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DIY Seat Skins?

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timcity

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Hi guys this is my first post and I'm pretty new to the seadoo world but I'm really happy to be joining it.

I bought a 95 xp a few weeks ago and it is in pretty rough shape. The handlebar cover is disintegrating the "hood" was covered in mold and the seat has seen better days. I'm looking around at all the different seat covers and can't decide what to go with. I've cine across the DIY seat skins on eBay and they are considerable cheaper than the hydro turf and black tip options. I know you usually get what you pay for but id like to see if anyone has installed one of these day seat skins.

Thanks
 
can you provide a link ?
I didn't see it on ebay,,,, but if they are cheaper than black tip, then i'm assuming the vinyl and stitching are cheaper as well.
I rank them from worst to first.

Black tip (cheap vinyl, not good stitching, very little stretch, not much fabric left over either)
Hydro (better, but nothing to be bragging about)
MLINE (by reputation only)
Jet Trim (awesome product) and for my personal ski, I wouldn't pick any other....

in summary, i'd be wary of a cheaper version of Blacktip, and if its for your personal ski, i'd suggest get the jet trim, your azz will appreciate it... and you won't be replacing it anytime soon, it will outlive the engine.
 
I bought one of the DIY covers for an Sp that I am selling. Be aware that it is only a cut piece of marine vinyl. It is not a fitted or stiched seat cover just a flat piece of vinyl cut to the rough shape of the seat. I have not tried to install it yet but the quality looks to be good.
 
Does Jet Trim make covers for a 97 XP, I do not see them on the site. I have been looking to get a MLINE but the guy never answers my emails. Guess he does not want my money.
 
If it is just a peice of vinyl do not order it from them, just go to joann fabrics and get 1 yard of marine grade vinyl. It is $16 a yard but take a 40% off coupon that is in the paper every sunday. That is what I do most of the time. Then if you want that oem look with seadoo stenciled in on the side, check of the how to section of this forum and I did a write up on how to do that.
 
timcity said:
Hi guys this is my first post and I'm pretty new to the seadoo world but I'm really happy to be joining it.

I bought a 95 xp a few weeks ago and it is in pretty rough shape. The handlebar cover is disintegrating the "hood" was covered in mold and the seat has seen better days. I'm looking around at all the different seat covers and can't decide what to go with. I've cine across the DIY seat skins on eBay and they are considerable cheaper than the hydro turf and black tip options. I know you usually get what you pay for but id like to see if anyone has installed one of these day seat skins.
Thanks
Click to expand...

Tim, the Hydro-Turf seat cover would give you the best bang for the buck. You can customize it to your specs as well.. order it here: http://goo.gl/JU65p you also get 15% off with the SeadooForum discount using coupon code HYDRO15 at checkout
 
im in huntington beach too and i just buy the waterproof vinyl from joanns fabric store they have all kinds of colors just buy yourself a staple gun and some STAINLESS staples and wrap it its easy
 
doberdan, Jet Trim does make covers for the XP-SPX and the 1997+ XP's but their web site sucks. They are shown on the site but it is a PITA to get to the correct page. They are very nice but $145 plus shipping.
 
Wow guys thanks for all the quick responses. I got some good info out of this. I'm still not 100% sure which way I'm gonna go but the diyseatskin isnt an option anymore.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2
 
for the record, in addition to joann fabrics, what I have done, several times, was make a trip to the local canvas/vinyl shop in town, and buy their remnants. many times i've paid only $5 for a couple yards, but usually about $10.
 
Do you have any pics of how your seat came out. I'm really interested in trying this myself

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
 
Mine came out looking brand new. now let's see if this image will show up lol
 

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Here's the seat for my HX I just did. First seat cover job ever. I's a gray Carbon fiber. You can see more pics here:
http://www.seadooforum.com/showthre...ay!-Project-HX&p=310930&viewfull=1#post310930


56.jpg
 
I did the same, went to the local store and bought a marine grade vinyl remnant for $11 and put it on the seat, it really isnt that hard just time consuming. Order a couple stencils from Dr. Honda, read JSG "how to" thread and you will save yourself $100. If you want something a little more then a stock looking seat then it is easier to buy one.

346.jpg
 
Those seats look great. I will be doing the same for a ski that I may be selling. Are there any tricks for getting the old one off? It seems like it is glued to the foam. Do you just rip it off?
 
Robj said:
Those seats look great. I will be doing the same for a ski that I may be selling. Are there any tricks for getting the old one off? It seems like it is glued to the foam. Do you just rip it off?
Click to expand...

If it's glued, go right over it. If not you'll rip the foam up.

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2
 
timcity said:
That looks really nice as well. What type of cover solution did you go with?

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...

I bought mine at www.yourautotrim.com, got the stainless staples at Home Depot, and the pneumatic stapler from Harbor Freight.
http://www.harborfreight.com/20-gauge-wide-crown-stapler-68029.html Don't forget your 20% off coupon.

Here's the carbon fiber material I used, I got samples of the other kind they have from Nautolex, not nearly as nice.

This was the nice stuff.
http://www.yourautotrim.com/shcafi.html


Here's the really nice 4 way stretch material. I had to man handle the stuff I used but with persistence you can get great results.

4 way Stretch
http://www.yourautotrim.com/al4stvi.html
 
Hey all, so I have been reading all the seat cover post on here but I still haven't seen how the seat strap is made.
Is it just material folded over and stitched together?

Thanks
 
No it is a much harder/stiffer almost like plastic. Regular vinyl will not hold up. Jetskigoodies was trying to get a line on this type of strapping, not sure how he made out. It is the same type of material as the strapping on some lawn chairs.
I cheated and just turned it inside out, the inside didnt look to bad.
 
Well I thought I would take this post full circle and show off what I ended up doing. I went the DIY route with some black marine vinyl i got from a fabric store. The end result was a giant improvement from the original seat although it didn't come out as clean as I hoped. Here are some pics.

uploadfromtaptalk1364852264512.jpguploadfromtaptalk1364852287809.jpguploadfromtaptalk1364852305799.jpguploadfromtaptalk1364852315765.jpg

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
 
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