Need recommendation for cockpit canopy maker.

[pelicanpete]

I'm looking for recommendations of firms (and who to avoid) that can make a good cockpit canopy in Sunbrella material, along with the s/s hoops and fittings. It's for a Nimbus 310 based in the Solent. Preferably the firm(s) should be based somewhere between Hamble and Chichester.

The hood must fit tightly and be well constructed. Would prefer recommendations from folk who have had one made for their own boat. I've seen examples made by Port Solent based companies and have not been very impressed with what I've seen! Thanks...

 

[mainmarine]

Try this chap, he will probably show you some of his work he's based at Fareham I think. Darron 07968815102 or 023 92583585

 

[Blue5]

Just having a new sprayhood and cockpit canopy made. The sprayhood has been finished and fitted and is absolutely superb.
Looked around the marina prior to ordering and one company seemed very popular but despite chasing it was very difficult to get a quotation and when it did arrive it was nearly double the other quotes we received.
We eventually placed our order with Tec Sew at Gosport and the service and quality to date has been superb, a good product at a fair price.

No connection etc just a satisfied customer

 

[pvb]

Also look at...

Also look at buying direct from Nimbus. If you go to the downloads section of their website, you can download the Spare parts & Accessories Brochure, which lists all the bits and pieces they sell, including canopies and frames. Main advantages are that you can be certain it will fit, it will be the right quality, and you won't have to go through the whole process of people coming and making patterns, etc.

In a similar position a few years ago, I bought a new sprayhood direct from Hallberg Rassy. It fitted perfectly and was made by the same firm that made the original.

 

[Oldhand]

It may be a bit further away than you hoped for but I would thoroughly recommend Quay Sails at Poole who are well experienced in making all sorts of cokpit canopies with very satisfactory results.

 

[Poignard]

I bought a new sprayhood and tonneau from Tec-Sew about 7 years ago. The quality then was excellent.

However, I recently had to have them restitched and a new clear plastic panel put in. I automatically went back to TecSew to get this done and [probably unwisely] didn't get estimates from anyone else. The price charged by TecSew for the repairs seemed very high and the quality of the stitching was nowhere near as good as that done when it was originally made.

 

[Aardee]

Mastercovers in Port Solent are very good.

 

[RobBrown]

I had my new Cockpit Sprayhood done by Rene of Quay Canvas in Bursledon (tho also workshop in Soton)- a good hood fitted to existing frame with improvements suggested by them & a reasonable price. Tel 02380 407441.

 

[pelicanpete]

Thanks to everyone for their replies.

 

[Georgio]

I have just picked up my new cockpit tent made by Quantum Sails in Hamble (who also do canvas work). Looks great and fits well.

Nice chaps to deal with.

No connection with them other than they have made me some quick racing sails and now a cockpit tent.

 

[pelicanpete]

Thanks. Just called them.

 

[jaybee63]

I am from Tecsew, and would like to post a reply.
As a company, we have had problems in the past when asked to restich covers, with the customer asking for just the failed stitching to be replaced. It is fair to say, that all the stitching would have degraded through UV exposure, not just the stitching which has failed, and if only the failed stitching is replaced, you can end up in the situation where the cover is constantly coming back for restitching, and an unhappy customer. This can also be the case, if the customer is advised that the whole cover has been restitched.
We now reccomend that all the main construction stiching is restitched.
With regards to neatness, when a cover is first put together, most of the stitching goes in before the panels are joined. It can be impossible to lay the cover out flat, once assembled, and this has a bearing on neatness. Also, old stitching is not removed, as this would add hours to the job.
So a restitch can involve almost the same time for the machinist, as originally constructing the job.
Quality of materials is improving all the time, and we have invested in excess of £50K in sewing machines, which enable us to now manufacture with a 20 metric antiwick, uv treated thread, which has nearly twice the strength of the previous product used.
As far as I am aware, this is a heavier/stronger product than used by most of our compeitors.
Hope these points are of interest.

Regards

John