So, I'm recovering jetski seats, and the seat is made out of hard black plastic. When I try to staple the cover to the plastic, the staples rumple, like this:
(https://forum.upholster.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fs6.postimage.org%2Fbq14qnvy5%2Fstaples.jpg&hash=400c7b75b7b4a85da790813a0ebb53f1) (http://postimage.org/image/bq14qnvy5/)
(https://forum.upholster.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fs6.postimage.org%2Fh01i47qt9%2Fstaple.jpg&hash=92d7e4ab5ee914b94f6b0700d6c2765a) (http://postimage.org/image/h01i47qt9/)
I've tried to turn the pressure on the compressor up, and then down low, nothing helps. Is it my gun?? I've stapled through plastics before with no problem, and when I test the gun on wood it's fine.
Also, the original cover was stapled on.
What gives?
Those staples look kinda long. Are you hitting metal underneath the hard plastic? Could you drive the staples at an angle?
Hi Sofadoc, thanks for responding. The staples are 3/8" long, the plastic seems to be 3/4" thick...It doesn't seem like there's metal in there, although I guess it's possible.
My gun is crappy; I had to get a Harbor Freight gun for an emergency substitute when my Bea gun kicked the bucket, and never got around to getting a good one. But it's been fine for the last year or so, and like I said, works fine on wood. The original staples on the seat were thinner than mine (I'm using t-50).
What is your pressure set at JoJo ?
I was having the same problem a while back and I switched to the gun that is sold on this website. It uses 22gauge 3/8 crown staples. I never use the T-50 anymore and seldom have any staple problems. Those little fine wire 22 gauge staples work much better in plastic than the T-50's and they are cheaper too.
I'm with Tim on that. T-50's just can't compete with fine wire staples.
Short of getting (borrowing ??) a fine wire stapler, the only thing I can think of is to try heating the plastic pan and seeing if it will then accept the wide staples.
I use fine wire SS shoot fine in the last waverunner seat I did 3/8"from Miami in my rainco
shot fine in the last waverunner seat I did.
You might try pressing harder on against the plastic so the gun won't pop off it when shot. This helps when a material is very hard. Might just be the staples like all other comments but its worth a try. Press real hard
Well, I just ordered the EZE TC 08 staple gun and some 22 gauge staples. (probably should have a backup gun anyway). We'll see how it goes next week. Thanks for your help guys.
Been there done that , 71 series fine wire only for the dense abs plastic. t50 is a joke and 1/2 is the same . need the fine wire for sure.
I did three jet ski seats this past summer and used the Harbor frieght 20 gauge staple gun and stainless steal staples from Manart. I had no issues stapling the vinyl to the plastic. I did use 3/8" stainless staples. I had my air pressure regulated at about 80 PSI. That gun sucks, no doubt, but I had limited issues with it. I did notice that I would get the same staple issue that you have when i didnt hold the gun tight to the plastic.
Js, maybe the difference is stainless staples? Because I tried leaning on the gun too. Nothing worked. Seemed like the harder I pushed, the more wrinkled the staple was. I was using galvanized though.
Quite possible. I'm no metallurgist, but stainless steel is a very hard metal. However, it is also more brittle than regular steel. Since galvanization is nothing more than a coating to steel or iron I would be willing to bet the stainless staples would drive right into the plastic. Personally, no matter the application of the water craft, I only use stainless. Galvanized will eventually rust because the zinc coating will wear off.
I use fine wire stainless. is seems it would be hard for a fat staple to penetrate a hard surface therefore bend staples.
When my fine wire gun has problems shooting through stuff I use the fatter 'gimp' gun. I was using it today to shoot into a formed fiberglass back rest. I'd have to look to tell the gauge (18?) I think it's 3/16" crown? The legs are way thicker then the fine wire staple. I think the beefier leg has the power to get through whereas the thin legs just tie knots in the fabric.
We use galvo not ss.
QuoteWe use galvo not ss.
Same over here on the prairies. But we're alot drier than the coast or
Florida etc...
Galvo would probably be alright for Pennsylvania.
When i forst stared this i saw boat seats in new hampshire thet hadnt used stainless on creshwater bosts removing the skins was easy sll the staples were toast and only the shapes of the vinyl trained crom years inplace helt them onto the seats.
I've seen that here too Mike; but as you said by then the vinyl was pooched as well.I can't recall having to re-staple a "good" skin because the staples failed too soon. I have seen some where the staples and skins were okay but the wood had rotted.
So I got my new gun and some 22 gauge fine wire staples and still, wrinkled staples. But at least these ones are staying in, even if they are ugly, so I'm just going to use them. :::::Sigh::::
What did you get JoJo? Send me a link if possible.
Here is a link to the one I have and use on the very dense plastics. http://www.duboisfabrics.com/product_p/stapler-eze.htm
here are the staples
http://www.duboisfabrics.com/product_p/staples_bea_71-fslash-12ss.htm
Yes, that is the exact gun I have! But my staples aren't stainless; that's got to be the problem, I guess. They are 3/8". Do they need to be longer? or shorter?
I re-upholstered the Captains chair on my Baha Cruiser over the summer. I used 3/4" starboard for the seat base and Seat back. I had no issues using my harbor junk stapler and SS staples.
ok , when I first ran into this exact problem i was re doing a hurricane deck boat. The backers were made of black abs plastic and about 1/4 inch thick. I needed real short staples but tried my 1/2 in 1/2 deep staples and got the same as you, just a crushed head. I got that gun and some 3/8 #71 staples and some 1/4 71 staples and they shoot through the very dense abs plastic no problem. This plastic , the abs is denser than starboard.