Can anyone recommend a upholsterer or business that re-covers bimini tops? Or is it just cheaper and easier to buy a new one? Any advice would be helpful.
Really? No one knows anyone?
17’ High Tide CC
60 Yamaha
Look for a used one. You can find them on CL. I have sold a few in the past for between $90-150. Most were in excellent condition.
Scout 185
I think you will find that everyone will be ridiculous on pricing to recover one. I bought new cushions for my boat from a dealer for half of what the best estimate was to just recover my old seats.
Unfortunately it seems like as soon as you tell someone its for a boat they double their price. Somewhere along the line everyone started to assume people with boats have money to burn.
Hydra-Sports 22 Bay Sport
225 Rude
14’ Stumpnocker
15 Rude
quote:
I think you will find that everyone will be ridiculous on pricing to recover one. I bought new cushions for my boat from a dealer for half of what the best estimate was to just recover my old seats.Unfortunately it seems like as soon as you tell someone its for a boat they double their price. Somewhere along the line everyone started to assume people with boats have money to burn.
</font id=“quote”></blockquote id=“quote”>There is more to it than that, Matt. Consider that when you buy factory cushions, or almost anything else, they are mostly made on a large scale production line of some type, all the jigs, patterns and tooling is set up, cheap labor trained, cheap materials usually used, and they run them off in mass.
Having seats recovered usually means duplicating them from scratch using the originals only as a pattern. You would generally replace the base, the foam and the fabric when rebuilding a cushion, all done by a skilled worker. He has a local reputation to maintain and will only use the best materials. If you get the right person, the quality will be much better than original, but the price must be higher accordingly.
If you haven’t found anyone to do it yet, contact Raymond Martin, Martin Marine Design. Hardeeville SC. He is the best there is. 843.784.6110 or info@martinmarinedesign.com. It won’t be the cheapest, but it will be the best.
Capt. Larry Teuton
Cracker Built Custom Boats“Ships are the nearest things to dreams that hands have ever made.” -Robert N. Rose
Have you tried calling Carver covers? They make Bimini tops in Landrum SC. I would give them a call and explain what you’re looking for… They may be able to accommodate you. (864) 457-5820
2007 Scout 221 150 Yamaha 4 stroke
x2 on Carver
I bought a bimini online from a distributer out west shortly after I purchased my boat back in 2007. After just the first season of minimal use I started seeing wear right where the top would flap against the screw heads on the top of the crossbar. There was some obvious defect as the top of the scews were unusually rough and you could feel it just by running your finger over the top off them. I wound up just wrapping some electrical tape over the screw heads and called the manufacturer, which just happened to be Carver Canvas upstate.
The woman I talked to was helpful as could be and in 2 days I had a new top sitting at my doorstep when I got home. I would highly recommend checking with them. You can probably get a new top from them (or distributer since they may not sell direct) , with frame and all, for less than it would cost you to have someone custom make you a top.
http://dealerguide.carvercovers.com/
'07 198 DLX Carolina Skiff
FS90 Suzuki