58' Beetle Seat Restoration/Re-upholstering Finished!

[Rome]

jackfrisch- where in NY are you? I'm about 20 min. NW of NYC but have been in many areas of NY state. Do you know there is a major VW meet at Englishtown NJ (Raceway park) this Sunday?

[Jack Frisch]

The color of my seats is called brick red. it has a touch of orange in it


ahh the back bar tucking in. it looks hard but isnt.

you do one at a time. grab one of the two loose ends that need to be tucked in and angle the edge in straight so the plastic edge has goes in straight at a perpendicular angle to the metal tube.

start at the middle. make sure the entir elenght of fabric witht he plastic strip is centered. tuck it in and use a scew driver to make sure the sew lip doesnt fold back on your as you tuck it in. if it does use the screw driver to tuck it in as well. you want to avoid the sew threaded fabric form pulling it self out of the pastic strip as you continue to tuck the entire edge in.

once you have a major protion of the entire piece in..tap the plastic strip in with arubber mallett..slowly but firmly.

reapt the above steps for the othehr loose end of fabric

overall go slow and dont be afraid to pull on the fabric a little. it might not look it but it can take it
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1958 Beetle orig. 6 volt 36 hp engine, body & pan, Black w/red/off white inter., Orig. VW wood roof rack and orig. rear luggage rack.
1967 13 Window Walk-thru Deluxe Bus, stock 1500 engine, Titan Red/Grey, Platinum Mesh interior, orig. & stock
1966 GT350H Shelby Orig. low mileage car
2002 PT Cruiser Limited Edition, stock, auto, loaded

[Baby Sheets]

cant get my pic to work....sorry

[Baby Sheets]

Man those look good. Here are the seats I am doing. Still need to get the pads. How did you tuck the material in the cross bar on the bottom of the back rest?



[img]http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/data/1249seat&back-med.jpg[/img]

[[email protected]]

Thanks, Jack for including us in your project. The seats came out excellent. I'll be including some of the photos on our website. We've had over 400 happy customers just this year so far but not many post feedback to the forum. Just so everyone knows, we sell the interior for almost all VW's on our website eVWParts.com as well as mechanical and other restoration parts. Thanks again, Jack

[Skim]

Hey Jack, did you paint or powdercoat the frames? They look the correct color and everyting. Are you doing the rears yourself also?
_________________
GFK
Samba since before the towers collapsed. Still here.
1953 Kabriolet
1954 Sunroof
1959 Lowlight Ghia vert
1960 Lt Grey Double Cab SMZ LEGIT
1963 Deluxe Turkis Walk Thru 15 Window OG Paint

[Rome]

Dig it! I'm contemplating doing a set of front seats for a mid '60's Ghia; your experience gives me confidence. Now sit yourself down in them and enjoy the ride.

[toddyvol]

What's the color? I was thinking of doing mine in brick red but your's make me want to reconsider.

Awesome job!

Looks show quality to me.
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www.advopal.com
www.myadvoforum.com

[Skim]

Jack those seats really came out nice. Very impressive!
_________________
GFK
Samba since before the towers collapsed. Still here.
1953 Kabriolet
1954 Sunroof
1959 Lowlight Ghia vert
1960 Lt Grey Double Cab SMZ LEGIT
1963 Deluxe Turkis Walk Thru 15 Window OG Paint

[Jack Frisch]

The photos below are of my completed 1958 Beetle front seats
Although I have been in the vintage car hobby for over 14 years, this is the first time I re-upholstered seats.

The fabric is TMI brand's "OEM Classic" set which I purchased from eVWparts.com. I chose eVW because they are had a great price, great service and are real people that answer they're phones and know how to communicate.

This set from TMI is quite affordable for the restorer like me who couldnt afford the exact replica and beautfiful set that Wolfsburg West sells for 58/59 Beetles.

I assembled the seats shown as well as my reat seats using Wolfsburg West's coconut fiber seat pads and DVD video showing the overall technique to upholster VW seats.

I chose to not to use the factory "spikes" on the seat frames to secure the fabric in favor of using 20 guage wire. This technique is mentioned briefly on the Wolfsburg DVD as a alternative to using spikes that are broken or missing over time on your frames.

I did this for the sole reason that I could undo the wires' length and adjust the fabric's tensions and fit, where the spikes dont allow you this option.

I did not use a heat gun or hair blow dryer on this fabric..this is the fit I got "out of the box".

I used Eastwood Company's professional hog ring pliers. I originally got those cheap ones that come with a set of hog rings and they broke after the second time I used them.

Do your self a favor and splurge on the $35.00 pro pliers...they're worth every penny.

The seat frames were painted with Wolfsburg West's L471 "Stone Biege" spray paint..the correct color for my car.

Check out my cool seats.....

_________________
1958 Beetle orig. 6 volt 36 hp engine, body & pan, Black w/red/off white inter., Orig. VW wood roof rack and orig. rear luggage rack.
1967 13 Window Walk-thru Deluxe Bus, stock 1500 engine, Titan Red/Grey, Platinum Mesh interior, orig. & stock
1966 GT350H Shelby Orig. low mileage car
2002 PT Cruiser Limited Edition, stock, auto, loaded