My new pushpit seat.

I was going to reply to my own old thread where I was asking advice about this very thing... but the forum would not let me, as the thread was too old... gives you an idea of how long this took me

so, here it is...

Finally, I have finished and installed the new pushpit.
It took me, well, just a little while but it is on there, and aside from being really really comfortable, it is solid as a rock, and I am really happy with the lines and appearance and how it works with my boat.

Here is a shot of it at home, just after final fitting of the wooden seat.

Rather than forking out for teak, or sourcing out some white beech, I compromised and just used some merbau (Kwila) I had at hand (if worst comes to worst, it will not be hard to pull it off and use it as templates for some other timber).
I saturated it in pure tung oil for about three days (with a little dryer added) and it has cleaned up a treat (now I just have to get the dryed tung oil off my stainless steel).

The S Steel is all 316 grade, and was welded by a combination of TIG and MIG. Most of it by and uncle and myself and the last touches by some goon I had to pay through the nose for (because we had lost access to the last welder we where using).

Cost? well, I would rather not think about that... Nearly half the cost was paying the SOB at the end who overcharged me, and then a whole lot in stainless steel... but still cheaper and IMHO better made and fitted to my boat than what it would have cost to get someone else to do it... Just.
It is done and on there, that is all I care about now.

heres a picture of it just after installing on the boat.


If you can ignore that dodgey old bird poo covered poop deck hatch (that is the next thing waiting to be put down next weekend- a lovely new build curved top hatch) then you can see how it is positioned. The bottom of the curved back legs sits square on top of the transom, and the front rail of the seat (under your knees) is pretty much directly above the transom line and follows where the old pushpit middle rail sat (with the curve of the wood following the curve of the transom).
I can't remember the actual dimensions of the seat and back, but it was worked out as standard to ergonomical requirements of a comfortable seat... and it is comfortable.
When sitting at the tiller, the back rest and rail is thankfully well below the horizon line, so does not significantly impede ones view.

If you look at my gallery, there is a shot of Altair floating in the water where you can sort of see the profile of the pushpit (you have to click on the bigger image to see any detail- why I didn't post it here).
Now that the pushpit is on, I can finally put up my stauchions again- well almost.. so in anticipation, I have just finished reinstalling my toerails with brass runners that with the deck, my staunchions screw into.

For anyone who has followed or remembers my journey from a know-nothing new boat owner to a ... well know-just-a-little-morethan-nothing boat owner, then.. this is where I am at, next weekend, the poop deck hatch, soon after the splasboards and winches, then the staunchions... and we are ready to repaint that bird crap stained deck, etc...
The engine (old stuart turner 8hp) is finally running well, after fixing the carby and its float- and I can now with confidence get the thing started.

Anyway, there it is, comments welcome,

and in the mean time we have been having a good time camping out on it.
Here was a night a couple of weeks ago, sitting on my new pushpit seat, celebrating my partner and I's 5 yr anniversery, looking out over the melbourne city skyline.



Hans.

 

Looks nice Hans, but try as hard as I could to see there seems to be no beer holders or provision for an ice bucket? maybe you can add it after "all" the work is done. All the best from Jeff

 

Cheers Jeff,
yeah, um, no beer holder as standard-
HOWEVER,
if you look at the three vertical supports, I have welded on some carefully placed eye nuts

I had to machine these out a tiny bit so that they snugly fit the same size tubing as the pushpit.
There are two on the back vertical, to take a pole for a canopy/boom tent, or on the odd occasion a (pirate) flag pole, and one on each the port and starboard verticals to take fishing boards, BBQ, beer holders, etc.
I haven't yet built the extra add-ons, but have plenty of tubing left over to rig what ever I want up.

The BBQ is going to be fun, totally overhanging so drips and crumbs feed the fish ('burley')- don't know whether to try and make it from scratch, or just find one that suits and retro-fit (second option no doubt safer).

anyway, thanks for the interest.
More work planned for this weekend.
Can't wait.

Hans.