1985 22 classic seat bracket adjustment

[FUELPOWERED]

Does anyone out there know how to tighten the seat brackets that are screwed into the sole? I believe some of mine are stripped out. Any assistance is appreciated!

[txtaz]

In my other boat (Glastron) I filled the holes with fiberglass resin since the wood base was good and then re-drilled the mounts. After a few years I rebuilt the whole base and re-glased it in since I was restoring the entire boat. I think Donzi's have solid glass mounts, ie, no wood. So glass resin would be the way to go.
I'm sure others have specific experience with Donzi's.
Wes

[gcarter]

I'm Just curious, does your boat have raised square pedastals molded into the sole?

Thanks;
George

[EricG]

I'm not sure if the 80's 22 Classics had the same seat base setup as my 88 Z21 - but here's how I tightenend the seat bases on my boat.

First I built a wrench by cutting a 7/16" wrench in half and duct taping a long piece of steel to it. (See pic 1).

Then I took up the fuel tank access hatch and used a wedge to raise the floor slightly off of the strigers, just enough so I could get the wrench through and onto one of the nuts.

If you have the same setup and want to use my "custom donzi seat base wrench" - just give me your address and I'll ship it out to you.....just send it back when you are done.

I hope that helps...

-EG

[FUELPOWERED]

Thanks for the replies. My seat pedestals are on molded square boxes that are part of the sole. There are 3 screw heads visible when the seat is removed from the track. When I tried to tighten them down, they were sort of freewheeling. I need to know if i can access whatever the screws connect to without taking the deck off. Thanks.

[gcarter]

This is what I did;
The Minx cockpit is very similar to yours, the pedastals are just not as high. The problem is the bases are bolted together before the deck is installed, so it's impossible to tighten. So take a look at;
http://www.donzi.net/forums/showthread.php?t=33784
My seat bases were worn out, so I chose to replace them with another brand. However, the same thing could be done to your boat, just saw a smaller hole. Bolt tightening problems are solved forever.

Good luck;
George

[Ranman]

If they're the same as my 97', your seat bases are thru bolted to the raised square boxes of the sole using fender washers on the underside as backing plates. There should be 4 holes in a basicly square pattern. I had to replace my seat bases (sliders) several years ago. You can cut a large hole centered in the 4 hole pattern through the sole for access, but I wouldn't recommend it.

In the center "cooler" between the front seats, I have an access panel (circular) that gives me access to the fuel shut off and sender. Through this hole, I was able to access all 8 mounting bolts (left and right seats). I'm a big guy and so I had to employ someone with small arms to be able to reach the far bolts, but we were able to chenge them all out.

I used a high grade SS bolt with a large 1-1/4 OD SS fender washer for backing. I would have my helper push a bolt and washer through and I would screw a nut to each one. Once I had them all in place I mounted the seat frames carefully, one hole at a time making sure not to drop the bolt that was pushed through the underside. My last piece of advise is to make sure you buy the correct length bolts so you don't have too much thread extending upward from the holes and be sure to use lockwashers and maybe a dab of loc-tite so you don't lose any more. Practice with a close hole (easier) to get the length right.

Ranman.

[gcarter]

Yeah Randy, Oh how I wished there had been ANY access to outside the stringers through the "cooler". I had no option other than take off the deck. I'm not ready to do that yet.
Since FuelPowered's boat is a mid '80's boat similar to mine, he may find a similar situation. I definately favor your solution over mine.
George

[Ranman]

Attached is a 22 Classic deck at Donzi. The access hole can be seen just ahead of the center storage space. Although this is a pic of a 2, the (late model) 18's have the same access hole. If you do not have this hole (as George has mentioned), your only other option would be to "make" your own access holes (as George suggested).

BTW, that's Crazy Horse and Donzi Jenn peeking through the hole. :biggrin:

http://www.zabram.com/pics/Donzi/HometownRally2002/Factory22Hull05.jpg