Installing Smooth Moves Shock Absorbing Seats

Congratulations on the purchase of your new Smooth Moves Ultra or Smooth Moves Air boat seat suspension! Watch the video or follow the step-by-step written directions below to install.

Download instructions as a PDF.

Preparing your existing seat and boat floor

Note: You will need a 7/16-inch socket wrench to tighten the bolts.

  1. Remove your seat cushion and the swivel and/or slide from your existing pedestal.
  2. Remove the swivel and/or slide form the bottom of your seat cushion. Keep the bolts that attached the swivel to the bottom of the seat. You will need these bolts later in the instructions to attach the black mounting plate provided in the kit.
  3. If you have a removable boat seat pedestal, remove it from the pedestal base.
  4. Remove the pedestal base from the boat floor by removing the six screws around the base from the floor. Keep these six screws; you will need them later.

Installing your Smooth Moves Ultra or Smooth Moves Air boat seat suspension

  1. Place the supplied pedestal over the hole where the pedestal base was (prior to when you removed it in Step 4). If you have a 6-inch or 8-inch Springfield pedestal, make sure you have the notches on the top of the pedestal at your desired locking positions. There are three notches. You will want one in the forward position, one facing port side and one facing the rear. Next, line up the holes of the pedestal with the holes in the floor. Using the six screws that you removed from the original pedestal base (Step 4), fasten the new pedestal to the floor.
  2. Place the black mounting plate onto the bottom of your existing seat. Make sure the four bushings (one in each corner) are facing away from the seat cushion. There are a series of slanted holes on the mounting plate that you will line up with the holes in the bottom of your seat to the get the best fit for the plate. Using the bolts that you saved in Step 2, fasten your seat to the plate.
  3. Mount your Smooth Moves suspension to the pedestal by placing the swivel that is attached to the bottom of the suspension over the pedestal that you mounted to your boat floor in Step 5. Tighten the swivel to the pedestal just tight enough to secure it but still allowing 360-degree rotation.
  4. Next, attach the seat with the black mounting plate to the Smooth Moves suspension. Raise the black lever on the side of the rails and slide the suspension forward to expose the two holes on the end of the slide rail. Line up the bushings on the black mounting plate to the holes on the end of the slide rail. Using the bolts and washers provided in your kit, place the two bolts through the holes at the end of the slide rail and hand tighten to attach to the mounting plate. Slide the suspension the other direction and secure the other two bolts. When the bolts are hand tight, slide the rails back and forth four to five times. (Sliding the rails back and forth is necessary to square up the rails, ensuring a smooth slide.) Once the rails have been squared up, slide one end of the rails out just far enough to tighten the bolts with the socket wrench. Then carefully slide the rails the other way just enough to tighten the bolts on the other side. Check to ensure that the rails slide smoothly.
  5. If installing a Smooth Moves Air suspension, plug the six-foot lead into your boat’s 12V power port (e.g. cigarette lighter socket) to add air or hardwire it into your boat’s electric system.

Adjusting your Smooth Moves Ultra suspension

  1. Pulling the black lever at the top of the suspension out away from the suspension will allow you to move the seat fore and aft.
  2. The long gray handle on the suspension is for adjusting the seat to your body weight. You should adjust the tension so that when you sit on the suspension, it gives just a little and compresses about 1/2 inch. You can increase tension by turning the gray handle clockwise. Decrease the tension by turning it counterclockwise. If you are in rough waters with very large waves, increase the tension to avoid having the suspension bottom out. You can decrease the tension once you are back in lighter waves. (Once adjusted, leave the handle in the horizontal position. This prevents it from harming the rubber boot. If the handle is pointed down in the vertical position, it can pinch the rubber boot against the height-adjustment knob and tear the boot.)
  3. The round gray knob at the bottom of the suspension is for adjusting height. It is easier to adjust the height while sitting on the seat because it takes pressure off the springs and allows the knob to turn easier. Turn the knob counterclockwise to raise the seat and clockwise to lower it.
  4. The black lever at the very bottom of the seat is the locking mechanism for the swivel. Lifting up on it will unlock the swivel, allowing the seat to turn.

Help!

Need a hand? Call customer service at 888-583-2701 or contact us through the website.