Supply and fit TVR carpets, any reccomendations?

[deeen]

Hi, I'm in the South-East, looking for someone to supply and fit new carpets to the Tuscan.

The two names I've got so far are A&R Pound and Creaseys.

Any positive votes for either?
Or any other names to try?
I seem to remember seeing somebody near Guildford who would colour match carpets, but can't find them now?

I don't fancy driving to Blackpool, or Somerset...

I would also welcome PMs with any names to avoid!

Cheers, Dean

Edited by deeen on Tuesday 12th October 20:05

[V8 GRF]

deeen said:

<snip>
...I don't fancy driving to Blackpool...

If you want what would be probably the best job you should....

... so that would be D&C Trim then

[Cooper Green]

I Keep hearing about D&C trim of blackpool, the original and best TVR trim specialists, but unless i have missed it in any of the mag adverts i have never seen any info relating to a website address actively promoting their services, previous work, feedback or recomendations, let alone portfolios of photos/images of previous works or indeed options of possibilities. In this day and age most business is recieved after prospective clients have had the opportunity to view and assess potential service providers as 'mystery shoppers' before committing. No google search no business. word of mouth nor good will is enough these days to be taken seriously in the market place. evidence is required so why no web site ? I stand corrected if there is a site but as yet not found by me.

[sonnylad]

You should be able to find a good few threads on here where cars have been retrimed by D&C

[deeen]

V8 GRF said:

deeen said:

<snip>
...I don't fancy driving to Blackpool...

If you want what would be probably the best job you should....

... so that would be D&C Trim then

Just looking for a reasonable job at a reasonable price.
If i was in the NW, I would use D+C without a second thought.
However I'm sure there must be someone closer than Blackpool who is competent to fit a carpet in a TVR.
I'm also interested in a rough colour match, might involve more than one trip.


So, any ideas welcome?

[Grey Ghost]

D&C do not have a website and obtain most of their business via the reputation they have with previous customers who vouch for them on forums such as this.

You can email them with any questions etc [e-mail]



Another edit for truly awful spelling

Edited by Grey Ghost on Tuesday 12th October 20:03

[Green Fly]

Try this guy, reasonable priced, knows TVR`s.
http://www.hoodsandtrims.co.uk/contact.php

[Chimpaholic]

Green Fly said:

Try this guy, reasonable priced, knows TVR`s.
http://www.hoodsandtrims.co.uk/contact.php

If you are in the south Gary is definitely the guy to talk to, he is an expert old school trimmer who knows his way around a TVR.

I went over to his workshop to check him out when I needed carpets for my Chim.

He had all sorts of exotica lying around including the dash from a genuine 1965 AC Cobra and a Bentley getting a full re-trim.

It turns out Gary did the development work for the new Range Rover interior and it looked to me that all the local classic restorers were trusting their trim work to him.

We spent a long time with Gary choosing the carpet material, I wanted a very specific red but I also wanted to make sure the quality was better than the originals.

I was very insistent that the new carpets should not fade like the originals had, after all thats why I was replacing them.

Gary explained the TVR carpet fading issue.

Apparently the only way the carpet supplier to TVR (Crystal) could offer so many colours was to locally dye the material in small batches.

Dying carpet locally in small batches meant Crystal couldn't achieve the correct UV resistant colour fast process.

It just wasn't cost effective, colour fast UV dying can only really be done at the mill when the carpet is made, consequently the TVR carpets faded.

Gary ended up sourcing some old stock Bentley carpet from Martrim.

Martrim had bought up a consignment of carpet from Bentley when they moved from the old Crew plant.

Obviously the quality is second to none, a real Wilton in the perfect colour that was correctly dyed on the roll at the mill so absolutely no fading issues.

Gary cut all the sections and hand bound the edges in the correct Doe Skin to match my seats & lower dash panel perfectly, I went for vinyl bindings for durability but was offered leather if I preferred.

When I picked up the car I was blown away, the quality of workmanship and attention to detail is beyond reproach.

In the 1990's I was in the restoration game up in Norfolk, we used a trimmer who did amazing work, so I know a good trimmer when I see one.

Gary's work is as good if not better than my old trimmer.

Top quality workmanship at a very competitive price, I have no hesitating in recommending Gary Creasey to anyone looking for a TVR friendly trimmer.

http://www.hoodsandtrims.co.uk/contact.php

[Chimpaholic]

Here is a link to the Wilton carpet from Martrim:

http://www.martrim.co.uk/catalogue/wool-wilton-car...

Its very thick which makes it a pain for he trimmer to work with, but it is top quality.

Avoid the latex rubber backed stuff, if it ever gets wet it will fall apart.

[.Mark]

Chimpaholic said:

Top quality workmanship at a very competitive price, I have no hesitating in recommending Gary Creasey to anyone looking for a TVR friendly trimmer.

http://www.hoodsandtrims.co.uk/contact.php

Thanks for the write up. I too will be looking for a new carpet set.

Would it be crass to ask you a ball park figure for the job? (Yes I could ring, but wouldn't want to hassle a craftsman for something I'm not likely to get done until a bit later).

[deeen]

Ok helpful info, thanks! Creasey was one of the options already mentioned to me, so I think he will be getting a call today.

PH power strikes again!

[Chimpaholic]

.Mark said:

Chimpaholic said:

Top quality workmanship at a very competitive price, I have no hesitating in recommending Gary Creasey to anyone looking for a TVR friendly trimmer.

http://www.hoodsandtrims.co.uk/contact.php

Thanks for the write up. I too will be looking for a new carpet set.

Would it be crass to ask you a ball park figure for the job? (Yes I could ring, but wouldn't want to hassle a craftsman for something I'm not likely to get done until a bit later).

Crass no, but honestly its best to call Gary and talk through your options.

There are too many variables and my carpets were done 12 months ago so I don't think it would be fair to Gary to post what I paid on a forum.

Gary is very approachable, he will be happy to explain what's involved and give you an up to date quote.

Tell him you have seen a positive write up from Dave with the Crimson Starmist Chimaera.

Even if you aren't thinking having the work done immediately I am sure he will be happy to give you the information you need.

I got quotes from three trimmers, Gary got the job for four reasons:

1) Quality of workmanship

2) He listened to what I wanted

3) He is local to me

4) He was actually the cheapest

I have listed the four points in order of importance to me, the price being the least important factor when making my decision.

I also looked at buying the Coverdale kit and fitting the carpets myself, I think it came out at £350 including sundries (adhesive, a pair of decent trimmer's scissors & a few other bits and bobs).

In the end I had to admit there was no way I was going to get the kind of fit and Finnish I wanted with the kit.

The difference in price to have a professional remove the old carpets, supply new carpet, make up the sections, bind the edges and do the fitting really wasn't that great.

In my opinion having a trimmer make up the sections to the exact dimensions of the car is way better than buying an off the shelf kit.

Kits often need a huge amount of cutting to make them fit correctly as the kit manufacturer will always ere on the side of caution.

The difference between a carpet kit and having a professional trimmer cut the sections from the roll and bind the edges is a bit like comparing an M&S Suit with one made by a master tailor on Saville Row.

All cars have their little variances, TVR's more than most so if you want a perfect fit its always better to have a skilled craftsman make up the carpets from scratch when he has the car in front of him.

I take my hat off to anyone who has fitted a carpet kit to a Chimaera, its easy to underestimate the amount of work involved.

Trimming is a skilled job learnt over many years, that's why even the best restoration companies often outsource their trimming work to a trusted professional trimmer, I did.

One point that may please the OP is that Gary did say a Tuscan is a simpler job using less carpet.

I wasn't looking for the cheapest job, I wanted value for money and thats a very different thing to cheapest.

In my opinion good value for money is the perfect balance between price, quality of materials used and the standard of workmanship.

It just turned out that Gary not only delivered on the quality points but he was the cheapest too.

That made it truly fantastic value for money.

NB: 12 months after the carpets were fitted they still look as good as day one.

I mostly drive with the roof down & often leave the my Chimaera parked up with the roof down on hot days exposing the carpets to the full force of the sun.

I spent two happy weeks in the summer driving around the Cote D'Azur where the carpets got a real baking every day in 90 degree temperatures.

Like I say, absolutely no fading what so ever and they look as fantastic as the day they were fitted.

[Gavstar]

I'm taking mine to A&R Pound at the beginning of November. I'll let you know how it goes. Feel free to pm me if I forget.

[.Mark]

Chimpaholic said:

Crass no, but honestly its best to call Gary and talk through your options.

Thanks, I'll call him. And thanks for the comprehensive thoughts/info.

[deeen]

Well, got the Tuscan back from Gary Creasey last week. Just wanted to complete the thread by saying the reccomendations were justified, very happy with the result!

Anyone who wants a look before getting theirs done is welcome, once the snow has gone...

Cheers, dean

[Mattt]

Bit late now, but there is a place in Maldon that I've heard good things about: http://www.wavehousecartrimmer.co.uk

[Chimpafrolic]

deeen said:

Well, got the Tuscan back from Gary Creasey last week. Just wanted to complete the thread by saying the reccomendations were justified, very happy with the result!

Anyone who wants a look before getting theirs done is welcome, once the snow has gone...

Cheers, dean

Glad it all worked out well for you Dean.

Got any snaps of Gary's work?

[aderut]

If the "Gary" in the thread is the Gary who used to work at TVR Centre with Giles Cooper, he's very good just did my SEAC and I'm very happy. If he's not the same you might like to contact Giles and I'm fairly sure he'll put you in touch (GC now at www.gilescooperautomotive.co.uk)

Edited by aderut on Thursday 2nd December 19:58

[deeen]

Chimpafrolic said:

deeen said:

Well, got the Tuscan back from Gary Creasey last week. Just wanted to complete the thread by saying the reccomendations were justified, very happy with the result!

Anyone who wants a look before getting theirs done is welcome, once the snow has gone...

Cheers, dean

Glad it all worked out well for you Dean.

Got any snaps of Gary's work?

Not yet, but I'll figure out how to use my camera phone once the snow's gone (is there an old git smiley?)


He says Castle TVR used to outsource work to him, so I guess he is not the TVR Centre guy

Edited by deeen on Thursday 2nd December 23:03

[aderut]

Giles Cooper work at Castle TVR (near Stanstead) for some while after leaving Barnet so may well be the same Gary. Gary re-did the hood on the SEAC twice (once in the early 90s after a break-in and just recently as part of the restoration) good work both times.