canvas shop recommendation

hello all,

i'm about to replace all of my canvas covers on my e29. i wanted to know if someone could recommend a reputable internet shop.

thanks

Hard to imagine that there are not oodles of competing canvas shops in the Bay area, but...
I got a reasonable deal on a new bbq cover from these folks -
http://www.indycanvas.com/

That's not putting them to much of a "test," I admit!


Loren in PDX

The best..

The best advice for canvas.... BUY LOCAL !!! There are far to many variables...

thanks and i understand your sentiment...i'm the first person to give my business to local, family run, independant shops but unfortunately there appears to be about a 40 to 50 percent surcharge locally. if there was a reputable, good quality online canvas shop that could save me 4 or 5 hundred dollars then i may have to go in that direction. i'm spending a boatload (no pun intended) of money on the boat this spring and thought i could save my budget. thanks again

One way, perhaps, to find a local shop with a good reputation would be to consult your local sail loft(s). I have found that, over the decades, these guys and gals in the sail making and repair biz know who to trust and who not to...
Back in the early 80's I was a sales rep for a large sail loft from Seattle, and they really valued their canvas connection. Some stuff they could obviously make in-house, but most covers were less expensive from a canvas specialty shop nearby.
They could not take a chance on a customer getting a poor product, as it would reflect on their reputation.

I know that cost is a always a factor (for me, too). Still, I am always wary of the bid that is "too low" because I have learned the hard way the old truth that a low price will be forgotten and the bitterness of poor quality will linger on and on.

Fair winds,
Loren in damp Portland, OR

I understand

I understand your concern about price but there is a really is a big difference between "mail order" and locally made product you have recourse with. There was a very interesting thread on SailboatOwners.com on this very subject about a year ago where a guy ordered a winter cover and it did not fit. He had to get a lawyer and eventually take this to court and even after the court awarded him the return of his money the "mail order guy" refused to pay!

If it were me I'd try and wait a year until I could afford to have it done locally. A sail cover or winch cover is one thing but a bimini or a dodger no way.

Here's a couple of comparison shots:
Mail Order "Before":

Local Guy "After":


A good friend of mine owns the shop that did that work and I do some consulting work for him on the side. He could tell you hundreds of stories of folks who thought they could save few bucks by going mail order. In the end they wind up on his door step and he has to fix "other people's work" and they savings they thought they could realize iare wiped out!

Your not even in my neck of the woods, I have nothing to gain on this, so for your own sake please consider this advice. There are certain things that can be mail ordered, and that will work out fine, but dodgers, bimini's, pedestal covers or sail covers (if you have lazy jacks) are not some of them..

Do what you want, but I would really advise waiting until you can afford to have it done locally..

I agree with Maine Sail. Winch and BBQ covers are one thing, but dodgers and Bimini's are another. You definitely want to go local for these items. The locals have a reputation to guard. I would also look at the work the various locals are doing as I have seen great differences in the quality form local to local. Canvas work is expensive, but spending a couple more bucks for a job that you can be proud of and not making excuses for because you saved a couple of $100 is well worth the money

Another Note on this

The local guys can be better, or they can be complete hacks. Ask to look at boats that they have already done. Don't assume that because they are local that they are good.

I have had them drill holes completely through the deck, and that tell me quite frankly that they had no idea how to fix what they have done. I have had them finish 1/2 a sail cover, (No fastners what so ever), and claim that they were done. I could go on and on and on and on..... My favorite was a client that brought drawings of what they wanted, complete 3-d renderings, asked if they canvas person could do that. Measurements the whole thing. Autocad printouts etc. It looked really good on the drawings, and on the photographs that they had rendered it on. The canvass LOCAL canvas person that is highly regarded here said; "That looks great, I can do that, but it is going to cost you extra". They said fine and paid hamsomly for the "extra" of not having it designed by the guy. He created and installed something that was not at all like the design, as a matter of fact it looked identical to another boat he had recently completed. They made the mistake of paying all up front. He agreed to do it all again. 8 months later he got around to it, and still did not do it to match the drawing which he still said he could do. They had to threaten to sue to get their money back.


The other thing I do is I NEVER pay a canvas guy everything up front. I have had way way way too many unfinished jobs that way. The final fit is done when I say it is done, not when they get another dodger to do on another boat.

Another thing that I don't like is that they often want low dodgers with lots of canvas and small windows. This does look better if done right, but it makes the boat harder to sail, a lot harder to dock, and really doesn't add all that much in the way of aesthetics in my opinion. A lot of these dodgers I find are really worthless, and just cover the companionway. They funnel spray into the eyes of the helmsman in a real blow, and off no protection for the on watch who can't fit under them.

Guy

Mail order canvas? If it's anything more complicated then
a barbecue forget it. I asked one of the most recommended shops
in my area to do a simple hatch cover before commissioning the
rest of the boat. After 3 versions, it still isn't right. I mean how
tough is it to line up 4 snaps?

Martin

All of the above......

Take heed......

I can only second the thoughts of all of the above.....

I have been very fortunate with "Locals"

I have friends who have run into all of the disasters mentioned above.....even with locals they have been warned to stay away from....nothing looks worse than a bad canvas job....

FWIW

Mort Fligelman
Acapella 1987 E35-3
Boca Raton, FL

thank you all for your recommendations. i appreciate all of your feedback. but i should have mentioned that my canvas job is really easy. 1971 e29---no bimini, no dodger, no pedestal cover, not even self tailing winches or lazy jacks. just 7 winches, 2 grab rails, tiller cover, basic mainsail cover and a straightforward companionway cover.
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i've gotten a couple of online quotes in the $700-800 dollar range. today i got a local "ballpark" quote from a reputable canvas shop of around $1500 and was told it takes "about a month".<O
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i have a feeling that sf bay area prices might be overly inflated in comparison to other sailing towns. i just was hoping that there was a good company out there that wasn't paying san francisco bay area real estate rates and in turn passing along the surcharge to us boaters. besides, mail order companies aren't always as evil as the stigma may suggest. what would all of us Atomic4 owners do w/o Don Moyer from Moyer Marine? Walk into Westmarine and ask them for a Obendorfer water pump and a water lifter muffler? imagine the look on their faces...<O
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does anyone have any feedback about... www.ericsonowners.com <O></O>
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i followed up with a phone call and they seemed pretty knowledgeable about ericsons.<O
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thanks again<O</O

oh and maine sail, your catalina bimini does look great. it looks like they did a really nice job.

I have purchased from SailboatOwners.com before and had an excellent experience. I bought one of the new fibreglass propane tanks for our 35 mkII. It arrived within the time they estimated, and we had no problems with the Customs/Duty/Taxes here in Canada - just paid the 6% (at that time) GST upon delivery. Much smoother than some other transactions we have completed with US companies over the years.

thanks for the replies.