25 Seafari Project

[stumpie2]

both of my helm seats are mounted on boxes(see seafari25's pics on page 1) which makes for more storage and ability to have tackle drawers in the backside of the captians chair box... the captian seat box is exact same size as the passenger side galley seat box... and i just mounted the swivel and slider from pedestal seat, the boxes add alot more stability than the single leg ped. seat plus storage.... sorry dont have the specs...

[McGillicuddy]

My a$$ prefers Garelick seating. It's little bit more $ than Wise but more ergonomic. I tried Wise, B&M, and some Springfield stuff and kept going back to Garelick. I dumped my pedestal mounted roto-molded seats because I could never get comfortable in them, especially on humid days. I, too, made some boxes, and went to a folding style seat which I find infinitely more comfortable that the roto molded ones. They can also be used on pedestals

If you go with pedestals, I suggest that you get adjustable height stanchions. That way you can adjust them for sitting back or for leaning if you drive standing like I usually do looking for signs of fish.

My bases are at 18" putting my seat at 22". That works for me. I'm 5'10". Here's what I did for my little Seafari, there's a 100 qt cooler that will handle 35" fishes under port seat, and extra gas tanks or tackle under starboard, & two rod hollers on the top of each seat back for solo trolling or extra rod storage. nothing fancy but functional for my needs.

[seafari25]

Can anyone tell me the height from the deck to the top of the seat cushion at the helm?

I'm thinking mine are roughly 3.5' or so. My captain pedestal is adjustable. You may be able to get an idea looking at my big pic on this post. Looks like about 5" from the top of the seat bottom to the top of the gunwale. Sorry, you're moving a little quicker than I can get measurements but I'm hoping to see the boat next weekend.

Windshield mock up looks good

[rcnight]

Dave:
Have you tried Shea's Glass in Gville. They may have the glass & aluminum sections for your windshield.

[fdheld34]

I'm also looking for pedestal type helm seats. Can anyone recommend a seat that's a good compromise between quality and price? I was looking at this one, but haven't seen one up close.

try this link http://www.rivermarinesupply.com/xca...ng_page_1.html ///I just purchased a pair from River Marine for my boat (springfield commodore series)....quality is ok..and they are comfortable...not high end but work for my application..then I cut pedistals down and mounted them on top of small storage boxes that I found on ebay. He shipped me two boxes minus all the openings and crap.and beefed up mounting area for pedistal application..was cheaper than making my own...but a little too small for your application!!!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Fiber...ssoriesQ5fGear
Get Gillie to make you some custom storage boxes..or send your dimensions...I still love his design!!!!!!
Your progress looks great.keep pics coming!!!
-FRED

[Blue_Heron]

Thanks, guys, for the ideas on the seats. I haven't had time to digest it all, yet. I will be building a storage box under the seats on both sides, but haven't decided the overall height. The seats may sit right on top of the box, or on a pedestal.

Casey, thanks for suggesting Shea's Glass. I called down there Friday afternoon, but they don't have the aluminum extrusions for this application. Got a price on laminated glasss, though, $12.50/sf.

I siphoned about 40 gallons of old gas out of the tanks this week. It smells a tad like varnish, but it's not all gummed up and there was no water in the tanks. I plan on removing the tanks this afternoon for a thorough cleaning. Both tanks need new sending units.
Dave

[Blue_Heron]

Well, I did the bilge rat thing today. I pulled the fuel tanks this afternoon, and found a small can of worms. The sole the fuel tanks sit on was squooshy and when you stepped on it, water bubbled up. Not good. So I tore it out and found it had been removed during the last redo and pourable foam was placed beneath. When they tabbed the sole back in place, they didn't do such a good job making it watertight. On the up side, this made it easier to remove. The tabbing came off pretty easily. I didn't grab the camera until I had the foam out, and was preparing to clean up the bilge. Here's the tank compartment before and after cleanup:





Here's the foam that came out:



And the fuel tanks with the fresh water tank sitting on top:

[strick]

I think that's how they were built at the factory. I experienced the same scenario when I removed my tanks....rotton to the max sole and foam floating around. It was a real mess. The only difference I see is your tanks were coated green? Both my tanks were corroded badly so the kids and I took them to the scrap yard and they got a few bucks to throw in their piggy bank

strick

[stumpie2]

those look like the origional tanks i had the same problem when i replaced mine... ended up rebuilding the entire tank bed and glassing in new tabs and bulkheads along with the stringers... mine was a PITA trying to do through the tank access hole.

[seafari25]

Time to get this post back in action
Here are some windshield pics Dave
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