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Hello,

We currently use the flexzilla 1/4 hoses which are very durable and pretty flexible, but a bit on the thick side. They call it 1/4" but it is more like 1/2". (Maybe the 1/4" stands for the inner diameter?)

I wonder if anyone has a suggestion for a really really really skinny and flexible air hose. Sort of like the spiral hoses (http://www.123rf.com/photo_22436808_orange-red-thin-spiral-air-hose-used-for-pneumatic-tools.html) but without the spiral, and very flexible, and not made of a material that will break like the cheap spiral hoses do! Ideally it would almost be floppy, and can handle only the psi necessary to operate a stapler.

The reason we want such a hose is for ease of movement, etc.

Thanks for any suggestions!

James

Coincidentally Floyd, we are looking at a new product (new to us), which may be somewhere between pvc and pu.

http://www.enviroleather.com/about/ourstory

We have yet to put it to use, but it is quite soft and it sounds great in theory. But it's pricey.

We have some binder inserts and will get a couple yards to test out.

Maybe you're looking for something like this?

Hi Floyd,

The observation is just in general from seating that customers have brought in and puckering we've seen in restaurant seating. One of our fabric suppliers doesn't carry polyurethane as a policy, maybe because of the problems that I mentioned.

I'm not sure if this is a problem with just cheap polyurethane.

But some pu looks and feels amazing, that's for sure!

James

Hello everyone,

I posted here quite a while back and that was when my family was just starting our upholstery business. Thanks for the help you gave me back then. We are planning to move into our first retail location in a few months.

On occasion, we have been given the plans for new restaurant seating by a designer or contractor. In some designs the seating material sometimes turns out to be polyurethane as opposed to pvc.

By our experience, this is not a good application for polyurethane, since it doesn't hold up well to moisture, sun and high traffic. Is this the case for all polyurethanes, or are there some that handle high traffic commercial applications well?

We also noticed that, despite the high abrasion rating on some polyurethanes, they can pucker, no matter how taught they are upholstered.

Any tips on upholstering with polyurethane for commercial applications to avoid puckering and pooling?

James

No we are in Vancouver now. :D Less snow.

Thank you for your comments, well-wishes and suggestions.

Interestingly, I emailed Bostitch and Grex and asked about their staplers and the decibel ratings on them;

Emission sound pressure level at the workstation:
[BeA 71/16-421: sL pA, 1s, d= 79dB]  [Bostitch 21671B: 64.40dB]

Single-shot emission sound pressure level:
[BeA 71/16-421:  L WA, 1 s, d= 87dB] [Bostitch 21671B: 74.00dB]

The Grex 71ad is rated at 80dB at 1ft, but I asked for a rating relative to the other staplers.

The Bostitch has an adjustable psi toggle, maybe that plays into its lower sound output.


"Have you checked with your home insurance about doing this business in the home?
There can be ramifications, but they can clarify."

We haven't yet, we just recently got the business license and started making contact with suppliers. This advice sounds good to me, thank you.

"Have you been doing upholstery long and what type do you do?"

My father is the upholsterer, he started back in the mid 70's in Toronto. He can do just about everything from reupholstery, to custom built sofas, to restaurant booths. He is very good at tufting, and at difficult jobs in general.

I am going to follow him around as he does sales, until I can do sales on my own, so he can focus on upholstery. During summer breaks, I hope he will teach me a bit; my mom convinced him to! I've heard how difficult it is to get into the trade; one gentleman who worked with my father said that the other shop had him do stripping work for three years, and never taught him a thing about upholstery (other than stripping).

Hello,

My father and I will be doing upholstery work from home, and we would like to get a compressor that is as quiet as possible to spare the neighbors and our ears.

This video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUjTE3_IKwA suggests that belt driven is the way to go; I assume the bambi one is not suitable for upholstery work (it would be nice to have something so quiet!)

I also came accross this: http://www.homedepot.ca/product/portable-air-compressor-ultra-quiet-oil-free-steel-tank-63-gal/998791
And this: http://www.homedepot.ca/product/4610-10-hp-46-gal-ultra-quiet-oil-free-steel-twin-tank-air-compressor/998792

Would these 2 California air compressors provide enough air for upholstery; and can the first one with one air coupler be used with two guns (newbie question).

I would also appreciate any suggestions as to the quietest compressors that you have come across. And is there such a thing as a quiet stapler?

Thank you!

James

Thank you everyone for your links and for your help.

Like wizzard mentioned, we plan to focus primarily on reupholstering.

My father and I will start doing upholstery work from our garage (he's going to teach me) and I am curious about a couple things having to do with designs.

Where does one find plans for making booths and sofas and custom made furniture? I mean the "blueprints" for lack of a better word (can anyone tell me what the correct term is?).

Is there an industry standard book from where all plans are derived or is it an in-house type undertaking? Can plans be bought? Is there booth, sofa related CAD type software?

-James

Thank you all for your help.

My father is in the trade. He uses the gun they provide at work.

Mr Henry: I hope that getting the 1400 fasco gun will save me from any conflicts.

My father didn't like the fact that Haubold may no longer be German made. He decided on http://www.amplesupply.com/catalog/tools_5/f1b-14-16-fasco-pneumatic-stapler-f1b-14-16_545.

It says on the site that the fasco takes 1400 staples. I believe that they are the same as #7 C staples as described on the upholster.com store.

Can anyone tell me a good place to order staples from?

Thank you for your detailed answers.

I found out that haubold is no longer made in Germany.

My father wants the next best tier of stapler. Would that be BeA?

Hello,

My father will be doing upholstery work from home and he wants to get a good stapler. I need to help him find the best one that suit his needs.

From what I've learned, there are three standard staple crown sizes 1/4, 3/8 and 1/2; within these staple crown sizes there are different gauges, 20/21/22.

I saw a video on this site that stated that the standard for upholstery work in North America is 3/8 22 gauge (#7 guns, 71 series staples or C series). The video recommends restaurant booth work be done with a 1/2 21 gauge gun (#8 gun).

Please help answer some of my many questions!

1. Can a single gun only use one gauge of staple?
2. Is haubold the best stapler brand?
3. Are auto-fire staplers worth considering (http://www.grexusa.com/grexusa/prod_type.php5?prod_type=Upholstery%20Staplers or https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.itw-haubold.de%2Findex.php%3Fid%3Dpn1414g&sandbox=1)?
4. What are the best #7 guns that you can recommend? (my father wants something as light as possible with high build quality. Quality and lightness is more important than price.)
5. The best #8 guns?
6. What should I watch out for?

Thank you for your help!