2+ months for upholstery???

[twowheeledfish]

So here's the story. Called a local upholstery shop in Jan to get a complete job to include new bucket seats up front, a bench seat in the back, side panels and carpet. The guy said call back in late-Feb. Fast forward. Called the last week of Feb and he said to drop the boat off at the shop.... boat was delivered on Feb. 24. I stopped by one week later to drop off a few parts for the shop to install... shop owner said he'd call me the following week with an estimate. No call. So I called today (3 weeks after delivery) to check on status. I was informed that boat had not moved, no estimate was made, and that the soonest the job could be completed would be the end of April.
So, does anybody know of an excellent shop in northern-northern California? I live north of Sacramento. Its 80 degrees up here and I'm going nuts.

[old rigger]

get ahold of Cas on the board here. He lives up north and has a great interior guy. Shoot him a PM. :)
better yet, here's a link to Cas's web site.
http://www.laidbackboaters.com/

[pw_Tony]

So did he even give you a price idea?

[boatgonewild]

I saw a boat load of mexicans at the lake this weekend, laughing about keeping this guys boat another month..... No NO just kidding, Theres no way I would ever drop my boat off like that , Witch nightmare story do you want first, If you can take your seats, panals, and anything else in ,Leave the boat home if possilbe. Pedro pulled some shit loose on a friends with the idea of his ass isnt going to be on the water today.... Summers here, Id start over

[Oldsquirt]

To tell you the truth, that's about the way it works up here. Most shops are small, understaffed and take in more work than they can handle(bad time of year to be getting upholstery done, too).
If you want faster service, better quality and lower prices, you would be better off calling one of the bigger shops in SoCal. I had Stratton in Riverside do a couple of bucket seats for me in 2005. Cost 1/2 what a local guy(who I had used before) wanted. I called down, told him what I wanted and sent some material samples. When I went to pick the seats up, I brought an engine cover I needed matched. They did that on the spot while I waited. Even with the cost of gas, I was way ahead of doing it here in NorCal.

[Cas]

Charlie does excellent work at a very fair price. These 3 came out excellent and are the only ones I have pictures of. I do know he did a couple of others 1 of which had a couple of minor issues.
On the one with the issues, it looked like there was a error in the stitching that was corrected but the vinyl wasn't changed....there were about 5 pin holes on the arm of a front bucket. The other issue with it was down at the bottom of the other front seat where the piping ended, the piping needed a couple of more staples. The layout was the same as the first boat pictured and was also a 2 color job - $550.
$500 - 2 front buckets, 2 rear side seats facing each other, 2 rear panels, 2 color
http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l204/Cas2006/Random%20Pics/Bobbys.jpg
$450 - 3 front buckets, 1 rear bench, diamond tuck - 4 day turnaround!
http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l204/Cas2006/Random%20Pics/martin.jpg
$700 - 2 front buckets, 2 rear side seats facing each other, engine cover, 2 rear jump seats, 2 side panels
http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l204/Cas2006/Random%20Pics/Brandens.jpg
Charlie mostly does custom hot rod interiors but does boats for a change of pace. I have no idea how busy he is right now but the way he works, you bring him the seat boxes and he'll cover them. I'm actually going to try and get a couple of panels over to him this coming Saturday so I'll find how busy he is.

[TahitiVC]

If you don't mind the drive to Modesto I have an excellent guy who works cheap and fast. He did the complete upholstry on my 20 foot Tahiti Super Cruiser and built a Bimini top in a week and it was less than two grand including replacing some of the wood. My boat is in his shop right now having the floor replaced and being recarpetted for under a grand. name of the place is Atlas Canvas on Oakdale Road in Modesto. Phone is (209) 551-6018 Give him a call and tell him Victor referred you. He do you right.

[Classic Daycruiser]

$8500 Two front seat, rear bench, engine deck, two side panels, two bench seats below, two bow sleep pads, floor replacement, all new frames through out, carpet, all done in tuck and roll.
I was not happy with how the project was handled (service manager), but it was a big project. The quality of workmenship was superior.

[pw_Tony]

Charlie does excellent work at a very fair price. These 3 came out excellent and are the only ones I have pictures of. I do know he did a couple of others 1 of which had a couple of minor issues.
On the one with the issues, it looked like there was a error in the stitching that was corrected but the vinyl wasn't changed....there were about 5 pin holes on the arm of a front bucket. The other issue with it was down at the bottom of the other front seat where the piping ended, the piping needed a couple of more staples. The layout was the same as the first boat pictured and was also a 2 color job - $550.
$500 - 2 front buckets, 2 rear side seats facing each other, 2 rear panels, 2 color
http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l204/Cas2006/Random%20Pics/Bobbys.jpg
$450 - 3 front buckets, 1 rear bench, diamond tuck - 4 day turnaround!
http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l204/Cas2006/Random%20Pics/martin.jpg
$700 - 2 front buckets, 2 rear side seats facing each other, engine cover, 2 rear jump seats, 2 side panels
http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l204/Cas2006/Random%20Pics/Brandens.jpg
Charlie mostly does custom hot rod interiors but does boats for a change of pace. I have no idea how busy he is right now but the way he works, you bring him the seat boxes and he'll cover them. I'm actually going to try and get a couple of panels over to him this coming Saturday so I'll find how busy he is.
Ooo so it was only $700 for the whole blue and white boat to be covered? Where's that guy located at?

[twowheeledfish]

Thanks for the replies guys. I'm gonna try to address multiple questions and comments in this single post.
PW- The original estimate over the phone was around $1500 for the seats, but this was before I discovered some glass work that needed to be done. Since dropping off the boat, I have not heard anything on price.
Boatsgonewild- The job is a little more involved than dropping the frames off. I threw the original crap away because I wanted something fresh and new. Three-bolster seat type stuff that's in the new boats... there was a boat in ***boat mag that had similar seats, I think it was called "Its All Good". Get the license number of those guys too....
Tahiti- I'll probably give this shop a call just to see what they can do. Thanks.
Oldsquirt- I like the idea. However, the drive to Riverside in a jeep wrangler towing a boat sounds shitty. We'll see how desperate I get. I have no idea how business owners up here operate and don't go belly-up. Seems to be the norm... The only place I've seen worse is in Oregon.
Cas- Thanks for the info. The prices just seem way too low. I won't be happy with anything less than perfection.
Classic- Bad service manager? I'm out...lol. Thanks for the info though.
I'll get this handled one way or another. I appreciate the feedback and will follow up on some of these leads. Cheers guys, and enjoy the weather. I'll be on the bank, boatless... :mad:

[YeLLowBoaT]

if your up for a little drive I know a great older guy that does it out of his garage( hes retired has something like 40 years exp) he does alot of the local car clubs works. If you want something old school hes the way to go.

[twowheeledfish]

Actually, I'm trying to freshen up the boat a bit and getting away from old school. Thanks man.

[twowheeledfish]

Good news today gang. Boat will be done in 4 weeks. I received apologies up and down.... the guy is terribly busy, so he's giving me quite a break in price and he'll start the project in two weeks. I'm having quite a bit done:
-reglass aluminum fuel tank mounts (they were breaking loose)
-reglass/repair forward bulkhead (also busted up)
-reglass the little separator between the bilge and passenger area (yep, this was busted too... no more oily feet.
-full seats from ground up (frames and all... 3 bolster newer eliminator style)... new buckets, rear bench (the rear bench is gonna have an integrated ice chest)
-full side panels
-complete carpet
I heard somewhere that patience was a virtue?

[Mr. Crusader 83]

Ultra Boats did mine, New frames, seats, hatch, and cup holders. I dropped it off with just the engine in it.
$2400
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/521/2854BOAT_TRUCK_CAR2_001.jpg
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/521/2854BOAT_TRUCK_CAR_002.jpg
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/521/2854BOAT_TRUCK_CAR_004.jpg