Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

I have no idea what it costs to reupholster so this question goes out to those that do. I'm looking at my options whether to refurb my old pontoon and add furniture, or buy a newer used boat and fix that up. Any pontoon I can afford will probably have issues with the seating.

I emailed a local boat upholstery shop and he told me it's much cheaper to buy new furniture rather than repair. I don't know if catalog seats are well-made compared to reupholstered.

Advice needed. I only got 1 forum search hit for "reupholstery".

pontoonstuff.com has furniture.

Some guys here have totally refurb'd their toons, so hopefully they'll chime in.

Pontoonstuff.com
They have some nice stuff.

Personal experience? I know they are a forum sponsor but I'm hoping for some replies about quality.

Do reupholsterers use better materials?

Are the seats that pontoonstuff carries imported?

I did some further searching and found several mentions of seating--but quality comparisons still elude me.
It's a pity this post (link below) didn't get answered:
 

Thanks for the Clarification James.  I know your busy!, but if you've got the time, I'm curious, when we're comparing seats, what are the real differences between a "premier" line and second tier within a manufacturer or between manufacturers etc.  Is it foam density, vinyl quality, stitching, all the above?  Premier pontoon boasts about 7 star furniture with springs in it.  It's really hard to tell the difference in quality with pictures though between deckmate, Wise, Vieda, 7 star etc.  How should we be comparing these things?

Jason

viewtopic.php?f=16&t=21330&p=176785&hil ... ts#p176785

I got a quote from a group in Austin for ~$2500 to do our entire 25' pontoon. They use only the best fabric and other materials.

So there's hope.

guy48065 wrote:Personal experience? I know they are a forum sponsor but I'm hoping for some replies about quality.

Do reupholsterers use better materials?

Are the seats that pontoonstuff carries imported?

Yes, personal experience with my old boat. I am pretty sure they make their own stuff and I doubt very much that a reupholsterer uses better materials.

Pontoon stuff.com has excellent quality seats and furniture. I am extremely pleased with my decision to revamp my toon. They are also the cheapest place to get furniture. I am guessing your current furniture is made out of wood of some kind, as was mine. I didn't weigh everything but I am guessing I reduced the weight of my pontoon by about 300lbs. With the furniture change alone. I also took off the hard top and put on a power bemini. I am estimating another 400lbs reduced by that. I would defnately buy new rather than reapholstering. You will save money, most likely reduce weight of your boat, and greatly improve the quality of your furniture. Definitely buy new. Definitely buy from pontoon stuff.com.

The newer furniture is made with plastic underneath--instead of heavy old plywood that will eventually rot. There are different quality furniture, but the best quality uses really heavy vinyl and superior quality foam rubber of different hardness.

If I was going to redo a pontoon's furniture, I'd be going with the new.

Well if I refurbish my old pontoon I'll probably have to buy new furniture because mine has none. A couple of years ago I added 2 used Wise seats to the front and the seams are splitting on them. I'm surprised to find out it's cheaper to buy new in most cases then to reupholster.

My real quandary is that I'm seeing used much newer pontoons in better shape than mine for less money than it would cost to put new furniture on mine. Of course there are problems with the furniture on those used pontoons as well, and even if it looks good, how soon before it starts to come apart? Some of them have unique furniture shapes and arrangements that can't be duplicated from a catalog. It seems a shame to throw away furniture that has been designed to fit a pontoon, and a specific floor plan, and replace them all with generic catalog pieces.

Again, I'm just trying to get a good picture of the price vs quality so I don't exceed my budget.

Then I got another price from Grateful Threads Custom Upholstery in Austin of from $6,000-$7,000! Yikes!!

i found that it was cheaper with pontoonstuff and some others to buy new than to re-cover old stuff...plus what others mentioned about the wooden frames underneath rotting over time. Quality wise i have been pretty happy with the seats from pontoonstuff. i believe everything is made in china however. Overall i would give it a B+/A-. you will lose out on the perfect fit that your existing furniture gives you, but i haven't missed it. I did have the back deck reupholstered with a matching vinyl since there wasnt a premade item to buy for that. you can get pretty close with the arm rests and different seat size combinations. the vinyl seems quite nice, the steering/electrical console i bought isn't spectacular but it is functional. you buy everything in a kit with the plastic seat bases and seat padding separate and then you screw them together and install on your boat. pretty easy job.

buy new from PS! You can place it however you want..

I was surprised to find Wise brand furniture priced less than PS, with more colors & options.

Occasionally a boat shows up on CL with good seats priced less than new seats alone. I'm hoping I'll find the right pontoon at the right time...and grab it before someone else does!