Thread: Sea deck gurus.

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  1. #1
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    Sea deck gurus.

    Is there any reason a guy couldn’t but the sheets together flush instead of having a bevel at the edge ? ( I will bevel the outside edges) Getting ready to install in a 21xd and we would like to have a seamless look . Also is it feasible to wrap the edges of the doors if they don’t rub? Just down to the bottom lip. Not up to the inside? And if so could I use a secondary adhesive at the seams and door side (contact cement and let it cure) to aid in grip/longevity? Also for those who have had it a while how is it holding up? Are there any comparable products that are of better quality? Better value?
    Thanks in advance for any help or ideas.

  2. Member crank68's Avatar
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    #2
    We’ve done a few sea deck jobs just to see if I wanted to add it to my business. I also have a Bullet. I really don’t see how you can buy the sheets and have a seamless look. Also I don’t think it’ll roll down on the lids on the rear. Just my opinion. If you want to close the gap‘s on your lids you can call Tom at Bullet and they sell mylar or plastic strips that will go around your lids to get the gap’s correct. That’s what they do on the boats when they’re installing vinyl.
    BULLET 20 XRD/250 Merc Sport XS
    www.ncboatguy.com

  3. Member
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    #3
    Thanks for tip Crank. Really didn’t think about closing in the gaps , and had no clue bullet offered materials to do so. I’m pretty confident in my ability to get the material to seam nearly invisible.. ( as a young man I installed miles of commercial sheet vinyl.. often flash coved/head welded.. templating and scribing come second nature for me ) my biggest concern is the the seam itself showing signs of premature wear. I’ve thought about possibly “ sealing” the vertical edge of the butted material with latex or silicone to “ fuse “ them. Material is due to arrive today. As for the boat its owned by a good friend of mine . I told him I’d put it in for nothing just to see if I liked it and to gain experience working with it. I will also pass on the info on the filler material options. I am looking to start doing some boat restoration at home myself.. sea dek , carpet , wraps,custom electronics, plumbing,trailer repair/ bling etc , and move int some glass /gel work. Plan on using his Bullet / my F-20 as examples. I have my boat currently stripped. Plan to build a build a much bigger shop in the spring for my projects and get more serous about moving forward. I can’t post pics here , but I will have someone put them up when I’m done with the Bullet. Thank again.

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    #4
    I am looking at doing the cockpit floor of my boat with SeaDek and thought about trying to do the seamless look also. However, I decided against trying it after reading this from the SeaDek FAQ section on their website:

    While SeaDek sheets can be seamed, we do recommend against it. Over time, the PE/EVA blended material may naturally shrink up to ¼”, and for this reason, we suggest leaving a ½” gap between parts.

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    #5
    A big word of caution, SeaDek will not stay stuck around a corner like the edge of a hatch. You should only install on a flat. I have installed with a very light curve with no problems but I'm very anal on prep, positioning, and pressure. I used a carpet roller to be sure good initial contact. Also I never let a new job sit all day in the sun. I would install, let it get warm, then park the job back in the building overnight. All the radiused installations I attempted had issues develop. May take some time but I got a Bite on my backside each time. My Blazer project is getting full SeaDek interior. I will post when at that stage.

  6. Member
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    #6
    Quote Originally Posted by rojoguio View Post
    A big word of caution, SeaDek will not stay stuck around a corner like the edge of a hatch. You should only install on a flat. I have installed with a very light curve with no problems but I'm very anal on prep, positioning, and pressure. I used a carpet roller to be sure good initial contact. Also I never let a new job sit all day in the sun. I would install, let it get warm, then park the job back in the building overnight. All the radiused installations I attempted had issues develop. May take some time but I got a Bite on my backside each time. My Blazer project is getting full SeaDek interior. I will post when at that stage.
    Thank you for the advice as well. . I’ll most likely decline on attempting to wrap the edges, but I’m going to play with some samples nonetheless and see if I can find a method to fuse seams along the vertical edge for longevity. If I hit a home run I’ll let ya know..LOL .. Have a pretty good handle on not contaminating the surface, but would like to also “ beef up adhesion on the backside at the seams as well. And I’m curious, does the material come unaffixed ,separate, or peel away at the base of the material above the adhesive? I’m mostly curious if it is an adhesion issue, malleability, or stress to the material..thanks again

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    #7
    The backing is peel away. You need to know, there is NO repositioning. If it touches anything while your installing, it's stuck there. Also, it Will GROW on you. You think you have it perfectly positioned, masked to hold it perfectly in place, start pulling the backing off and applying, and BAM, it grows- stretches, and you miss the perfect seam you so painstakingly laid out and the SeaDek is now stuck. Personally I have no tricks to share here. I'm installing SeaDek in all my boats because I love the product.

  8. Member
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    #8
    Quote Originally Posted by rojoguio View Post
    The backing is peel away. You need to know, there is NO repositioning. If it touches anything while your installing, it's stuck there. Also, it Will GROW on you. You think you have it perfectly positioned, masked to hold it perfectly in place, start pulling the backing off and applying, and BAM, it grows- stretches, and you miss the perfect seam you so painstakingly laid out and the SeaDek is now stuck. Personally I have no tricks to share here. I'm installing SeaDek in all my boats because I love the product.
    yes I am aware of the no repositioning aspect. I will certainly start by adhering a small amount at the seam and lleaving the bulk of the material unaffixed... then for the fills on each side I will leave the backing attached ont the last few inched once again. I can foresee shifting as the biggest issue. I do my vinyl seems in pressure sensitive adhesive in the same manner. I’m assuming you probably use a hand roller , and not a heavy weight roller. It has been my experience that materials that stretched easily can be buckled/distorted by rolling with too much weight ( I’m speaking of repairs I have done on others installs ).. thanks again, I’m eager to get started/finished. And move on to my rig.

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    #9
    It seems when you lift the material on the install, to pull off another strip of the backing, if you don't wait until you have to bend at a 90deg angle to reach backing, the material does not grow as bad. I make numerous cuts in just the backing paper and make a very small but easy to grab fold in one of the outside corners to grab on to, when you have too large a piece of backing paper to pull off, the effort distorts or "walks" the material at the attachment point just a bit. Then as the distortions add up it becomes a problem. I use a piece of 2in PVC to prevent any exposed PSA from touching the deck until I'm ready for it to.

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    #10
    Good tip . I’ll definitely do that . Sheet vinyl is much in the same, not so much the distortion, but if you pull the material too far back it will spider webb the adhesive ( mostly the latex based) and leave a ridge that ( we call it telescoping) can be seen and Is difficult to roll out. I actually used to wet my backing down to prevent it from sticking at my spread line. Material is in.. not sure when I’ll get started.. I’m swamped with work ( that actually pays ) but looking forward to it .. well except the removal and prep. .. thank you for your willingness to share. Selflessness is a dying trait..

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    #11
    Good luck with it. Post some pictures when done. All the advice was to not do the things you asked about and at a glance the advice was shunned. It would be cool to go seamless. Let us know how it goes.

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    #12
    Quote Originally Posted by 92basshawk View Post
    Good luck with it. Post some pictures when done. All the advice was to not do the things you asked about and at a glance the advice was shunned. It would be cool to go seamless. Let us know how it goes.
    Will do sir. (If someone is willing to post them for me lol)Going again wrapping the doors, but still gonna go seamless. Have the front deck and hatches stripped, as well as helm floor .. moving on to prep. One area needs a touch of glass and I’m going to skim the helm floor /and the seat post bases. Still need to figure out the best filler for this. The factory used what appears to be two different bondos.. It is intact on the deck ( grey bindi) and came up with the carpet on the floor. The floor was a mint green and to my knowledge is a lightweight finish filler used mostly for final touch up. The bullet has a textured hull that makes the adhesive removal around the edges and the risers to the storage areas a real PITA. Still debating on which route to go to fill the gaps in between doors/ riser areas. Thought about a 1-1/2 band of the sea dec itself lagged up to the start of the round over. If knot , probably look into ordering the Mylar strips that crank mentioned are available. Open to any advice on fillers as well. Thank you

  13. BBC SPONSOR Whitaker201's Avatar
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    #13
    Looking forward to see this project! I am getting ready to add a deck extension to my Weld-Craft and thinking of covering it with SeaDek.
    Brad Whitaker
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  14. Member
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    #14
    Quote Originally Posted by Whitaker201 View Post
    Looking forward to see this project! I am getting ready to add a deck extension to my Weld-Craft and thinking of covering it with SeaDek.
    Pictures coming your way. Headed up to continue on it right now..

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    #15
    Any pics yet?

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    #16
    Quote Originally Posted by Astyle954 View Post
    Any pics yet?
    On my other thread here. A few pics of sea dek installation.. thanks