Bimini Knobs in the way of the cover?

[Tallredrider]

My bimini cover is very difficult to remove and put on because of the knobs that stick out to the side. I am afraid that the cover is going to rip or wear in that location because of this.

Does everyone have knobs that stick out to the side? It would have made so much more sense to have the knobs on the inside instead of the outside. If the brackets were reversed on the bimini, that could be done easily.

Pictures of the knob included. I messed with it trying to see if I could get it reversed last night. The only way to reverse the knobs would be if the bimini had been constructed with the knob bracket reversed.

Does anyone know how to compress that shock so that I can get it back on there? The only solution I could find was to start some roids and get to the gym a lot more. It really holds a lot of pressure.

[Kenv]

I would say probably Yes to the question you asked....does everyone have the knobs that stick out to the side.....since everyone has the same bimini if you got the Nautique factory. I just picked up my G this week so I have only folded the tower just to put it in the garage at the lake. I do see what you mean in the cover being really snug right where the two knobs are. Dealer advised me to wiggle wiggle it to put it back over the knobs to snap it for travel.

[NautiqueJeff]

They're all pretty tight like that. Haven't heard of any ripping though. The cover may stretch a bit over time, too.

[swatguy]

Give it time. The cover will stretch ever so slightly. If you're still worried about the wear...... Take it to an upholstery shop and have them reinforce the area from the underside and double layer it with felt or extra material.

[Tallredrider]

Thanks for the responses. I actually was wondering if the bimini was put together backwards in some way.

On the top, they are clearly marked 'L' and 'R'. The letters are reversed so that regardless of which way you look at them, you cannot screw it up. Notably, mine are backwards.

Check out this picture: you can see the L on the flat part of the mounting bracket, and I think you can barely make out the upside down R on the other end. No matter how you look at this, the bracket is not on the side it is marked. This one is on the right side as you are looking at the front of the boat, and the R is on the left side if you are looking towards the back of the boat.

If you turn the top bracket around, then the shock is on the inside of the bimini and can't connect to its attachment on the other end (on the outside). If you reverse the bracket that holds the bimini together so that the knob is on the inside, everything would work perfectly. AND the knob would be on the inside, which would seem to be superior. I wonder if that is how it was originally designed, but there is some reason they found not to do it that way. I would do it myself, but the alluminum poles have rivets on the end that prevent you from sliding the mounting bracket off of the tubing.