230 bow filler cushion support

M

Moondoggy

New Member
May 22, 2010
81
Peoria, AZ
Boat Info
230 BR Signature
Engines
7.4l Mercruiser Bravo3
Well today i decided to start on making the base for a bow rider filler cushion. 1st step was to acquire a piece of cardboard at leasts 24 inches wide and 36 inches tall. Then i laid the cardboard down and put all the cushions down on top to provide pressure to it. Then I crawled under best as possible to mark an outline on the cardboard from underneath. As you can see in pic 1 the outline wasn't perfect. I used small pieces of cardboard to fill in the gaps i could see from the top and taped the small pieces against the edge. Next step was to transfer this to another piece of cardboard for the final template which is pic 2. I purchased a piece of 1/2 plywood from HD. Transferred the final template to it and outlined it to the wood with pencil. I didn't want to cut it short so I cut it on the outside of the line would rather have to sand some down. After cutting out the wood I performed the final fit with sanding and rounding the bottom edge to fit nicely in the ledge in the bow see pic 3. After final sanding of the whole piece i took a pic of it in the bow see pic 4. Quite happy with my little project and i know its not perfect but it will work quite well.now i just need to seal the wood as the tolerance of the fit will not allow a vinyl covering. After that have a bow cushion made from a local upholstery shop.
 
Last edited:
Thanks, that is exactly what I want to do.

Are the pieces in pictures 3 and 4 the same size? It looks like the piece in picture 4 has had some wood cut off the bottom but that may just be because of how they are being viewed.

Please post again after you finish. I'd love to see how it ends up.
 
yes picture 3 and 4 are the same size. Picture 4 is just to show how it looks installed. Pic 1 was the first rough outline pic 2 is the final template. Best part is i can use the final wood piece to outline on a 1/2 or 3/4 piece of ply to make the cushion base. Although the cushion base will be smaller as the regular bow cushions overhang a bit.
 
Moondoggy, Great project. I am subscribing to this thread to keep updated. I have to attempt this also. It is impossible to find
these cushions. Keep us updated.
 
i wont be trying to buy a new filler cushion i will be making one from scratch. Not that hard i can get the foam and vinyl from a fabric store,stainless staples etc. here are some pics after the second coat of polyurethane.When i make the cushion base i will seal that too. i used polyurethane because i already had it on hand and its cheap to use...:grin:




hoosier daddy said:
Moondoggy, Great project. I am subscribing to this thread to keep updated. I have to attempt this also. It is impossible to find
these cushions. Keep us updated.
Click to expand...
 
I have the same project with my 210.

That looks really nice but I personally don't think 5/16" plywood is thick enough.....

I started with a 1/2" and felt that was marginal so I went to 3/4" plywood, 5/8" would have been ideal but I used treated and 3/4" was the next step up.

I can't tell in your pictures if the 230 is the same as the 210 but as the fiberglass lip works its way back on my boat the lip gradually goes away. I tried to run the the base all the way back as far as I could (about where your shows it is) and when you stepped on the edge it would flip the front of the board up. Even with the bottom of the board sanded to fit nicely on there.

I had to remove about three inches to keep this from happening.

Are you planning on making the cushion a permanent part of the base of just a piece that lays on top?

Mine will just lay on top because the side cushions overlap the base by about an inch.
 
the largest span for the support is 21 inches which held my 300 fat butt just fine when i stood on it in the center....:grin: the lip for the support goes all the way to the port and starboard consoles. i can see if you step on the edge it can cause it to flip up but on my bow all three cushions extend 2-3 inches past the support ridge. So in effect when you look at pic 4 picture the existing cushions covering 2-3 inches on all three sides of the support board which means the cushion board will be smaller. A separate cushion with its own base will be made this is just the support it will rest on. I had to do it this way because of the 3 overhanging cushions in the bow see in this pic the overhang. the existing cushions don't sit flush with the fiberglass base.




SeaRay said:
I have the same project with my 210.

That looks really nice but I personally don't think 5/16" plywood is thick enough.....

I started with a 1/2" and felt that was marginal so I went to 3/4" plywood, 5/8" would have been ideal but I used treated and 3/4" was the next step up.

I can't tell in your pictures if the 230 is the same as the 210 but as the fiberglass lip works its way back on my boat the lip gradually goes away. I tried to run the the base all the way back as far as I could (about where your shows it is) and when you stepped on the edge it would flip the front of the board up. Even with the bottom of the board sanded to fit nicely on there.

I had to remove about three inches to keep this from happening.

Are you planning on making the cushion a permanent part of the base of just a piece that lays on top?

Mine will just lay on top because the side cushions overlap the base by about an inch.
Click to expand...
 
Yes, that is the same issue I had with mine. The side cushion overlap requires that the base is actually bigger than the new cushion.

I went round and round on several different options but decided to go the same route you are with another base under the cushion.

It will just rest inside the cushions and they should hold it in place. Maybe some velcro if it really needs it??

Are you sure it is only 5/16" thick? I wasn't happy with the 1/2" thick piece I had. My teenage boys would have had that broke on the second trip out if I used it....

I guess with the other base inside the cushion you will have a little more support.
 
actually i was wrong i just saw the reciept and it is 1/2 inch ply but still held my butt....and with the cushion in place the load would be spread even further not to mention the greatest load would only be 2 inches from the supporting fiberglass edge...i will make sure the custom cushion is a tight fit to help keep it in place...:grin:

SeaRay said:
Yes, that is the same issue I had with mine. The side cushion overlap requires that the base is actually bigger than the new cushion.

I went round and round on several different options but decided to go the same route you are with another base under the cushion.

It will just rest inside the cushions and they should hold it in place. Maybe some velcro if it really needs it??

Are you sure it is only 5/16" thick? I wasn't happy with the 1/2" thick piece I had. My teenage boys would have had that broke on the second trip out if I used it....

I guess with the other base inside the cushion you will have a little more support.
Click to expand...
 
Could someone with factory bow filler cushions post a pic or two of them and how they fit on the ledge and between the side cushions. I have never actually seen any factory ones.
 
I believe the factory cushions actually used several pieces of a composite material that snap together for the base. Then the cushion folds in half length wise.

They do this so it can be stored easier when not in use.

Someone had a link on here that went to a You Tube video. And that guy had all sorts of trouble trying to keep the base pieces together. Maybe something was broke or how he was doing it was wrong??
 
Here is the link that I had started but unfortunately didn't get any replies.

I have a picture of how base started out.

In the picture you can see where I had the wood going all he way back toward the cup holders. I eventually had to cut about three inches off the wood because if you stepped on the very edge it would flip the front up.


http://clubsearay.com/forum/showthread.php?t=26652&highlight=cushion
 
here is a link to sea rays 2000 230br parts manual you will see on page 17 that the bow cushion does appear to fold in half. i am now thinking i will have a cushion only made with no base that fits tightly. As far as the video...the pieces are made to only support a vertical load such as when the cushion is on the plastic pieces... not pushing or stepping on them at an angle.I could be wrong...i was wrong once in 1982 so it could happen...:grin:


http://www.searay.com/boat_graphics/electronic_brochure/Company1729/1C1_24_74DEIPR4KD1.pdf
 
Did you ever figure this out? I would love to see pictures of your finished product. I am looking for a bow filler cushion for my 2003 220 Bow Rider
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Forum statistics

Threads
113,208
Messages
1,428,587
Members
61,109
Latest member
Minnervos
Back
Top