Aluminum Fab?

[SpiderHitch]

I'm looking to fit a stadium seat onto the Redfish 12. I saw on Youtube an individual who used 2 aluminum strips to mount the seat on, and mounted the strips around the gunwales of the kayak. Is working the strips into that shape possible with normal tools, or does it require a fabrication shop?

Any recommendations for a shop who would be interested in this kind of project?

Thanks all.

[JUP 561]

i bought a stadium seat from dicks/sports authority/ etc and just use that. its not mounted but it fits snug and is easy to clean and remove.

[fishshooter99]

In general aluminum is pretty easy to work with. I've been an aircraft mechanic for a long time and have worked a lot with it. That said, I haven't seen the video your referring to. In general, try to make a nice radius at your bends. Tight bends are much more likely to crack. Also try to always bend against the grain of the aluminum, again to lesson the likelihood of stress cracks later. You should be able to make bends using a vice, or by putting weight on the aluminum and pulling up. I'd recommend putting a small dowel at the location you plan to bend to ensure a nice radius. Always leave all ends long until after you bend then trim it (you will loose length in the radius of the bend). As far as drilling, it's very easy. Just ensure you leave adequate edge distance for any fasteners.