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Wicker Seat

Replacing Canoe Seat Webbing

Problem with Wicker Seats

Wicker/cane canoe seats sag and eventually pull free from the seat frame. They also can dry rot and break from old age. I found the nylon webbed seats on the Wenonah much more comfortable and maintenance free, so I decided to upgrade these seats to nylon webbing.

Solutions for Wicker Seats

You can see from the below prices from The Outside World (parts not shown on website) that if your hangers are okay, you can do this repair for very little money if you are considered "handy".

1. Buy a pre-webbed seat (~$65/seat).
2. Buy 20 feet of flat webbing for $0.25/foot ($5/seat). --Much better!

Materials for Replacing Wicker Seats

• 1 inch Flat Webbing (20 ft @ $0.25/ft): $5
• 1/2" long by 1/4" wide Staples is what worked for me
• Tape Measure
• Pneumatic Stapler (or some other method of securing the webbing, but this makes the job much easier)
• My wife's utility scissors from the kitchen
• Lighter
• Box cutter
• Crescent Wrench (adjustable wrench for hex nuts)
• Standard Screw Driver (Flat head)
• Phillips Screw Driver
• Safety Glasses

Total cost: $42

Materials for Canoe Seat Repair/Upgrade
Misc Tools and Flat Webbing	Pneumatic Stapler	1/2" long by 1/4" wide Staples	Safety Glasses

Steps and Photos for Replacing Wicker Seats

• Busted wicker canoe seat gets repaired with new nylon webbing.

Canoe Seat Webbing Replacement
Remove nut holding the canoe seat to hanger	Detached Seat	Cut out the old wicker	Sand off the sharp bits, so they don't poke you in the...rear
My long webbing was this long, but make sure you measure webbing wrapped all the way around both sides	Short Webbing	Measuring to determine the gap	Measuring to determine the gap
Gap between webbing is (free space)/(number of straps + 1)	Mark out the straps and gaps	Determine now long of staples to use	1/2" long staples were appropriate
Align webbing with marks and staple to inside with long part hanging down (seat upside down)	Wrap around to the top side	Stretch across to the far side, wrap around to the bottom and stretch tight (seat upside down)	Holding tight, staple in place (seat upside down)
All the long webbing in place (seat upside down)	Weave short webbing lengths in place	Staple in place in the same way (seat upside down)	All stapled in place (seat upside down)
Finished webbing

Replacing Canoe Seat Trusses

Busted Rivets

Problem withmy seat hangers

My second problem was that the rivets that held the metal seat hangers to the underside of the gunwale pulled out of the canoe on one side, forcing Jordan to sit on a crooked seat for the last hour of our canoe trip (not fun!). These new seat trusses provide a more stable seat.

Solution for Replacing Seat Hangers

1. Mad River Hanger Truss ($20) sold at The Outside World store (not shown on website)
2. Mad River Hanger Hardware ($17) sold at The Outside World store (not shown on website)

Materials for Replacing Seat Hangers

• Seat Trusses (1 pair): $20
• Seat Truss Stainless Steel Hardware: $17
• Tape Measure
• Crescent Wrench (adjustable wrench for hex nuts)
• Standard Screw Driver (Flat head)
• Phillips Screw Driver
• Drill bits for drilling out rivets (I used Cobalt)
• Safety Glasses

Total cost: $42

Materials for Canoe Seat Repair/Upgrade
Misc Tools	Seat Trusses	Seat Truss Info	Seat Truss Hardware
Seat Truss Hardware Info	Drill Bits	Safety Glasses

Steps and Photos for Replacing Seat Hangers

• Drill out the old rivets and attach the new seat

Canoe Seat Webbing Replacement
Old Seat Hanger that was still connected	Drill out the rivets, but be careful to only drill deep enough to pop the head of the rivet off	Rivet heads drilled out	Seat hanger removed from gunwale
Remove nut holding the canoe seat to hanger	Detached Seat	Mark seat truss with original seat hanger, to maintain the same seat angle (or adjust as necessary)	Cutting the seat truss, using the original hanger as a guide
Angles now match	Line up the new seat truss to line up with the old seat location and drill the new holes straight down through the gunwales.	Hardware through the gunwale and through the truss.	Mark where the new trusses line up with the seat and drill new holes if required.
Get help from your spouse (even if it means she needs to take a break from baking cookies)	Seat attached	Done

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