SEATS COMING APART

70mustang · Jan 20, 2005

I am a new boat owner. The stitching on the bottom seats covers are coming apart. I wanted to buy new seats, but now I'm thinking I can have them restitched. The seat top canvas' are good and the bottom is also good, just the stitching is coming apart. Has anyone had any luck with restitching instead of replacing the canvas. Thanks

roscoe · Jan 20, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

Go for it. Use strong uv protected thread if available.

jlinder · Jan 20, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

I have had great success. I did not just restitch however, I bought new vinyl and redid the whole seat. Just used a standard sewing machine and off I went. Try going to http://www.yourautotrim.com for your supplies. Ask for Jason when you call them. I found the vinyl that exactly matched my original seats (Chaparral), welting (the little plastic bead that runs the length of the seam), and strong UV thread for sewing. Everything is UV resistant and rated for marine use. Estimate it costs me about $6 - $10 to redo a seat and about 1-3 hours depending on the complexity (bucket seat bottom with different color strips has been the toughest for me). Go for it. If you want I can post pictures of my cushions and tips I have found out. They are not perfect, but look real nice (I am my own harshest critic). If you want to add a nice touch, find someplace the embroiders and get the name of the boat sewn into the cushion. Cost me about $20 extra but it customized the boat real nice.

Kiekhaeferscurse · Jan 21, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

Along these lines, I'm planning on re-doing my boat interior (seats panels etc) but I cant find stainless staples, has anyone seen these online anywhere? Cheers

jlinder · Jan 21, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

I did not find stainless but I did find some staples that are not supposed to rust at the local ACE hardware store. They are some alloy of nickel and something else, forget what. I also found galvanized staples on their web site. You might try calling http://www.yourautotrim.com . They handle a lot of tools and supplies, they might have what you want.

Bondo · Jan 21, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

Stainless Steel is Actually a Family of Steels....... "Monel" is the Name,+ the Alloy that's used for SSteel Staples...... If you're buying 'Arrow" brand staples, you'll find a white sticker, with the word Monel in pink letters, stuck across the face of the package....... Most any Quality Hardware store should have them.... I see them at H/D,+ Lowes all the time.......

jlinder · Jan 21, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

Thanks Bondo, pretty sure the Monel is the alloy I found. Not hard to find, just hard to pay for. Instead of about $4-$5 for a box it was $20.

Kiekhaeferscurse · Jan 21, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

Bondo, Jack L, thankyou.... I learn sumpthin new everyday....thank's guys

70mustang · Jan 23, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

Originally posted by Jack L: I have had great success. I did not just restitch however, I bought new vinyl and redid the whole seat. Just used a standard sewing machine and off I went. Try going to http://www.yourautotrim.com for your supplies. Ask for Jason when you call them. I found the vinyl that exactly matched my original seats (Chaparral), welting (the little plastic bead that runs the length of the seam), and strong UV thread for sewing. Everything is UV resistant and rated for marine use. Estimate it costs me about $6 - $10 to redo a seat and about 1-3 hours depending on the complexity (bucket seat bottom with different color strips has been the toughest for me). Go for it. If you want I can post pictures of my cushions and tips I have found out. They are not perfect, but look real nice (I am my own harshest critic). If you want to add a nice touch, find someplace the embroiders and get the name of the boat sewn into the cushion. Cost me about $20 extra but it customized the boat real nice.

70mustang · Jan 23, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

Thanks Jack, I believe you have motivated me to pursue this project myself. Any help with pictures or hints would be appreciated. The price is right, I just need to get the right stuff and dust off the sewing machine. Actually, it sounds like fun. right??

jlinder · Jan 23, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

It has been fun. Couple of hints: 1. Talk to Jason at yourautotrim. He was a great help. 2. When cutting the vinyl I drew the measurements on the back, then added 1/2 inch and cut. When sewing you just match the edges (1/2 inch on both pieces) and sew on the drawn line. 3. When doing a seam with welting sew the welting to one piece of vinyl about 1/4 inch from the final place you want the joint to be. Then sew the second piece one. Lastly you can sew as high up to the edge of the welting (bead) as possible. For me I had to take the foot off the sewing machine to get a narrow stub that allowed me to sew right up there. Gives a nice bead. 4. Found a company that emproiders hats, etc. Had them put the name of the boat on a seat back. Random thoughts. Let me know how it goes.

Realgun · Jan 23, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

JackL keep posting more info darn it!!! I need help when the time comes and I get that far! How do you get the two piece vinyl like bayliner used. For example on the side there were 4 colors none were sewn together. There was a deep line between colors but were kinda hard to get between.

jlinder · Jan 23, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

For my seats where there was different colors I just cut strips and sewed them together. If it was the same color I just put a fold in the vinyl (cut it allowing for this) and sewed it up. I think you are describing a technique called tuck and roll. They make foam in differing thicknesses that have a kind of cheese cloth on one side. For example you could buy 1/2 thick foam with this cloth attached. Then using a razor blade cut a deep V in the foam where you want the line. Then spray the foam or vinyl with adhesive and apply the vinyl to the foam. This will give you the 3-D effect without sewing. I have seen it done on TV when they were redoing automotive seats, but not done it personally. Good news is you can get all this stuff at the same web site. Don't know how they would have done this with different colors though. Good luck. If you have somewhere I can post pictures I would be happy to share what I have (as long as I get forgiveness for where it is not perfect.)

Stratocaster · Feb 5, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

Be careful of which staples you buy for different applications. Monel is NOT a stainless steel, it's an alloy of nickel and copper. Arrow makes both Monel and SS staples...personally I would use SS for any marine application. Monel will 'probably' work OK, but SS will last forever and is more corrosion resistant.

jlinder · Feb 5, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

I tried to buy SS staples, but had problems finding them. Monel is what I could find. Stratocaster - where did you find SS, and what did it cost?

umblecumbuz · Feb 5, 2005

Re: SEATS COMING APART

Hi Mustang, Don't bother with more expensive stainless steel staples. They're hard to get, hard to work with, and expensive. Monel has been around longer than we have! It is a mixture of almost 70% nickel and almost 30% copper, with the addition of a few trace metals. It has been used for salt-water props and other harsh marine items, and is highly resistant to brackish and salt-water environments. It will probably outlast your marine vinyl without staining or corroding away. It is also more maleable than stainless, and is therefore easier to work with.

SEATS COMING APART

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