# Shock Absorbing Seats or Pedestals?



## Meerkat

I am looking shock absorbing seats or pedestals to reduce some of the pounding my back is taking from the Lake Erie chop. There are a number of good older posts with reasonably priced alternatives which I have tried to summarize here:

Smooth Moves seats get good ratings but they so take a fair bit more room (which I do not have). 
Some guys have put tractor seats in their boats but for me (like the smooth moves) they are too bulky.
WaveMaster pedestals (from Australia) look like they have a decent product since all you replace is the pedestal but the shortest one available in the US is 14 inch which is about 4 inches too tall for my boat.
Seaspension makes something similar to the Wavemaster but their shortest one is also too long for my boat.
ShockMaster pedestals look like a decent concept but they get mixed reviews for how they hold up and for their customer service.
Mainstay air pedestals (Springfield) seem to hold up well enough but the reviews are mixed on how much cushioning they give.
Attwood makes a suspension seat called the Centric SAS which got a 4.8/5 rating from 6 guys on Cabelas.
Temptress make a Reflex DST suspension seat which sounds similar to the Attwood Centric SAS but I cannot find it for sale anywhere.

Right now I am leaning towards the Attwood Centric SAS. It is a virtual "drop-in" and takes no more room than my current seats but I am looking for some input before I drop ~$280 per seat.

I would be greatful for any input.


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## blue dolphin

Well I can tell you this. The new smooth move ultras for this year are by far the best on the market. The entire unit is self containing kinda like a air suspension seat you see on a semi but smaller. It is built like a tank and has many easy to use adjustments that make it a cinch to fine tune. Every single person that bought them this year say its the best suspension seat they have ever used. Literally takes 15 minutes to install and would be the best money you ever spent imo. I have them on my boat I would be more than happy to let you come over to try them out and see what I'm talking about. Let me know if you have any questions. Fish strong. BD

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Ohub Campfire mobile app


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## Meerkat

Hi Gary, Thanks for the come-back. I checked the ultras out on-line and they really look cool. They would work in my boat but I am not sure how I would slide ~$500 per seat past "she who controls the purse-strings". In any event is there anyone locally who sells them?

Joe S.


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## blue dolphin

Yes you can buy them thru vics thru me I will.help ya out anyway I can . I know there a little expensive on the front end but its a one and done deal if you want to see them first hand you can see them on my boat

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Ohub Campfire mobile app


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## Meerkat

Gary, Thanks for the offer - I would love to take a look. I will pm you... Joe S.


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## Meerkat

Gary, Thanks for taking the time to let me look at the smooth moves ultra seat mounts on your boat. Now I need to talk to smooth moves to see if they can be adjusted low enough for my boat. I hope so because they are really nice. 

And that is one sweet boat that you have...


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## justenough

i use tractor supply tractor seat , just take off their seat and put your on $99.99 you cant beat the ride never bottoms out . here is some pics of mine and a link to their web page.http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/universal-tractor-seat-with-adjustable-suspension-black


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## blue dolphin

Np buddy chad will take really good care of you. Any questions let me know. BD

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Ohub Campfire mobile app


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## seahawk

justenough said:


> i use tractor supply tractor seat , just take off their seat and put your on $99.99 you cant beat the ride never bottoms out . here is some pics of mine and a link to their web page.http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/universal-tractor-seat-with-adjustable-suspension-black


Justenough: Does the tractor seat still slide and rotate? How do you attach it to your pedestal? Did you have to cut down the pedestal?


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## justenough

yes they still rotate and the tractor seat base slide forward and back. it has its own slide built in that is the lever you see in the first picture.if i remember it bolted in to the old holes but i'm not sure. i did cut the pedestal down a couple of inches.


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## ebijack

I did the tractor seats back in early 2003? They worked quite well, I ended up adding a support behind the pedestal to stop blowing out the seat bases, as I was fishing tournaments and sometimes had co-anglers over 350lbs. That and the greatlakes running were what I came up with to fix the problem. Anyways after 5 yrs one of the shocks started leaking and Monroe makes them for an over seas co. and would not sell me a new shock. I then went to the air pedestal which work very well, but again only lasted 3 yrs again with rough use. I'm sure either would last a lot longer with less abuse, but that is the best testing for durability. Here is an article Downriver Walleye Assoc. put up on their site back around 2006.
http://www.dwfonline.org/Articles/poor_mans_glyde_ryde_seats.htm


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## Meerkat

I got an email from Wavemaster in Australia & here is what they told me. Springfield makes the Wavemaster Pedestals for them. They have a fixed pedestal model and a plug-in pedestal model. Springfield only markets the fixed pedestal model in the US and the minimum fixed pedestal height is 14 inches from the deck to the top of the pedestal so that is going to be too high for my boat and for many other walleye boats. Wavemaster has been working on a 12 1/2 inch model with a Great Lakes fisherman in the US but they did not say who. Wavemaster offered to ship me one of their plug-in models. The plug-in base would put the bottom of the pedestal about 3 inches below the deck and make the top of the pedestal about 11 inches above the deck which is about right for my boat but the shipping is going to be $110 on top of about $350 for the pedestal and base. Then if I have any issues with the Wavemaster pedestal, no matter how helpful the Wavemaster folks are, I am still dealing with someone on the other side of the world.

So bottom line is I think Wavemaster Pedestals are a non-starter for me unless Springfield starts to market some of the other Wavemaster pedestals here in the US.

Still looking at my other options & thanks guys for the input on the tractor seats...


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## ebijack

The air ride pedestals I got, were not available at marine or other local stores. I had a boat dealer near me order them for me. They were the same size/hgt as the regular pedestals so it was just put em in. I believe they were $75 ea. I ordered them from Lockmans in Detroit. Nice folks, Dave is the owner who is a friend. These fit the 2 3/8? bases like used in Crestliners.
http://www.lockemans.com/


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## Meerkat

Thanks to everyone for all the helpful input. I eventually went with the springfield through the deck mainstay air pedestals coupled with the Attwood Centric SAS (suspension seat - has springs in the base and lumbar support pad). My old pedestals were "through the deck" so I did not have to do any cutting. The bases were exactly the same size as my old ones but the holes did not line up so I did have to do some drilling. 

The springfield mainstays have mixed reviews on durability but they were my best option and come with a 5 year warranty. The Attwood seats have very good reviews so again we will see how they hold up.

Temperatures in the mid-teens the past few nights have persuaded me that I need to winterize my boat so I will have to wait till spring to test the new seating setup.


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## hazmail

Go down to the waste recycler and buy some old office chairs with gas lift's " about $5 ea, screw your seat onto these bases and you have a nice soft ride with height and tilt adjustment, I have been using these over here for years---only down side , you need to make the holes big enough to fit the 'gas spindles'---it's a bit like Russia here, we are always trying to skirt around the U.S $ + freight.
Pete


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## Binks61

Installed the Smooth move Ultras last Spring.......I will say, I started whining to my wife in the winter until she relented. They are simply outstanding in a tin boat !


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## Kwall

Did. The same here 0 regrets . The ride is nice now .


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## fishhogg

Meerkat, just be careful you don't pound the snot out of your boat. I have run those style seats and when set properly, they really do smooth out the ride. But, I started running my boat a lot harder, to the point my buddies brought that Something I did on my former StarCraft 2050 STX was to move to the heavy duty Attwood seat bases. I got rid of those removeable seat posts and installed heavy duty nonremovable posts. Help a lot. Good luck.


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## EB1221

Thanks for this thread....been having the same back pains and was looking at smooth moves seats. very helpful.
EB


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## EB1221

follow up.....17" sylvan pro select.


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## KaGee

Thread is 3 years old!


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