Cockpit Seat Cover Material?

[DavidJ]

A few thoughts @SC35 :
1. another vote from me for Silvertex. It is made by Spradling not Sunbrella, and is one of a range of textured vinyls they make, that have a sort of cloth-like feel. The others include "carbon fibre" and "hitch", all listed here, but imho Silvertex is the best. I have just specified it on 2 new boats and one refit of an older boat.

2. Another high end vinyl is Rancati Morbern Sundance. Not a great website but very impressive/high quality material when you see it for real. Used OEM by Sanlorenzo and Riva, but not easy to get in UK

3. Plenty of high end boats, FG and others, still use vinyl not cloth material outside, including Riva.

4. Each to their own but I would avoid plain slabby sheets of the stuff like in Portofino's pictures above. It will ripple and looks bland, plus the vinyl cover will "roll around" the foam insides during ordinary use, so the foam and vinyl become misaligned. I suggest you make a sausage under the knee like in DavidJ's/ Tico's/Greg2's pictures in #2, #14 and#16 above, and/or introduce piping and welded patterns - picture below is my tender done in Silvertex pre-welded into diamonds, with sausages, piping and some plan/flat pieces, all mixed up together.

It’s amazing how smart a tender can look with a bit (read a lot) of care and attention to seat covers. The teaky bits are nice as well.

 

[tico]

And another plug for Martin at MJM boats to make it. He's done my last 2 boats and did a great job on both.
Acknowledgements to jfm for the referral.

 

[NBs]

Hi,

Sunbrella plus.

Sunbrella Marine Protection Collection

fabric-like, quick-drying, does not mold etc. lots of colors.

NBs

 

[Portofino]

Mine was Sunberella “ Nette “ not silvetex .Apologies senior moment .I was looking at FB posts and remembered the actual product .Anyhow it’s doesn’t stain and works really well .
On our particular boat it’s designed un fussy simple lines with a lot of subtle details you don’t notice unless pointed out .
Eg the sausage roll would not work or look wrong because the seat bases are not vertical .There’s no cabin under , just storage .Cockpit over the mid engine room so flat sole .
The bases slope under a bit for your heels to comfortably be placed without banging them on the bases .So your knees joint in effect does not need any extra elevation that a sausage provides to kick the heel away from a vertical side …..if you understand my meaning .
We had stripes in the previous plastic and wanted to move away update .The “ slabby “ zen like minimalist look suits the boat .We like the de clutter look .
Its not everyone s taste ( boat and colour scheme) obviously each to there own on that .
A few colour coordinated cushions ( sorry no picks ) or beach towels breaks it up .


No clutter …..yet !


The cushions are feathered to go over that lip …..they sit kinda inside .

Few cushions, the blue are the same colour as the Bimini and the rear tie down straps to lift it a little .Just a little .
Re subtle details un noticed at first pass ….note the Bimini frame upright has a kink so it’s vertical bit parallels up with the widow frame . See the overhang , or base slanting under the seat cushions.



Beach towels .In the Med you are in / out the sea all the time @ anchor .This might not be as important in the U.K. .


Previous OEM plastic it used to ruck up , dew or condensation + any red rain would pool in the groves .

This newer Nette does not do this and dries faster …..or seems to .

It was a bit like throwing a dart at a board in some senses , until you actually release it there are lots of permutations that would work and an equally some that wouldn’t.Anyhow we are very happy with it .In particular the colour .


They are very simple uncluttered clean lined boats.Even the anchor kinda tucks away ….simply.Winch hidden as well .


Anyhow this Sunberella “Nette “ stuff seems great for upholstery.

Or course there other ways for those bothered by vast swathes of material or “ slabs “ to manage the issue

 

[jfm]

And another plug for Martin at MJM boats to make it. He's done my last 2 boats and did a great job on both.
Acknowledgements to jfm for the referral.

Also, Martin knows where to source the diamond (and other shapes) welded Silvertex, if you happen to need that. Comes from a company in Holland.

 

[jfm]

That particular sunbrella product -in post #24- is called Natte, and it's an acrylic cloth not a vinyl. Completely different thing from Silvertex, which is a vinyl, so the info in #17 was garbage.

The colour in post #24 pictures is I think Natté Cadet Grey, NAT 5073 140 . I had this on my last boat, Very nice and very hard wearing - I would highly recommend it. But takes a while to dry if it gets rain/spray on it, because it's a cloth.

If you buy from the excellent Martin Duce, he can supply this Natte fabric with a thin plastic film after-market glued to the reverse side, making it even more waterproof - he calls this "sunbrella Plus", not to be confused with a different thing that Sunbrella themselves make also called Sunbrella Plus.

 

[Momac]

For those few days in the UK when its hot and sunny I dare say its best to avoid dark colours .

 

[DAW]

I have Sunbrella Natte with the waterproof backing on my current boat and reupholstered the previous one with Silvertex. Both are excellent products, each with pros and cons.

I think Sunbrella Natte looks and feels nicer, because it is a woven acrylic fabric rather than a vinyl. However, it requires more care than Silvertex. The woven surface holds the dirt and salt and if you don’t clean it regularly it can start to look grubby. Cleaning is easy … just wash it down with water, soap and a soft brush and allow to dry well. Ideally, you also need to store cushions inside or fit covers when not in use.

Silvertex is more hard wearing, easier to clean and dries more quickly. Because of this it feels as though it will be more weather resistant so you don’t have to be quite as diligent with covers, etc. However, it’s a vinyl and so it feels less luxurious and is definitely less comfortable to sit on in hot weather.

 

[SC35]

I have Sunbrella Natte with the waterproof backing on my current boat and reupholstered the previous one with Silvertex. Both are excellent products, each with pros and cons.

I think Sunbrella Natte looks and feels nicer, because it is a woven acrylic fabric rather than a vinyl. However, it requires more care than Silvertex. The woven surface holds the dirt and salt and if you don’t clean it regularly it can start to look grubby. Cleaning is easy … just wash it down with water, soap and a soft brush and allow to dry well. Ideally, you also need to store cushions inside or fit covers when not in use.

Silvertex is more hard wearing, easier to clean and dries more quickly. Because of this it feels as though it will be more weather resistant so you don’t have to be quite as diligent with covers, etc. However, it’s a vinyl and so it feels less luxurious and is definitely less comfortable to sit on in hot weather.

The boat is in the UK.
"Hot Weather" is something that happens for maybe 4 weeks in a season.
Generally if not in use, the roof will be across and the rear canvas deployed, so the seats are not usually in the open.

Current thoughts are to let MasterCovers at Port Solent sort out the rear canvas cover and the canvas roof, and to give MJM a call with regards to the cockpit seating.
Trouble is, I'm not a designer! I know what I like when I see it, but if I was that good at creating cockpit ambience, I would be working for a boatbuilder.
Hopefully MJM will be able to sketch out some options.

The cockpit fabric needs to be able to cope with salty people covered in sun-cream, Doritos, pieces of "Exploding Home-Baked Cake", and Mrs SC35's artichoke dip.

 

[DAW]

The cockpit fabric needs to be able to cope with salty people covered in sun-cream, Doritos, pieces of "Exploding Home-Baked Cake", and Mrs SC35's artichoke dip.

Sounds like Silvertex is the way to go ?

 

[Corky]

Is this Silvertex or Silvertex B1 ? There seems to be several levels.

 

[jfm]

What’s being talked about here is silvertex. B1 is spradling’s new “mark 2” version which has some new colours but otherwise looks the same and is only just coming into stock in uk so no one has experience of it.
I would suggest there’s hardly any difference, so buy whichever one you want.

 

[Andrew M]

Interesting thread as we're in the full external retrim stage, cockpit, fly inc helm plus bow sunbathing cushions.

Found a few people to do the work with varying lead times, but will now speak to MJM from above too.

Currently I'm looking at using Italvipla Dream vinyl material in light grey (790), they can weld in lots of different patterns , I'm going for 50mm squares and can also supply with a couple of varying thicknesses of foam backing attached to give the patterns a little bit of "plumpness". All mateials have also been considered and all looked lovely we jut liked the Dream having seen it at the SBS.

If anyone's looked at this material please do say if there's any reason to not go for it.

 

[jfm]

No reason not to use that italvipa. It’s top quality (Italian) and comes in welded versions as you say.
I might be wrong but it is exclusively through Timage in uk, I think, so you have to include them in the supply chain. On that score, silvertex is just easier because MJ and all the others have trade accounts directly with the manufacturer of silvertex (spradling).

 

[SC35]

Happy with the result from MJM using Silvertex, please ignore the cockpit table.

 

[Andrew M]

No reason not to use that italvipa. It’s top quality (Italian) and comes in welded versions as you say.
I might be wrong but it is exclusively through Timage in uk, I think, so you have to include them in the supply chain. On that score, silvertex is just easier because MJ and all the others have trade accounts directly with the manufacturer of silvertex (spradling).

Thanks, that's good to hear, Yes, correct it is only via Timage but I do have access to them via a trade account.

 

[jfm]

That looks great SC35. What colour is it? Ice cream, or cream? I don’t think it’s ice, but please advise - thanks

 

[SC35]

That looks great SC35. What colour is it? Ice cream, or cream? I don’t think it’s ice, but please advise - thanks

Colour is “Macadamia”. It works well on an SC35 with a brown roof structure.