Messages

hi guys,
im looking for advice for binding boat carpets, using attachments against using attachments. or would i be better investing in a binding machine ?  also where to get uv resistant carpet binding tapes.

thanks guys n gals ..
richard

hi guys, i just got sent this information from Mark Hood of Hood Canvas and he has asked me to pass this on.
the mod makes using ptfe threads easier.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1049048595107401.1073742010.202648006414135&type=3&__mref=message_bubble

hiya.
it's great that people want to support Ken , he provides this forum for free and it really is the best forum on the web for our trades.
I even bought a foam saw a while ago and it was delivered to the uk PDQ..

Richard

reporting back on this one.
I covered the foam and dacron in stockinette and also sprayed the cover inside with silicone, it is lots better but i'm still getting ear ache from the owner, the covers are pretty snug but I think if they are sitting on fabric covered cushions there is always going to be a  certain amount of wrinkling ?? its not as if they are vinyl covered which you wouldnt expect to wrinkle like that..
i'll see if i can get a photo uploaded.

Richard

thank you for that i appreciate it, i've never used silicone are we talking a pure silicone ? i'm figuring not a silicone oil ;-)

hi guys its been a while

can i ask a question to the upholstery guys n gals please.

I have completed a boat interior in a fabric , the foam was new and i covered it in dacron. The customer is complaining the covers are rucking on top causing ripples in the covers, i'm thinking that the stabilising coating on the inside of the fabric is sticking on the dacron and wondered if fitting Stockinette over the foam will help ?

Richard

have you tried stapling the parts together before you sew them ? it will stop things shifting around . then you can pull the staples when finished .

that top June is not an exception here its quite normal, some of the shops make them like they were making pram hoods 30 years ago and just make it look like a camper top , the window openings on that one in the pics were raw cut too .

hell scotty if you want the job apply for it :-) I'm not stuck on any particular nationality, I'm not even interested in qualifications I just want someone who can do the job,

Rich

i'll take a look at the forum registration,  had to put it on there because of the Chinese and russian spammers screwing my site up ..
there is only 2 questions which rotate randomly  "Add together 5 and 3, what do you get ?  
and how many legs does a worm have ? (use lowercase letters only )

pretty self explanatory and no local knowledge i thought ? let me know if it still doesn't work as there may be another problem.


 These days there is always Paypal which is easy for cross border payments, I would like to get somebody self employed as that way I am not responsible for any taxes etc due, it's up to them to sort it out. The last guy I had was self employed and I paid him £15 an hour by cheque, he would then give me a receipt for my records and that was as much paperwork as I needed to do.
that guy was english but spent 6 months of the year in New Zealand so managed to avoid paying taxes anyway :-)
I think from your side of the pond you have to declare overseas earnings but have an allowance for that ??

The reasons I'm looking to the US for a canvas guy/gal Mike is yes its hard to find an experienced worker here, also it would be a great sales gimmick for me in the UK and quite frankly american tops are superior to a lot of the crap turned out over here ...

have a look at this Bayliner cover another shop local to me turned out (not mine ), i call them cheat tops. you'll notice no zips used at all, the front window doesnt come out and the camper back has no rain flap (pic2)as the top was made in one piece and just a zipper sewn on and cut across the top ..ok it was most likely made to a price but even so ..


Paperwork Darren, i don't need any to actually be in business , just pay my dues.

I haven't looked that deeply into the paperwork required yet but the British home office has to issue a certificate to the candidate saying they are suitable for the work being offered.

being a colony i would expect it would be easier for Canadians to work in the UK than Americans, also it would be easier for me to employ somebody as self-employed rather than an employee

Over the next few weeks I will be checking out the visa requirements etc as I could do without the £10,000 fine for getting it wrong .. or $15,000 .

Hiya all

Here in the Uk I am thinking of going for broke next season and hiring canvas workers to take the pressure off me :-)

I am thinking of getting a US canvas guy or gal to work the summer season over here but i'm wondering how canvas workers are paid over there ? do they get a good weekly wage or a basic wage and bonus on completion of a job ?

Also if there is an experienced canvas person who wants to work in the UK for the season March to October get in touch .

RIchard

when covering in vinyl  i wouldnt bother making a radius on the foam edge, the cover will pull the foam into shape.

the seats on your Plymouth look pretty easy. google Sid Chavers and call him up. he does a great set of videos on custom seats which includes making the bases ..

slow ,, I wish .

pretty busy over here in the UK, i have auto work coming in as well as the boat covers :-) i had some Lotus seats dropped off today
to recover in leather,

If you have time on your hands Mike get your butt over here I can use the help ;-)

as for lessons, people new to sewing can be so keen they blast through the work you give them so having an extra job on hand
is never a bad idea.

Rich

sounds to me like Suzi says, i see these around and they do look really cheap. there is a pvc triangle sewn at each mushroom fixing point and just an X cut into the cover to allow it to push over the head of the fitting .. I call the mushroom fittings lacing buttons.

I think i saw one of Suzi's pictures of a screen cover held on with that type of fixing ??

I would change them if at all possible

Richard