Seats Again

Seats Again

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SILICONEKID340HP

14,997 posts

230 months

Saturday 13th October 2012
quotequote all
swanny71 said:
SILICONEKID340HP said:
Is there any type of filler available for tiny splits and nicks for the vinyl?

What type of compressor did you buy and does the spray gun come with the kit .


did you buy and does the kit come with the spray gun ..
A seperate filler kit is avaliable - I didn't need it on the vinyl but have just got some for the MX-5 seats I'll be doing next
http://www.furnitureclinic.co.uk/Leather_Repair_Ki...

I bought one of these but used the spray gun that came with the FC re-colouring kit. Got it new but "ex-display" from Machine Mart through a mate in the trade. Cost me £40 and a couple of beers - they do come up on ebay sometimes.
http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/product/details/...
I have a full size compressor ,can i use that ?

swanny71

2,849 posts

208 months

Saturday 13th October 2012
quotequote all
SILICONEKID340HP said:
I have a full size compressor ,can i use that ?
Don't see why not, just regulate the pressure to about 2 bar

ChimpofDarkness

Original Poster:

9,637 posts

178 months

Saturday 13th October 2012
quotequote all
CHIMV8 said:
Plus you'll be able to grab more cash back if you sell your original seats......money towards turbi me thinks>>>
yes

Went over to Enfield at lunchtime to pick up the seats and although I won the full set (fronts & rears) for £100, as I didn't need the rears I offered him £75 for just the fronts and he accepted biggrin

So two full leather XJS seats for £37.50 each yikes

Sitting in one revealed it to be very comfy with a lot more lateral support than the TVR ones, just like Phazed said.

They dont exactly pin you in like an Elise seat but on first impressions they seem like an excellent halfway house.

Another nice surprise bonus was I noticed they are heated seats, no idea if the elements work yet but my Chimaera has heated seats with switch, all the wiring & exactly the same connectors so it'll be worth a test.

Condition wise they are pretty good, but they definitely need a freshen up and a dye kit to change them to my Doeskin.

Excited I got stuck in with the prep work straight away, sadly I only managed one squab before rain stopped play frown






Not bad for £37.50 each.






Bum warming electrickery too wink






But they are dirty with a few scratches.






Before breaking the surface with nail polish remover & a 3M ScotchBrite






A bit of gentle sanding, my old AA membership card is perfect for getting into the pleats






Magic Eraser sponges cut though the surface dirt brilliantly.






Surface now nicely broken & weak existing dye removed, ready for a base coat swab of the Doeskin Gliptone ScuffMaster I had in the shed.




Typical of this type of job the end result is directly proportional the the amount of time you spend at the prep stage.

The passenger squab took me 45 minutes to prepare & is now at that "it looks worse than when I started" stage, the base coat would have sorted that in just another 10 minutes if the heavens hadn't opened rolleyes

Stay tuned for the next instalment smile




Bassfiend

5,530 posts

249 months

Sunday 14th October 2012
quotequote all
ChimpofDarkness said:
Thanks chaps, I'll have a look at mini compressors.

The thing is I don't really want to throw too much money at something I'll only use the once.

Perhaps I could rent or borrow?
I have a 2hp compressor somewhere that you can borrow if I can remember where it is...

brett84

1,291 posts

152 months

Sunday 14th October 2012
quotequote all
definately get a compressor - you can rent them from furniture clinic i think it's £20? (postage cost).
I start by using those air cans but they freeze up so quickly it makes the job about 10 times longer. Plus you get much better spray with a compressor.
After a few months of colouring mine, I need to do them again as where the seat belt rubs it's marked and also there is a 'nick' on the back of one showing the original tan colour.
I don't think they give you enough top coat (sealer) in the kit, I would definately get an extra pot of that, I gave mine about 4 coats sealer it just gives it a much nicer feel/finish but that extra protection with them being cream

GasMunkey

5,697 posts

178 months

Sunday 14th October 2012
quotequote all
Compressor and spray gun at mine when ever you need

brett84

1,291 posts

152 months

Sunday 14th October 2012
quotequote all
If you are going to use the little air brush you get with the kit, let me know and I can post you the adapter if you want to go from standard airline fitting to the tiny thread for the airbrush

ChimpofDarkness

Original Poster:

9,637 posts

178 months

Sunday 14th October 2012
quotequote all
Brilliant guys, many thanks for all your offers to loan me equipment.

I'll PM you individually to make arrangements.

The consensus opinion of using a compressor over the gas propellent cans seems pretty conclusive.

My current favoured options are Phil's small 2HP compressor connected to the Furniture Clinic's air brush using Brett's connector.


I'll aim for multiple light coats & take Bret's advice of getting an extra pot of the topcoat sealer when I order the kit.

Cheers chaps, used correctly PH is a fantastic knowledge base thumbup

Edited by ChimpofDarkness on Sunday 14th October 22:15

Nosh

982 posts

166 months

Monday 15th October 2012
quotequote all
ChimpofDarkness said:
I'll aim for multiple light coats <snip>
You will get a far better finish if you do this - and make sure each coat is dry (I used a hair dryer) before applying the next coat....

Come up bootiful smile

Keep the pics coming!

N

brett84

1,291 posts

152 months

Monday 15th October 2012
quotequote all
one problem I found with changing seats, looks like you'll have the same thing. Where the seat belt comes over your shoulder it's constantly rubbing and it's marked the colour already. I'm getting some shoulder pads made up in Black with Cream TVR logo to suit, I just hope that they don't look to chavvy, but they will serve a purpose.

Oh yeah another tip, as you've got cracks/marks in the seats that you have sanded etc, make sure they are properly clean. I thought mine where on first attempt and i must not have stipped the old covering from the cracks on the bolster and the paint reacted so I have to wait for it to dry then strip it all back down again

ChimpofDarkness

Original Poster:

9,637 posts

178 months

Monday 15th October 2012
quotequote all
brett84 said:
one problem I found with changing seats, looks like you'll have the same thing. Where the seat belt comes over your shoulder it's constantly rubbing and it's marked the colour already. I'm getting some shoulder pads made up in Black with Cream TVR logo to suit, I just hope that they don't look to chavvy, but they will serve a purpose.

Oh yeah another tip, as you've got cracks/marks in the seats that you have sanded etc, make sure they are properly clean. I thought mine where on first attempt and i must not have stipped the old covering from the cracks on the bolster and the paint reacted so I have to wait for it to dry then strip it all back down again
Thanks Brett, I'll keep cleaning until I'm 100% happy they're as good as I can get em.

I was concidering something this for the belt issue.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MG-NEW-PAIR-MGB-V8-MIDGE...

ChimpofDarkness

Original Poster:

9,637 posts

178 months

Monday 15th October 2012
quotequote all
Nosh said:
You will get a far better finish if you do this - and make sure each coat is dry (I used a hair dryer) before applying the next coat....

Come up bootiful smile

Keep the pics coming!

N
Thanks Nosh, I have to say you did a fantastic job on your seats mate bow

brett84

1,291 posts

152 months

Monday 15th October 2012
quotequote all
I've never really seen one of those? Might work ok though as yours have the removable headrests.
How heavy are they by the way? Not exactly I just mean do they feel like standard or heavier?

Nosh

982 posts

166 months

Monday 15th October 2012
quotequote all
ChimpofDarkness said:
Great find - can you post your results?

How it looks with the seats, etc...?

I find I have to always drive with a 'collared' teeshirt, so I can tuck the belt under it so the belt doesn't rub on my 'muscular' neck.



Simon says

18,928 posts

220 months

Tuesday 16th October 2012
quotequote all
ChimpofDarkness said:
Nosh said:
You will get a far better finish if you do this - and make sure each coat is dry (I used a hair dryer) before applying the next coat....

Come up bootiful smile

Keep the pics coming!

N
Thanks Nosh, I have to say you did a fantastic job on your seats mate bow
Yes he did thumbup

Bassfiend

5,530 posts

249 months

Tuesday 16th October 2012
quotequote all
Oh well ... lets hope they fit ...



... the electric seats wiring looks like it might be fun. biggrin

Phil

ChimpofDarkness

Original Poster:

9,637 posts

178 months

Tuesday 16th October 2012
quotequote all
Nice seats Phil, where did you get the idea to go XJS tongue out

More cleaning today, but the good news is the mine are getting cheaper as they gave up £1.21 in lose change biggrin



I've started to add up the costs and I thought it would be interesting to see what my local Furniture Clinic franchise would charge to recolour and restore the seats.

He quoted me £350 all in for the pair, which works out £230.00 more than if I do them myself even if I buy a cheap compressor.

Some challenges ahead though frown










ChimpofDarkness

Original Poster:

9,637 posts

178 months

Thursday 18th October 2012
quotequote all
UPDATE:

I've just got off the phone with the Furniture Clinic.

I wanted to go through what I needed with a human being rather than just place the order online.

I spoke with an extremely helpful Geordie lass called Ashley, who patiently took me through what I needed and the quantities.

By asking a few questions and sharing some photos of the seats I was able to but together the right basket of products first time.

Top service, you really can't beat the human touch thumbup



For the benefit of other's contemplating this type of project here's my order.





I should point out I didn't need the leather prep as I used this stuff I had in the shed yikes



It's meant for removing crayon & pen marks, & although quite caustic I tested it on a small area first and it did an amazing job of lifting the original top coat and weak dye, it's left the well fixed dye in place & caused no damage to the leather surface at all.

You can buy it from your local 0.99p store or off Ebay for a bit more, just make sure you only leave it on the surface for a minute as you work it in with a SccotchBrite, then kill it immediately with a thorough water rinse.



I also took the advice of others on here and left out the airbrush kit with propellent cans, thanks all.

Instead I bought this for six quid off Ebay:



And Bassfiend (Phil) is kindly loaning me a compressor, thanks mate clap



The rest of the bits and bobs like ScotchBrites, Magic Eraser Sponges, fine sandpaper, cotton wool, sugar soap, cleaning cloths and nail polish remover came to about £13.00.

So with the products from Furniture Clinic the whole lot came in at £93.00, or about £170.00 including buying the seats, less the spare change pocket fallout I keep finding under the squabs laugh

There's quite a bit of work ahead of me to get the finish I want, but encouraged by the results I've seen from others on here, hopefully I'll get a decent result for my £170.00.

If it all works out as I hope, I'll sell my original TVR seats for £300.00 and make a £130.00 profit smokin

Now that's what I call a good value mod biggrin

Edited by ChimpofDarkness on Thursday 18th October 19:11

ChimpofDarkness

Original Poster:

9,637 posts

178 months

Monday 22nd October 2012
quotequote all
Ok so it became increasingly obvious I was never going to achieve the results I am looking for with the seats in one piece.


With just four bolts & some connectors, it's a no-brainer to split them.











With the seat back removed (four self tappers and it slides out) I found this????





Blow me down it's got electric pumps for inflatable lumber support bladders.





The pumps were removed and will be replaced with manual pumps like this from TVR Power:





before I removed them I connected one of the air pumps to an old 12v battery and this happened wink

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCV6_FKPuKA



Back to reality & I did some test dying using just the Doeskin Glyptone Scuffmaster & a sponge, here are two of the adjust covers sitting on the original cream coloured seat back:



I'm pretty happy with the little test pieces as it was just a sponge job at this stage, they should look great with a final airbrushed dye coat and four coats of airbrushed sealant (2 gloss knocked back with 2 satin coats).


Finally, a word of warning for anyone dying XJS Seats, as I suspected the seat backs are vinyl (leathercloth).

So thanks to Swanny & his vinyl dying tips, I added some cross linker to my Furniture Clinic order which just arrived 10 minutes ago smile

Bassfiend

5,530 posts

249 months

Monday 22nd October 2012
quotequote all
Don't throw away your pumps - I might need them... :-D

Phil