 14 Cool beans ....... post a pic of your 'stiffener' ..... might tackle that on mine !! jb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blactaco23 Posted March 19 Report Share Posted March 19 I've been looking into fixing mine as well to stiffen it up in preparation for new upholstery. I thought about using a half round rod. Basically copying the front hatch lids Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butchy Posted March 23 Author Report Share Posted March 23 On 3/19/2024 at 12:12 PM, Blactaco23 said: I've been looking into fixing mine as well to stiffen it up in preparation for new upholstery. I thought about using a half round rod. Basically copying the front hatch lids the project will have to wait until I fix a few more important issues. What I was considering is a 1” square tube alone the bottom of the seat back. See the picture, also possibly adding the round rods as you mentioned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeorgeS Posted March 25 Report Share Posted March 25 Unrelated question but how does the bottom seat attach and stay fixed? The backrest from what I can see has visible screws that go into the cushion right? Rebuilding a 2006 and tackling the whole seating situation rn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butchy Posted March 26 Author Report Share Posted March 26 On 3/25/2024 at 12:32 AM, GeorgeS said: Unrelated question but how does the bottom seat attach and stay fixed? The backrest from what I can see has visible screws that go into the cushion right? Rebuilding a 2006 and tackling the whole seating situation rn I haven’t taken the seat back off yet. This project is on hold while I address other issues with this boat. I’ll post some pics when I start working on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fsu11 Posted March 26 Report Share Posted March 26 On 3/25/2024 at 12:32 AM, GeorgeS said: Unrelated question but how does the bottom seat attach and stay fixed? The backrest from what I can see has visible screws that go into the cushion right? Rebuilding a 2006 and tackling the whole seating situation rn bottom seat just sits over the opening and has two rectangle wedges that "lock" in place somewhat hard to explain but basically it just sits there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeorgeS Posted March 26 Report Share Posted March 26 7 hours ago, Fsu11 said: bottom seat just sits over the opening and has two rectangle wedges that "lock" in place somewhat hard to explain but basically it just sits there Managed to find a video of some guy walking through his 2006 red fisher and saw exactly what you're talking about. Kind of just like a block of plastic that rests against the lip of the hatch so that it doesn't just slid out from under you. I'm redoing my hatches right now and looking to gel coat them white, any tips n tricks? I plan to just sand, degrease and clean them really well then gel coat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butchy Posted March 27 Author Report Share Posted March 27 13 hours ago, GeorgeS said: Managed to find a video of some guy walking through his 2006 red fisher and saw exactly what you're talking about. Kind of just like a block of plastic that rests against the lip of the hatch so that it doesn't just slid out from under you. I'm redoing my hatches right now and looking to gel coat them white, any tips n tricks? I plan to just sand, degrease and clean them really well then gel coat. Try this link, this guy painted his hatches among a lot of other nice upgrades. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fsu11 Posted March 28 Report Share Posted March 28 On 3/26/2024 at 6:24 PM, GeorgeS said: Managed to find a video of some guy walking through his 2006 red fisher and saw exactly what you're talking about. Kind of just like a block of plastic that rests against the lip of the hatch so that it doesn't just slid out from under you. I'm redoing my hatches right now and looking to gel coat them white, any tips n tricks? I plan to just sand, degrease and clean them really well then gel coat. ive painted my hatches twice, the first time lasted awhile but started to get beat up so i redid it recently with a one part polyurethane from totalboat. If i was to do it again id use bilge paint from Totalboat, i used it on the inside of my console and it is tough stuff that will last. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 George, Your boat probably has (2) nylon straps with snaps that hold the seat back in the closed position ......... I can tell from experience that these need to be snapped down when trailering at highway speed. Otherwise, wind will flip the seat back up and your bottom seat cushion can fly out since it is basically unsecured. jb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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