Taking a kayak out on the open ocean can be a rollercoaster ride compared to calmer lakes and inshore waters. But it’s easier to contend with waves and swell when you have a lower center of gravity. Bobby from Draggin Tailz Fishing shows us how he repurposed an old sit-inside kayak seat for a low-profile offshore fishing setup. Follow these simple steps for a DIY seating mod that gives your boat the best of both worlds.
Add a Sit-In Seat to Your Sit-On-Top Kayak
Before installing the sit-inside seat, Bobby takes us out to his “paint department” on the front lawn. The old seat is “in such great shape that I didn’t want to get rid of it,” he explains, “but it was faded. The sun fades them really bad.” Bobby sprays the seat with Dupli-Color Vinyl and Fabric Specialty Coating Flexible Finish to refurbish the fabric. It comes out looking almost like new.
Back in the garage, Bobby removes the factory seat from his kayak and sets the sit-inside seat in its place. He installs two pad eyes to act as rear attachment points, measuring so they are even on both sides. To survive saltwater, the pad eyes are installed using stainless steel screws.
It’s important, Bobby warns, not to “over tighten these screws, because this is what actually supports the weight of this kayak.” His Eddy Gear kayak already has attachment points for the seat’s two front clips.
Not So Comfy, But More Secure
The new seat is “not so comfy” compared to the factory model, but it will serve Bobby well this summer when he’s fishing out beyond the breakers. The sit-in seat can be folded forward by unclipping it from the two back pad eyes. That still leaves enough room to place the frame seat above it and bring both along for the ride. Or, unclip the sit-inside seat entirely and remove it to utilize your underseat storage on calmer trips.
