# Custom Bench Seating for Skiff



## winyahjay (Feb 8, 2010)

Has anyone added custom bench seats to a skiff? Picture the customer seating on Hell's Bay's lodge edition skiff. Thats kind of what I'm shooting for.

I have a tiller driven skiff with a wide-open cockpit. About to start running some inshore charters and need some customer seating. I ordered a product made by by wise seats www.wiseseats.com called a swingback seat. Hopefully it will work out.

If you have done any work like this to your boat, I would really appreciate any pictures and/or feedback.

Thanks

Jay


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## Brett (Jul 16, 2008)

The problem with swing back seats is that fingers
can end up in places where they can be crushed.
Which is why I installed a locking mechanism on mine.
2 lengths of wood that fit inside the track and blocked movement.
I think the best seating arrangement is that of a typical
Bahamian lodge skiff. Very comfortable individual seat
for each client.

picture below is from  http://www.angleradventures.com/NorthRiding/


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## winyahjay (Feb 8, 2010)

Thats exactly what i was hoping to achieve, but it looked like a little more work and cash than I have time for. I guess they take coffin boxes and then add the individual bucket seats to the top of the coffin boxes. Maybe that's what I will do down the road if the swingback doesn't work out. 

Do you have any pics of your swingback seat?


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## flyfisheraa573 (Jun 26, 2008)

get a Yeti, or big marine cooler...add starboard to the top and add seats, hold it down with turnbuckles. That way, you can take it in or out.

A good brand seat, is Tempress Seats...very comfortable, and well worth the price.


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## Brett (Jul 16, 2008)

This is a scanned image from a 17 whaler I put together.
The swing back is attached to the box covering the 24 gallon fuel tank.
Constructed of fir and stainless screws.


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## winyahjay (Feb 8, 2010)

Thanks for the pics Brett. If the swingback doesn't work out, I can just use the box from the swingback seat and add the tempress seats.


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## TidewateR (Nov 11, 2009)

Here's a shot of Capt Blaine Townsend's swing back on his waterman









- Do you need an ice chest under the chair and seating for two? 

-This won't allow for either, but I plan on installing a kennedy turnbuckle under an aluminum Wise deck chair when my girlfriend or dad wants to fish. As for an ice chest, I have a california innovation $8 collapsable that I'll use. You might have room to mount two deck chairs side by side...but that would mean more deck plates on your boat.

-a swingback might be your best bet.


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## winyahjay (Feb 8, 2010)

Awesome...thanks for the reply. I ordered the swingback and am happy with my decision. I appreciate the picture. I have searched high and low for pics of a swingback in the cockpit of a skiff. Will post results when the product arrives.


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## TidewateR (Nov 11, 2009)

sweet...we'll be expecting a follow up post with installation pics and final results ;D


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## winyahjay (Feb 8, 2010)

Well I said that I would post the picture when i got the seat installed. I ended up using the Swingback seat manufactured by Wise Seats. It has worked out great and gave me the dry-storage space that I was lacking since i converted one of my rear hatches to a live-well. I took a 2-man charter redfishing last weekend and it worked perfectly. It also helps with my hole-shot because it distributes weight forward in the boat. The swing back is also nice because you can face the stern while the rods are in the holders for tarpon and shark fishing. So far I am pretty stoked about it.


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## jimbarn1961 (Aug 2, 2009)

Congratulations, that is a simple and sweet looking skiff. Me likes


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## East_Cape (Jun 3, 2008)

We welded these seats to a frame and then bolted to the floor.
Looks great and works great!


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## PVredfisher (Jan 11, 2007)

Nice boat . How about some pics of the livewell


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## winyahjay (Feb 8, 2010)

Those seats look great in the east cape skiff. I originally intended to do something like that with the tempress (spelling?) seats. The wise seat just ended up being a little easier and gave me the storage i needed.

PVRed, I will try to get some pics of the live-well up some time. We did an intake at the transom to a pump in the bilge area. The live-well hose runs from the bilge up through a hole that was already in the side of the storage compartment that was there for running electrical wires. We did a spill-over hole on the transom to circulate water instead of a stand-pipe. The spill-over works, but not as well as I had hoped. I wouldn't want to keep fish alive in a tournament during the summer. I ended up rigging another bilge pump with a long piece of hose and alligator clips on the wires that i stash in the other rear compartment with my cranking battery. I can use it to dump the water from the well quickly to change out old hot water. PM me if you want to try to rig one and I will tell you what I know.


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## HighSide25 (May 15, 2007)

i love those saltwater flats style rangers. adding that swingback seat is pretty cool, reminds me of an old cape horn i used to fish out of.
drive it one way, fish it another. good job!


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