Reupholstered leather seats
11-09-02, 10:32 AM
#1
Full Member
Thread Starter
Reupholstered leather seats
I finished my custom upholstry job and I thought I'd share a a couple of pictures. Sewing leather upholstry is not as hard as you think, provided you have the right tools and PATIENCE...
-MP
https://www.rx7club.com/forum/attach...postid=1211740
-MP
https://www.rx7club.com/forum/attach...postid=1211740
11-09-02, 01:42 PM
#3
Eats, Sleeps, Dreams Rotary
whoa
wow!!
I'm really impressed! looks great!!
can you give a write up??
Where and what kind of leather did you use?!?
Also the seat belt holder.....how did you deal with that???
AND finally.....what did it COST YOU?!!!!!!!
really nice work!
I'm really impressed! looks great!!
can you give a write up??
Where and what kind of leather did you use?!?
Also the seat belt holder.....how did you deal with that???
AND finally.....what did it COST YOU?!!!!!!!
really nice work!
11-10-02, 09:34 AM
#5
Full Member
Thread Starter
My approach requires a certain amount of *****, since you must take a perfectly fine seat, remove the upholstry, and split all the seams to get each individual leather piece. On the leather seats there are both leather and vinyl pieces. I think in total there is ~25 individual pieces in an OEM seat.
You then use the old pieces to cut pieces of new leather in the same shape and you can then start to sew the new pieces back together. They must be put together in a certain order to get access to all seams. I took various tie-downs, and the seat belt holder (on the shoulder) from the old upholstry.
The cost is as follows:
Leather: ~$600
-You need at least full 2 hides to finish two seats. Good automotive quality leather is ~$300 per hide.
Other supplies: ~$150
-Including the quilting foam that must be put on the back of all leather pieces, thread, vinyl, etc.
Sewing machine: ~$500
You need a decent used industrial sewing machine to do this right. I picked one up for $500.
To give you an idea of the time involved, I started with zero experience in sewing and it took me ~4 weeks to finish the first seat. The next one took a little over two weeks.
If anyone is interested I can e-mail some more details and pictures. The file is too large to post here.
-Mike P.
You then use the old pieces to cut pieces of new leather in the same shape and you can then start to sew the new pieces back together. They must be put together in a certain order to get access to all seams. I took various tie-downs, and the seat belt holder (on the shoulder) from the old upholstry.
The cost is as follows:
Leather: ~$600
-You need at least full 2 hides to finish two seats. Good automotive quality leather is ~$300 per hide.
Other supplies: ~$150
-Including the quilting foam that must be put on the back of all leather pieces, thread, vinyl, etc.
Sewing machine: ~$500
You need a decent used industrial sewing machine to do this right. I picked one up for $500.
To give you an idea of the time involved, I started with zero experience in sewing and it took me ~4 weeks to finish the first seat. The next one took a little over two weeks.
If anyone is interested I can e-mail some more details and pictures. The file is too large to post here.
-Mike P.
11-10-02, 10:13 AM
#6
Eats, Sleeps, Dreams Rotary
damn!
Mike,
I might have to email ya.......
did u happen to track a pattern on paper of the leather parts? That would make it easy for us to use as a kit and put the pieces together......
and BTW....how did u get that "rotor" imprint in the leather???
...and one last question....ok maybe two....first did you change the stock plastic around to black and how?
and two are there alot of different quality of leathers? which did you use??......damn too many questions....i'll just email you
I might have to email ya.......
did u happen to track a pattern on paper of the leather parts? That would make it easy for us to use as a kit and put the pieces together......
and BTW....how did u get that "rotor" imprint in the leather???
...and one last question....ok maybe two....first did you change the stock plastic around to black and how?
and two are there alot of different quality of leathers? which did you use??......damn too many questions....i'll just email you
11-10-02, 07:36 PM
#7
Blow up or win
Excellent job, very clean, nice OEM look.
I have an industrial machine myself, what a handy tool to have just hanging around the shop!
You took on an enormous task for your first job and taught yourself how to do it. Good for you - it's great to see someone take that kind of initiative.
I am going to be redoing my seat inserts (like you did) this winter with charcoal grey perfed leather, and replacing the bottom seat cushion and building up the lumbar bolster area with Confor foam. It is also know as the same foam they build "tempurpedic" beds out of, except I will be laminating several layers of extra firm and firm Confor together instead of the soft stuff they use for beds. It's heat sensing.
I'm also going to do the center console, shift boot, e-brake boot and handle, and maybe the steering wheel.
Again - Great job!
Now, how did you emboss the rotor logo, or is that embroidered?
I have an industrial machine myself, what a handy tool to have just hanging around the shop!
You took on an enormous task for your first job and taught yourself how to do it. Good for you - it's great to see someone take that kind of initiative.
I am going to be redoing my seat inserts (like you did) this winter with charcoal grey perfed leather, and replacing the bottom seat cushion and building up the lumbar bolster area with Confor foam. It is also know as the same foam they build "tempurpedic" beds out of, except I will be laminating several layers of extra firm and firm Confor together instead of the soft stuff they use for beds. It's heat sensing.
I'm also going to do the center console, shift boot, e-brake boot and handle, and maybe the steering wheel.
Again - Great job!
Now, how did you emboss the rotor logo, or is that embroidered?
Last edited by RonKMiller; 11-10-02 at 07:38 PM.
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11-11-02, 05:13 PM
#8
Full Member
Thread Starter
Thanks for the compliments. The embossing was done by a Canadian company that does a lot of work for the car companies already. Fortunately, they do small prototype jobs as well. Price: ~$150 for a couple of prints. If you're interested you can check them out at www.mboss.com
-Mike P.
-Mike P.
11-11-02, 05:22 PM
#9
Full Member
Thread Starter
7racer:
I cut the new pieces directly using the old ones as stencil. I do plan to make paper copies of the patttern. I just haven't got around to it yet.
I did not replace or change any of the plastic pieces on the seat. I just used the old ones that are black already.
I used some fairly low quality leather I bought locally. I didn't want to break the bank on leather before I knew I could actually do this... I think I will probably repeat the work with some higher quality leather in the near future.
-Mike P.
I cut the new pieces directly using the old ones as stencil. I do plan to make paper copies of the patttern. I just haven't got around to it yet.
I did not replace or change any of the plastic pieces on the seat. I just used the old ones that are black already.
I used some fairly low quality leather I bought locally. I didn't want to break the bank on leather before I knew I could actually do this... I think I will probably repeat the work with some higher quality leather in the near future.
-Mike P.
