Which Morbern Vinyl Should I Buy? Bayside vs Prodigy vs Sanibel, Allante vs Carrara

Morbern buying guide

We stock five Morbern vinyls, all 54" wide and sold by the yard with no minimum: three marine, two contract. For boat seats the answer is Bayside. It is the only four-way stretch marine vinyl we carry, it is rated at 250,000 double rubs and a -25°F cold crack, and it costs $26.25 a yard, which is fifty cents more than Prodigy and about a dollar more than most of the Spradling two-way lines. Sanibel is the $20 repair vinyl. For indoor commercial seating, Allante at 200,000 double rubs in 43 colors is the workhorse and Carrara is the softer, matte pebble alternative.

The five at a glance

All five are mildew resistant and carry the core flame list (CAL TB 117-2013, FMVSS 302, NFPA 260, UFAC Class I). The three marine lines add IMO MSC 88/26 Part 8 on Bayside and Sanibel; Prodigy's page does not list it. All five clean with warm soapy water and a clear-water rinse, and Morbern permits Formula 409 for stubborn spots.

Start with Bayside

Bayside is the Morbern marine vinyl to start with. Four-way stretch means it conforms around a rolled bolster, a contoured helm seat or a deep-pleated back without fighting you, and it is the vinyl we point people to when the job has compound curves. It is rated at 250,000 double rubs, the highest of the Morbern and Spradling marine lines we stock, and it passes cold crack at -25°F, which matters if the boat winters outside. The only marine vinyl on our wall with a higher abrasion number is our own Pinnacle, at 1,500,000; Pinnacle is two-way stretch, so on compound curves Bayside still wins. It has a subtle fabric-like texture rather than a leather grain, 29 colors, and comes on 40-yard rolls. At $26.25 it is priced like a mid-range two-way vinyl. If you are not sure which marine vinyl to order, order this one.

The exception is heat. Bayside has no cool-touch technology; on a dark color in full sun, Pinnacle or Breeze will sit cooler. See the Cool Touch collection.

Prodigy for flat panels and a matte pebble look

Prodigy is a two-way stretch marine vinyl with a matte pebble finish, 25 colors, 100,000 double rubs, -25°F cold crack, on 40-yard rolls at $25.75. It is fifty cents cheaper than Bayside and gives up four-way stretch and 150,000 double rubs for it, so the reason to pick Prodigy is the look and the hand, not the price. It suits pontoon benches, RV dinettes, flat cushion tops and automotive work where the panels are flat and the pebble texture is the point. Plan the stretch direction before you cut.

Sanibel when it is a repair, not a rebuild

Sanibel is $20.00 a yard in 18 colors. It is a straightforward two-way marine vinyl rated at 30,000 double rubs, with 650 hours of UV resistance, mildew resistance and the marine flame list including IMO. That abrasion number is a fraction of Bayside's, so it is not the vinyl for a seat someone slides in and out of all day. It is the right vinyl for patching a torn panel on an older boat, re-covering a cushion that gets sat on a few weekends a year, or matching a color on a boat that is going to be sold in two seasons. Morbern does not publish a cold-crack rating for Sanibel; if the boat winters up north, spend the extra six dollars on Bayside.

Stretch, and what that means for cutting

Bayside stretches four ways. Prodigy and Sanibel stretch two ways, along the width. On a two-way vinyl, lay out your pattern so the stretch runs across the seat, not front to back, and do not try to force it around a compound curve with heat; a hair dryer is as far as you should go. For the same reason, if a job mixes flat panels and curved bolsters, it is often cheaper to do the whole thing in Bayside than to fight Prodigy on the curves.

The contract lines

Allante when it needs to look like leather and last

Allante is Morbern's leather-look contract vinyl: a super-dull, low-burnish finish built to read as soft leather, 200,000 double rubs, -25°F cold crack, 45 mils, in 43 colors at $25.75 on 40-yard rolls. That is the best abrasion-per-dollar on our contract wall short of Spirit Millennium. Two things to know before you order it. Morbern says not to pre-heat or steam Allante during fabrication; it tailors without it. And the leather-look finish will pick up marking inks, glues and dye transfer during sewing, so keep the bench clean and cover finished pieces with poly until delivery, the way an automotive shop would.

Carrara when the hand matters

Carrara is a matte pebble contract vinyl with a supple hand and a low-burnish, non-polishing finish: 100,000 double rubs on #8 cotton duck, -25°F cold crack, 650 hours WeatherOmeter, 29.25 oz at 45 mils, 20 colors, $26.75, on 40-yard rolls. Morbern says to keep heat, abrasive cleaners and strong solvents away from it. It is the one to reach for on boutique hospitality and restaurant booths where the chair gets touched as much as it gets sat on. If the spec sheet needs a higher abrasion number, Allante at 200,000 or Spirit Millennium at 1,500,000. If the budget needs a lower number, Denali is our lowest-priced contract vinyl. For a soft-touch alternative from another mill, see Whisper.

What we no longer carry

Allsport has been discontinued and we do not stock it. If you have a spec that names it, Allante is the closest current Morbern line; call and we will match the color.

Ordering

Everything here is sold by the yard in 1-yard increments with no minimum, cut from our stock in High Point, NC. Web orders over $250 ship free; under that, $30 flat. A $5 color sample ships free from any product page. Not sure which one? Call (336) 887-3101 or text (336) 497-1476 and you will get Jennifer or Johnston, not a queue.

Browse the full Morbern collection. For the other mills, see the Spradling guide and the Naugahyde guide.