man !! this took me all day

[fragged8]

hi guys, i posted this on my forum and thought it would be
good here.


i have a helm seat to do as part of an interior job,
I haven't done a bucket seat since I was in the USA
so was looking forward to getting my hands on one.

this first go.. I'm such a fussy bugger there is no way
it was leaving my workshop with those wrinkles


then second go..
i patterned the back with the bunched up pattern method
and it works great, moved the side seams slightly too.
also used scrim behind the inner panel but not on the
wings. perhaps i should have but i'm really happy how this turned out.
It gets the SNUGGTOPZ mark of quality  hheheheh..





Rich

[jojo]

Nice Rich! I have one of these coming up; it's nice to know that even the pros sometimes need to try things twice to get it right.

[JuneC]

Looks really good, Rich.  Pat yourself on the back for that seat  8)  Your original trouble spot is a difficult one that shows up repeatedly on buckets. 

June

[Mike8560]

nice rich

[MinUph]

Came out nice Rich.

[jsquail]

looks really good!

[bobbin]

Rich, that looks great.  May I come work with you on a few of those?!

I break out in a nervous sweat whenever I'm faced with something like that.  We don't have much in the way of equipment, but more than that, I've never really worked with anyone who had experience with that sort of upholstery and could show me the "tricks".  I always feel as though I'm playing "Beat the Clock" and worse, I'm never allowed to try my own ideas.  I am told to do it, "thus and such a way" and then I end up taking it apart and am even more frustrated. 

[fragged8]

hiya

thanks guys I really appreciate the feedback, i shifted the seam to about center of the curve in the arm and it seemed to do the trick nicely.
But boy do you have to pull and tug on the skin to get it laying nice, you really do need a gorilla grip :-)

only the second one ( third if you count the re-cover ) i've ever done so i'm really pleased.

Bobbin, if you ever get over here I'd be glad to find work for you and let you be creative, you'd clear up where I am as most guys will only make pram hoods and shy away from the jobs you have to think about. thats why i'm spending lots of time getting jobs really nice looking so I'm the man to go to for quality..

thanks again guys, it wouldn't be possible without your help, you all rock :-)

Rich

[Peppy]

Good one Rich! Looks great!  What's the 'bunched up pattern method'?

I like putting plastic over the foam. Really helps pulling it on. You only need a 'chimpanze grip'. But of course then you have the problem of wrestling a greased pig.

[SHHR]

It looks very nice. Taking the time to re-work a piece for better quality is always a pain, but worth it in the long run. Just reading this this morning made me think of the craftsmanship involved in a piece. For example; last night my family went out of town to dinner and ended up walking through the Bass Pro shop. Before we left we walked around the marine section and checked out the new boats. Looking at them, it was evident although the upholstery looks decent since it's new, they don't spend a lot of time on quality. Wavy seams were everywhere, wrinkles on inside corners, and puckers on seams where the skins wrap over the bolsters. I know all of that stuff is mass produced and installed by "other than professional trimmers".

I guess what I'm getting at is it feels good when you know you're doing a work that far exceeds OEM quality in both materials and workmanship.

Kyle

[bobbin]

That's it exactly, Kyle!  Being creative is what I love most about the work we do. 

[Mojo]

Great job Rich.

:)

Chris

[kodydog]

Takes a lot of patience to be in this business. You should be proud.

[hdflame]

Rich, that looks GREAT buddy!

I'm working on my first boat seat now.  Hopefully I'll post some pics in the next few days.  This seat has 20 pieces to sew together! :o  This is my first puzzle! ;D

I patterned it and added 1/2" seam allowance like I normally do and it just wasn't fitting together right.  They had used a 3/8 seam allowance.  I know that shouldn't have made a difference, but I wound up just taking the old cover apart and using it for a pattern using the 3/8 selvage.  It's going together pretty good now.  Hopefully it will turn out as good as yours!

BTW, they used 1/4" scrim on the bottom and back, and 1/2" scrim on the sides.  Since I don't have any 1/4", I'm going to use 1/2" all over.  Hope it looks OK.  I think it should just make it a little fuller looking.

[fragged8]

thanks guys, you've come a long way since the first flames hd  :-)
keep those pics coming hd  ..

i like the feel of scrim behind vinyl, i don't know what it is but it just
feels nicer.

bunching method Peppy is what i call it because i don't know what else to call it :-)

try this, lay the pattern material on the back of a bucket seat and most of it will lay flat
unless the angle changes and you end up with a baggy piece of pattern material
which is usually the indicator that you need to put a seam in there.


just bunch up the pattern material in the baggy part or make some small darts etc until the material does lay flat
and then fix them in place either with a P3 stapler or some sticky tape so they dont move,
draw on your arm seams etc and reference marks as normal.


now add your seam allowance and trim to shape, Pre stretch your vinyl by stapling one end
pulling just a little and stapling the other end. Lay down your pattern and it will not lay flat
and looks like there's no way this will work but don't sweat it just lay the pattern down as best you can
and hold it in place with some sand bags.

Draw the pattern outline on the vinyl and cut, sew up with the other parts and that monkey will fit sweet as..

it can also work on the inside of the seat as long as its not too tight a curve, a bayliner type
bucket is perfect

Rich