Soft Rider gas Pedestal seat posts

[stuart]

Any one here heard of our used a soft rider pedestal seat post made by Ray-Line before?. I'm looking at placing two of these in the new boat so I don't have to pick my spine out of my ankles after a days fishing.

Stu

[Chimo]

Hi Stuart

I think those are the ones that Seafarer use in their 680.

I cannot speak for their ability to protect your back but what I did see about them when I looked at a few older boats to see how durable they were was that some didn't look too healthy.

I have a feeling that these were not maintained / freshwater washed etc after use.

I did L4 and L5 in my back hence my interest in these.

At the end of the day there seemed to me to be four options

1 try the units your looking at and service them well and hope

2 get a proper suspension seat (with the appropriate cabin to keep the sea water out) big bucks!

3 travel slower and

4 get a foam wedge for your existing seat so you use your feet more with your back at a safer angle
http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2006/...t-posture.html

You can get high density foam wedges cut to the right angle to sit on from Foam World at Mermaid Junction (Q Shopping Centre)

I opted for a combination of 3 and 4 and touch wood its worked OK so far.\ ie 4 years later

Hope thats of some help

Cheers

Chimo

Hows the boat going? Looked great so far.

[420topender]

hi stuart, i used the soft rider gas lift pedistals in my quintrex 420 top ender i used to have, they were awesome seat posts best on the market i reckon, not cheap though, they retailed somewhere around $230 ea back when i bought em, i was lucky enough to pick up a set of 2 for $175ea send me a pm with your email and ill shoot you some pics of my old boat with em in it, not sure how to post pics on here yet, only a newbie

[stuart]

If its not a rude question, are you a big build or and average fella. I ask because I'm a big fella and most of the gas seats are built for small fellas of around 80kg. Did you find the seats absorb some of the bigger hits. What other gas seats have you tried?

Stuart

[Hagar]

Stu

I fitted two of these to my Yalta during it's upgrade and have had no problem with them at all . They do take some of the edge off the bumps the boat hits although a really good padded seat is also a must . I really put them in so for the height adjust feature for different sized drivers ( eg the treasurer ) and so I can have the seat up high or down low depending on the situation . If you go for them consider this aspect carefully so you get them the right height range .

Chris

[newchum]

stuart
i have two RAE-LINE pacific bucket seats in my boat. i am 100kg+ and find them very comfortable although i do believe that the foot rest is use to take the hard bumps out of the ride. i find by putting weight my feet it removes nearly all of the jar . when the sea is good it is like sitting in an armchair

cheers rodney

[420topender]

stuart im about 93kg's and they absorbed the bumps quite well, i had them down fairly low though most of the time

[searaider]

Geday stuart ,
I bought a pair of soft rider pedestal's to stick in my 195 Allison Angler .
The people that know me , know that I'm rather chunky , probably around 125 Kg +.

The first time I went out it was pretty lumpy & I found I was too heavy for the Gas shocky .

I was getting that much recoil I was felling like a YoYo .
After I got back I pulled out the Skippers pedestal & re-installed the standard one .

My thinner deckies seem to be quite happy with their seat .

Snapper also installed on at the same time & I'm pretty sure he is happy with his .

The only other option that I know of that could handle my weight was the type that the Coast Guards use , double action shocks , with adjustable air dampening .
Look the goods but not cheap .

Seats R Us sell the head part , & probably could be adapted to a standard pedestal .

To check them out go to their web site & have a look .
www.seatsrus.com.au

Here's an extract of an e-mail reply that they sent me at the time .in August 2005

Hi Peter,
If it is rough offshore our reccomendation is to use air suspension with 12 volt compressor .
This will handle extreme rough conditions by increasing air pressure .
If you go to our web site Click on catalogue click on seats Seatsinc suspensions
Mark 1 a suspension is what you need
click on photo for techinacial drawing
Price on suspension $688.00 plus 10% gst

Compressor kit in 12 volt or 24 volt including switch $398.00 plus 10% gst
Compressor american Thomas

Regards Len

Regards
Peter
Searaider 2

[stuart]

Searaider2,

Thanks to every one for taking the time to respond. I'm a heavy weight, around 5'11", 115kg and enjoy getting to my fishing spot with my spine still in one piece. The email you got from seats r us, can I ask how long ago was that. I ask because I rang them a little while back and my quote was considerably higher than what you have showed in your email. I can make my own but couldn't be bothered and finding the right shocks and so forth would probably work out more expensive. Did seatsrus say that the Mark1 is suitable for all conditions or just ruff water only? Thanks again to all for taking the time. Its quite surprising their aren't more of these types of seats on the market.

Stu

[Dodgy_Back]

Hi Stuart
I can give the soft rider the thumbs up.
Have had it on my little boat for a couple of years, They do definetly take "some"shock out of the hits.

I couldn't go fishing without it !!

They are I suppose a cheaper option than mentioned earlier but still worth a try if you have a "dodgy back"

Failing that, go and see your doctor and get some heavy duty pain killers, I can vouch for them as well .

Mick

[searaider]

Geday Stuart ,
Thats an old e-mail back in August 2005 .
Note the prices were also GST Exclusive
* Head unit only $688 + GST .
* 12 Volt Compressor Kit $ 398 + GST .
Try this Web site to have a look at the them .
http://www.seatsrus.com.au/SeatsIncMark1ATech.htm

I'll also try & attach 2 photo's , one of the head & 1 of the Tech Spec's

Peter
Searaider 2

[searaider]

To soften or stiffen the dampening effect , you add or drain some of the air pressure .
Photo of head unit
Peter
Searaider 2

[stuart]

Searaider 2

On the tech drawings it appears their is a compressor at the back of the unit. Would this be right or is the compressor a separate unit and if so were does that go? Thanks again for taking the time.

Stu

[stuart]

Searaider 2

I just spoke with the guys from seatrus and the price for the Kab 301 KS is $1408.00 each. Thats way more than what I expected,o well I will keep looking.

Stu

[seabug]

I do not think you will get better than this

http://www.bolsters.com/lt.htm

Ordering Information
Pricing for bolster seats:

Recreational series:
One man seats -

Model LT1-18P - Standard height $995.00
Model LT1-18L - Standard height $1060.00
Model LT1-18H - Standard height $1095.00
Model LT1-24P -Tall height $1045.00
Model LT1-24L -Tall height $1110.00
Model LT1-24H - Tall height $1145.00
Model PH1-18 - Standard height $1495.00
Model PH1-24 - Tall height $1575.00

Two man seats -

Model PH2-18 - Standard height $2295.00
Model PH2-24 - Tall height $2395.00


And yes ,it is expensive,but how much is a good back worth.
It is only the price of a good reclining chair for the lounge.

Why do people scrimp on good seating in boats and yet cosset themselves at home?

Compare the seating in same priced car and boat.
In the car which travels on a smooth surface you get a beautifully upholstered seat which is engineered to suit the cars suspension.
In the boat you are lucky to get 50mm of foam on a fixed base.

Regards
Seabug