Replacing Upholstery

Chris4x4gill2 wrote: I have about 3 or 4 od the wooden bases I need to rebuild, either partially or completely, everything else was in good shape.

Chris - any chance you could share a few pics of your wooden seat bases ,either in thread or email form? I'm looking to build out an '89 rear seat and a fellow CCF member (TimSpangler) is doing planning to build the rear and observer's seat in the next few weeks. Any pics/tips would be helpful before we get going on our builds.

Can't wait to see your interior when it's all done.

Thanks!

At this point I dont blame you. I hope these things fit properly.

CopyCat just called to confirm shipping address. They say they will ship today. "crosses fingers"

I would have thought yours had the exposed stainless hinges. Maybe I'm confusing my former boats. I need to break out pictures.

I like polished stainless.
Actually mine are in fine shape too. I think its a bit of nostalgia for my old boats.

I like them better than the concealed plastic hinges on my cover motorbox.

It's from opening the motorbox and leaning it back w/o the seat in, it gets all tweaked because it does not sit flat against the floor. It really doesn't like to go much past 90 degrees.

exactly. I was reviewing my options last night trying to figure out the next step if I had to move forward without the original skins. At least I have all the foam and bases, but trying to get the stripes right would have been a PITA I imagine.

Pictures of new skins emailed to me by Copycat.

Good news. Keep us posted.

I'm breathing a sigh of relief now..... Recieved an email response from Copycat last night. They said they were not aware that the phone line was not working and did not know what the problem was. The say my skins are ready to ship, just waiting on packaging. They sent me pictures of the finished products.

Holy Cow! I got an email from Archie just a couple of days ago, but honestly I was waiting to hear your assessment before I decided between them and Christines. I hope its just a glitch of some kind.
Good luck. Keep us posted.

We had a beautiful weekend so I pulled the boat out into the sunlight for a day of wetsanding. Made it down to 1000 grit and I think thats going to be my last step. I'm going to try a small section with compound/ wax now and see the results. If I'm not happy, I may go to 1200 but I dont think its going to be needed. Getting warm enough I can do the carpet as well now. Guess I need to find a spot to stretch it out so I can lay my patterns out. Just waiting on the seat skins now. Got to call again today to check on their progress or lack thereof.

Yes, a bad install can ruin a good set of skins. But even the best installer cant make a crappy set of skins look good. The fitment issues were pretty obvious to me- that guy had to cut his foam and base down to make the vinyl fit. Some heat will get it to stretch, but you cant make it grow 2". The customer service also seems to be a little lacking based on what Ive read.

Of course, I have no first hand experience with these guys- but Im inclined to stay away. Sometimes you get what you pay for!

Chris, hopefully you have better luck with Copycat than this guy did. Check out the installed pictures in posts #24. Yikes.

Mastercraft Copycat debacle