First I should say that I like to keep my toys nice. Ususally when I sell or trade them, the next person is surprised at the condition of the item compared to it’s age. That said, I’m bumming over what’s happening to my favorite yak, my Perception Sundance Airlite 12.0. It’s a little over 2 years old and the seat is cracking. The news I have from the dealer is that it may be too bad for me…that the only fix is to get a new yak or cut the seat out and ‘make something else fit in there’. I don’t mind spending some money to fix this baby up, but I hate makeshift stuff, and know myself well enough to know that I will never be happy unless it is something better than before…has anybody done this and been happy or is my relationship with this yak doomed?
I’d love to hear a success story, on the other hand, my Dad would say, ‘what’s the big deal, just throw a pillow in there!’
Makes me wonder
OK - - Based on what pictures I can find, I would think that the seat is replaceable. My options would be to go to another dealer, or contact Perception customer support and see what they have to say.
If this doesn’t work out, please send it to myself, and I will patch it up and enjoy it as if it were in pristine condition - - OK - just kidding!!!
I agree.
That sounds pretty fishy. Call the manufacturer yourself and tell them your problem. If you've treated this kayak the way you say, there is no excuse for that seat to be giving you problems this soon. At least get a second opinion. Can't dismiss the idea that the dealer COULD just be trying to sell you another boat. I've already replaced my seat once. All boats are different ofcourse, but I've found it fairly simple.
Please post again later and let us know what you found out, and what you decided. I would like to know how the company reacts to this EVEN IF the seat is not replacable as the dealer claimed.
Splash
almost anything is fixable…
so I doubt the advice about getting a new yak being the only alternative.
First of all, Superglue can be used to repair cracks in ABS plastic boats (which is what “Airalite” is). If it’s a relatively minor crack, try separating it a bit, squeeze in some superglue, and let the chemicals do their work. For bigger cracks, use Devcon PlasticWeld cement to fuse things back together. Same general effect.
If the seat’s really beyond help, a jigsaw can be used to cut the old seat from the rim and allow you to attach another seat. There are any number of seats that would likely fit the Sundance cockpit opening; check out the Extrasport adjustable seat if you want to upgrade the fit of the seat (runs about $125, installs in a few minutes).
Thanks for the help
Wow! That’s exactly was I was trying to find! The extrasport seat may be the saving grace…I just needed to know there was a solution. It was hard to accept that the yak would end up in a landfill just because it was “all molded in one piece at the factory”. This would be a true upgrade, not a baling wire fix, which was something I did not want to do.
Funny thing, I went through something similar on my truck. The brakes were failing too soon after I bought it, and the dealer said that’s because I was driving it too hard, or pulling a big trailer…I said look at all these postings on the net about premature brake failure on this model truck, and then look at the overall condition of the truck and tell me how hard pulling a kayak trailer in Florida would be on a full size American pickup! (they did pay for the repair eventually).
I don’t necessarily believe that the manufacturer needs to replace every one of these boats, but to act as if I may have abused it…I have 3 other kayaks and they are all in excellent condition…you should be able to take a quick look at a yak and tell if it has been beat or not.
I just wish the dealer or the manufacturer had presented me with the info you guys did…what I did get was “we’ll cut the back off and put in a strap”…that did not sound wonderful for $100.
assuming…
you have to cut the old seat out…use it as a pattern…at the worst, cover the old seat with fiberglass and resin, then glass the covered seat back into the boat.
thats too bad.
nice boat. Too bad it has a problem. If that happened to my baby, I would be so scared.
Sundance 120
I use a sundance 12’ as a fishing craft and somedays spend hours on end in the boat. The seat back that came with my model (2004) didn’t provide the support that I wanted so I took the back off one of those old molded plastic seats with the metal legs, removed the legs, made a few minor shape alterations, and bolted it into the existing seat. It has worked great and you wouldn’t notice on casual inspection that the setup is not stock.
C1 conversion maybe?
perception thermoplastic
you don't say where it's cracked but the first few Perception boats I saw had the same thickness seat hanger as the coaming with the back band cutting right into it. Floor models developed stress cracks just from being sat in on the showroom floor and boats in use ripped out at the back band in less than a year. Absolute no testing by the manufacturer before committing the design to production.
I bet you could glue/rivet more plastic on the back of the crack. It's not makeshift, it's called fixing things. It's broken, so fix it.
thanks guys!
I really appreciate all of the suggestions. Right now the boat is at the dealer, waiting for their decision about replacing it. If they decide not to do that, I have plenty of good ideas of how it can be fixed in a way that is better than before…as far as ‘fixing things’, a recent experience with a roofer that ‘fixed things’ on my roof made me feel differently. There is an elegant repair where the item is actually made better and then there is duct tape and baling wire…you need that ability in case you break down in the Canadian wilderness, but when you’re paying a shop or taking your time and wanting to do it right, you ask around and learn from the experience of others…and I’m grateful for that opportunity. I’ve done wrong things before that can’t be undone, and drilling holes in boats is one of them!
thanks again,