Members Handstitched Posted July 12, 2022 Members Report Posted July 12, 2022 (edited) G'Day, Has anyone tried covering auto door skins with leather? I have a job of doing just that, for a vintage BMW , and its one of 'those' jobs that seem to linger around the workshop , take up space, etc. Theres 4 to do. Whats putting me off is trying to cover the arm rest part of the door skin. I have nice piece of black upholstery leather with a milled grain. Enough to do at least 3 skins. The originals were heat pressed rubber/vinyl . Yuk !! If it wasn't for the arm rest component , I'd have them done long ago , as the rest of the skin is fairly straight forward. Have a look at the pic and tell me what you think ?? With vinyl it can be heated up with heat gun, moulded, shaped glued ...and thats it. I was thinking of making a separate arm rest component out of fibre glass, ( I know fibre glass very well ) using the orig. as a template , and cover that in leather, and then fit the covered piece over the orig ? The very top section has another separate piece goes over the top, that I have already covered, piece of cake that was. thanks HS Edited July 12, 2022 by Handstitched Quote ' I have a very gweat friend in Wome called Biggus Dickus, He has a wife you know, do you know whats she's called? Incontinentia.......Incontinentia Buttocks '
Contributing Member fredk Posted July 12, 2022 Contributing Member Report Posted July 12, 2022 A long time ago, about 30 years ago, before I got into leatherwork I did some work with a place that did old commercial vehicle restorations. I remember the chap called in to do the door cards on the vans. He used canvas bags of wet sand to hold the leather or vinyl in place The wet sand was in plastic bags, then a canvas or linen bag outer. afair the bags weighed about 10lbs each The upholsterer glued the material on with time-drying contact adhesive. A modest size area at a time. He had various wooden tools to prod and push the material into place then he slapped a sand bag on top of it. Quote Al speling misteaks aer all mi own werk..
CFM chuck123wapati Posted July 12, 2022 CFM Report Posted July 12, 2022 you may have to peruse the you tube. i have watched many really good videos on the subject. i was going to try it one time but ended up not getting to. Quote Worked in a prison for 30 years if I aint shiny every time I comment its no big deal, I just don't wave pompoms. “I won’t be wronged, I won’t be insulted, and I won’t be laid a hand on. I don’t do these things to other people, and I require the same from them.” THE DUKE!
Members Handstitched Posted July 13, 2022 Author Members Report Posted July 13, 2022 23 hours ago, fredk said: He used canvas bags of wet sand to hold the leather or vinyl in place You know, I've been thinking about that since yesterday . That seems to be the only viable idea that just may work . Its that damn arm rest bit thats giving me the s*^ts !! Apply adhesive to just that section of the leather and the arm rest...place leather onto armrest , poke, mold , ,shape, smooth ...etc . and put sand bags on the corner sections , let sit for 12 - 24 hrs or so . Next, carefully glue the rest down ....bit by bit ..stretching , pulling, shaping...you know the drill. I always get the "good " jobs I have yet to check out youtoobaloovian . HS Quote ' I have a very gweat friend in Wome called Biggus Dickus, He has a wife you know, do you know whats she's called? Incontinentia.......Incontinentia Buttocks '
Contributing Member fredk Posted July 13, 2022 Contributing Member Report Posted July 13, 2022 You think thats a problem?? No.1 has about 600 steering wheels which he wants me to recover. Not as easy as it sounds. There are about 6 different styles, so different patterns, and the leather has to be sewn on in a certain way. Youtube doesn't help. I've been putting it off for about 7 years now and the number of steering wheels grows by nearly 80 per year Quote Al speling misteaks aer all mi own werk..
CFM chuck123wapati Posted July 13, 2022 CFM Report Posted July 13, 2022 1 hour ago, Handstitched said: I have yet to check out youtoobaloovian . HS you can spend hours and still not get your work done lol I'm stealing your new word. Quote Worked in a prison for 30 years if I aint shiny every time I comment its no big deal, I just don't wave pompoms. “I won’t be wronged, I won’t be insulted, and I won’t be laid a hand on. I don’t do these things to other people, and I require the same from them.” THE DUKE!
CFM chuck123wapati Posted July 13, 2022 CFM Report Posted July 13, 2022 1 hour ago, fredk said: You think thats a problem?? No.1 has about 600 steering wheels which he wants me to recover. Not as easy as it sounds. There are about 6 different styles, so different patterns, and the leather has to be sewn on in a certain way. Youtube doesn't help. I've been putting it off for about 7 years now and the number of steering wheels grows by nearly 80 per year that doesn't even sound fun. driving gloves LOL Quote Worked in a prison for 30 years if I aint shiny every time I comment its no big deal, I just don't wave pompoms. “I won’t be wronged, I won’t be insulted, and I won’t be laid a hand on. I don’t do these things to other people, and I require the same from them.” THE DUKE!
Members Handstitched Posted July 13, 2022 Author Members Report Posted July 13, 2022 2 hours ago, fredk said: You think thats a problem?? Its one of "those" jobs I just wish I never started or agreed to . It been hanging around for about 12-18 months. Floor 'real estate' is at a prime as it is . I'll try the sandbag idea. The 'herring bone'/ baseball ' stitch is quite common on steering wheels ? 1 hour ago, chuck123wapati said: I'm stealing your new word. You're very welcome friend HS Quote ' I have a very gweat friend in Wome called Biggus Dickus, He has a wife you know, do you know whats she's called? Incontinentia.......Incontinentia Buttocks '
Contributing Member fredk Posted July 13, 2022 Contributing Member Report Posted July 13, 2022 9 minutes ago, Handstitched said: The 'herring bone'/ baseball ' stitch is quite common on steering wheels ? yes it is, but on these s/w its three colours, a running stitch of one colour each on the sides of the join and the third colour in an X to pull the sides together via the two other threads Sorry for the hijack Back on topic; mind which glue you use; some contact glues can dissolve foam padding Quote Al speling misteaks aer all mi own werk..
Members Handstitched Posted September 9, 2022 Author Members Report Posted September 9, 2022 On 7/12/2022 at 7:15 PM, fredk said: The wet sand was in plastic bags, then a canvas or linen bag outer. afair the bags weighed about 10lbs each I'm still 'stuck' on these 'feckin' door skins . I need extra days in my week...say another 3 or 4? Either that or I'll have to clone myself !! ( Off topic: I'm the chief cook & bottle washer atm , looking after two elderly parents...and doing property maintenance ...AND trying to work in between...AND doing markets *sigh* ) HS Quote ' I have a very gweat friend in Wome called Biggus Dickus, He has a wife you know, do you know whats she's called? Incontinentia.......Incontinentia Buttocks '
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