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General Upholstery Questions and Comments => General Discussion => Topic started by: gatsby989 on January 29, 2012, 10:01:46 am

Title: How tight should webbing be for a sprung seat?
Post by: gatsby989 on January 29, 2012, 10:01:46 am
So I started on my wingback chair, and I'm having difficulty getting the webbing stretched tight. The problem is getting down into the dado while keeping the tension.  So there seems to be more give than I like. But this is the first time I've used jute webbing. I used nylon webbing on some slip seats, but those didn't have any lip or scallops obviously, so I had no trouble getting it good and tight. What do you think about using nylon or something instead that doesn't have much stretch to it? I don't want to go through all the trouble of doing the springs, etc., if it is going to sag badly right away. 

As you can see, I put the webbing close together (accidentally a little too close in places), but it still gives quite a bit.

(https://forum.upholster.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.hogsmack.com%2Fwoodworking%2Fwingback%2Fwingback24.jpg&hash=aaf0a456698a411e941d2159358387a6) (http://www.hogsmack.com/woodworking/wingback/wingback24.jpg)
Title: Re: How tight should webbing be for a sprung seat?
Post by: MinUph on January 29, 2012, 01:50:37 pm
Webbing should end up tight as a drum. When I'm done I'll drop my shears on the center and make sure it bounces good. I can tell by the sound. If yours ends up looser because of the frame type you have to work with it will still be OK as long as its pretty tight. A small sag is sometimes unavoidable. Press down on the center and see how far it sags.
Title: Re: How tight should webbing be for a sprung seat?
Post by: kodydog on January 29, 2012, 05:08:33 pm
No matter how tight you stretch the webbing it will sag somewhat after you tie the springs. That is if you tie them nice and tight. I see you used tacks front to back and staples side to side. In a situation like yours, I will pull the webbing with a webbing stretcher and force it down into the dado with the staple gun. Then if you want extra hold, go back and use tacks once you flip the salvage over. Your photo doesn't look bad. Too much webbing is better than not enough.

Like Paul said, tight as a drum.
Title: Re: How tight should webbing be for a sprung seat?
Post by: gatsby989 on January 29, 2012, 07:06:17 pm
Thanks guys. I think I got it fixed up. I used the tacks a couple places because when I tried to force the webbing down with the staple gun, the staple would cut straight through the webbing. Ugh! I tried reducing the pressure, but then it wouldn't drive the staple home. In any event, I ended up using some clamps and a steel ruler to hold the webbing down and eventually got it tightened up quite a bit. I had to re-do most of the webbing though. But it is vastly improved.
Title: Re: How tight should webbing be for a sprung seat?
Post by: kodydog on January 31, 2012, 05:05:49 pm
I don' know what kind of gun you have but on most pneumatic staplers after you empty it, pull the trigger and look at the tip to see how much of the striker is sticking out. If its more than just a little bit you can grind it down. I was having problems with my electric stapler. It wasn't driving the staple far enough. So I took just a little bit off the tip. Now it works fine.
Title: Re: How tight should webbing be for a sprung seat?
Post by: MinUph on January 31, 2012, 05:17:31 pm
Kody I learned something recently about "grinding the blade down". It is a fast fix but not the correct one. When the blade protrudes further than it is suppose to it is because the stopper is worn. Replacement stopper is pretty cheap. Once the blade is ground down it can't be used with a new stopper as it will be to short. Food for thought.