pushpit seats

[mike ritenour]

Has anyone fabricated pushpit seats for their Cape Dory?
After chartering a boat this winter, down south, my wife is sold on them.Any info would be most appreciated.
thanks,
Rit

[Neil Gordon]

To me, they always look like an easier way to fall overboard.

[Russell]

I have considered it, with the rather narrow transoms our boats have, the way that seems most ideal to me would be a board running the full length, u-bolted to the lower rail.

[Jim Walsh]

I'm with Neil on this one. They just look odd on most boats and I find myself waiting to hear a splash.

[Adamhagan]

I think there great for motoring down a long cut of ICW or on the dock. It gives you great visibility where the channel is narrow and you don't want to stand for countless hours. I don't use them at sea for the overboard risk...but I think they are a comfortable addition.

[David van den Burgh]

Don't let the nay-sayers get you down.

Yes, Rit, we added pushpit seats using some starboard, 1" rail mounts, and an aluminum post that fits into a socket and supports the seat when it's in the down position. We can swing the seats up and drop the support leg to access the stern cleats. Works great. And no one has fallen overboard yet *fingers crossed*

Here's a link to a video that shows the seats quite well: http://youtu.be/wIykcOvlEiU

[Adamhagan]

David,

I can't believe I haven't seen your video before. It is amazing! Thanks for sharing.

[mashenden]

This is on my short list for the same reason - anything to increase the likeliness of my wife joining me. It would also be a good place to put things when grilling... Like a beer.

About 6 months ago there was a post on this forum for some 100 year old teak reclaimed from old church pews. The seats have a scroll to accommodate ones butt. I ordered a piece to go across in the same manner that Russell described. The idea would be to notch the board to go past the back stay and to allow the hatch to open. Once finished bright it should look very nice.

He may still have some of this teak if anyone is interested. Try searching this forum. also please feel free to reach out to me if you need info on the ideal size to still qualify for standard shipping. If not careful, shipping can cost more than the teak.

[David van den Burgh]

David,

I can't believe I haven't seen your video before. It is amazing! Thanks for sharing.

Thanks, Adam. I love sailing with my boys!

[kerlandsen]

This is my solution. I cut some "keyway" slots in the edges of the board to hold a line with a knot in the end. Hangs over the stainless rail. Works great at Anchor, not so good while healing. I have since added two drink holder holes near the middle. Makes a great seat for cooking with the grill over the side.



Kyle E.

[mashenden]

Thank you for posting the pic. I had not considered the idea of making mine hinged rather than cutting out an area so the hatch can open. That could work better. I'll have to think about it some more.

While I had thought of drink holders, it appears that you may have made holes for fishing rods, too. Add that to my list of dos

[kerlandsen]

Ha, Those holes were to make the board lighter weight. It is 3/4" thick white oak. Perhaps one of the strongest parts on board. It's heavy.
It really does add another element to sitting around the cockpit. Easy to eat on your lap from there. Easy to reach the Autohelm and adjust the buttons with your toes and you can see over the doghouse very easily. It does just flip up for access to the aft hatch. It does get in the way a little when using the swim ladder, but we can adjust to that.

Kyle

[Russell]

Thank you for posting the pic. I had not considered the idea of making mine hinged rather than cutting out an area so the hatch can open. That could work better. I'll have to think about it some more.

While I had thought of drink holders, it appears that you may have made holes for fishing rods, too. Add that to my list of dos

I dont think hinges are going to do anything for the hatch being able to open. On your CD36 I imagine the bench would be entirely behind the backstay, in which case the backstay is what the hatch is going to hit before it reaches the bench.

[mashenden]

I dont think hinges are going to do anything for the hatch being able to open. On your CD36 I imagine the bench would be entirely behind the backstay, in which case the backstay is what the hatch is going to hit before it reaches the bench.

Ha, Those holes were to make the board lighter weight.

I am not currently on my boat so the idea of hinging it was intriguing in that I had not thought of it, but possibly it is not necessary. That said, in the picture posted by kerlandsen, the backstay is aft of the bench, and the hatch would hit the bench before the backstay if it were not able to pivot up. I'll have to take a look as it applies to a CD-36.

Great discussion, if for no other reason I accidentally discovered the idea of fishing pole holes.

[Jim_B]

At me wife's urging I built a seat and she loves it. (Note she is small and light so can easily fit in the limited space). My prototype parameters were not to drill any holes in the boat, must be easily removed and not spend much money. The version is out of exterior plywood ($5) a starboard version will be significantly more expensive.