Helm chair replacement?

I have a very basic helm chair on my boat.



It's really wobbly and not too comfy on long trips, so I was kicking around the possibility of upgrading to a nicer seat. I could probably fix the wobbly part with a better seat base, and depending on the cost of a "better" helm seat I might just do that. When we came across the gulf last year the wobbly seat seemed to really amplify the roll, and my thinking is no wobble plus a better chair will help things.

The issue, possibly, is that there is not much room for some of the big barber-chair looking helm chairs I've seen on some boats. I would like it to match the blue ultra leather that's on the other chair and the settee, so that may limit me. Also, I'm kind of cheap, so that may limit me. ?

The pedestal is 2 7/8"
Pedestal is about 14" tall. Seat bottom is 19" deep, 28" tall and 20" wide.

Any ideas where and what I should look for?

Personally I really like Stidd. They are expensive, but perhaps not as expensive as one might think. I replaced a set with a Stidd and it was $3600. Not cheap by any means, but they are really well made, and very comfortable. The key to keeping the cost down was a painted pedestal, not polished stainless, and vinyl fabric. And a boat show discount was included, but this is the time of year to get that....

Check out Craigslist.Skagit (Skagit County, WA) under boat parts. There is what appears to be a very nice helm seat in your color listed. Good luck.
Cheers,
-David

Since you mentioned the wobble was the most objectionable issue, why don't you eliminate that variable with a better seat pedestal. Garelick makes a 4" pedestal series with a 12" base. It is as solid as a rock and rotates and slides as smooth as silk.



PEDESTAL BASES WITH 4 INCH DIAMETER POST - Garelick EEz-In

Then, if you decide you still need to upgrade the seat, you can do so at your convenience.

We looked at a boat a few years ago, too many negatives, but
the helm seat was an antique barber's chair.
Looked neat, took up a lot of room.

Ted

Sonas came with just the one chair at each helm, but the pilothouse has the day seat/bed right behind at the same height so not an issue.

On the FB however the person not on the helm had to sit on the bench behind, which was significantly lower, and certainly not the best way to do a long run. We thought about putting in a nice, but less expensive, chair than the Stidd that is there. But decided that we really needed to match.

So in April I ordered a matching FB chair from STIDD. Using the code under the chair they matched everything including color. It arrived and was installed about three weeks ago.

$5600 for the chair plus install, which included drilling from below, installing a backing plate etc. etc.

But we are happy we went with the more expensive match. It just looks so much better up there.

LarryM said:

Since you mentioned the wobble was the most objectionable issue, why don't you eliminate that variable with a better seat pedestal. Garelick makes a 4" pedestal series with a 12" base. It is as solid as a rock and rotates and slides as smooth as silk.

PEDESTAL BASES WITH 4 INCH DIAMETER POST - Garelick EEz-In

Then, if you decide you still need to upgrade the seat, you can do so at your convenience.

Click to expand...

That's probably what I will do, after looking at the prices of some of these helm chairs. My butt doesn't hurt that bad. Lol.

menzies said:

Sonas came with just the one chair at each helm, but the pilothouse has the day seat/bed right behind at the same height so not an issue.

On the FB however the person not on the helm had to sit on the bench behind, which was significantly lower, and certainly not the best way to do a long run. We thought about putting in a nice, but less expensive, chair than the Stidd that is there. But decided that we really needed to match.

So in April I ordered a matching FB chair from STIDD. Using the code under the chair they matched everything including color. It arrived and was installed about three weeks ago.

$5600 for the chair plus install, which included drilling from below, installing a backing plate etc. etc.

But we are happy we went with the more expensive match. It just looks so much better up there.

Click to expand...

Those are really nice!

Amusing story post chair install.

We had just left the yard and had called the Ortega River drawbridge for an opening on channel 9.

After passing through the opened bridge I did what I always do, got on the radio and said "thank you bridge, have a nice day."

Of course every time I do this the bridge responds with something like "you're welcome, have a nice day."

This time there was zero response, strange I thought. I looked down at the radio to see if the volume was up and found it back on 16. I looked at the missus, sitting there in her nice new chair, who had a guilty look on her face.

"I changed it back to 16'" says she!

"OK that's going to be a problem," says I, "keeps your hands off the controls unless I ask you to!"

She just roared with laughter!

cardude01 said:

That's probably what I will do, after looking at the prices of some of these helm chairs. My butt doesn't hurt that bad. Lol.

Click to expand...

Hey Dude..I thought you were selling that boat? Have a change if heart?

Shoot, I flip flop like a politician. I still have a good time messing around with the boat, and every time I get off the boat I wonder why I'm worried about selling it.

So, I'm still interested in selling/trading, but not going to kill myself doing it. Does that make sense? Lol.

If your main complaint is that the seat is wobbly, Then it is the pedestal that is the issue. I have the same Zwaardvis Maryland helm chair in my Nauset 28. My boat is quit a bit smaller than yours, and mine is rock solid. The best seat will fail to satisfy if not properly mounted.

Larger diameter central shaft = better stability.