Help,rusty seats

[azygoustoyou]

Im replacing the vinyl on my seats and ran into a couple of issues. There is rust inside the seat bottoms and on the seat pad. I intend to sand blast and paint the seat bottom. But what do I do about the rust on the pad? I tried to scrape it off and that doesn't work. I don't want to ruin the pad.
The wire frame in the seat bottom is rusty and missing a tab that secures to the seat bottom frame. Can I buy a new one or do I have to make it myself?
I can't figure how to take apart the adjusting handle without breaking it. Help!

I also need to replace the plastic that goes inside the bracing for the seat supports. And, how would they go back on?


Should I try to clean up the springs from rust in the seat and paint them or buy new ones and where do I get them?

[pope]

Hey Brady,
Please edit your pics.
Where ever you have a pic image placement, like I have copied from your text above. Please take out one of the [img] at the beginning and one at the end, then they should post correctly.

Incorrect;
[img][IMG]http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh60 ... 124009.jpg[/img][/img]

[So Cal Mark]

I edited out the extra tag so the pics would appear. The next trick is to resize the photos before posting or use a thumbnail so they fit the page

[mbouse]

using a stiff bristle brush, remove the rust particles from the foam being careful not to gouge too much of the 30+ year old foam away. the rust stains won't hurt anything. of course, you could always buy new foam (if you can afford it) from IAP.

rusty metal parts cannot be ignored. left unattended the rust will continue to eat away at what is left of the structure.

i wire brushed all the metal parts, and painted them. replacing a 'lost to rust' part will prolly require buying a whole nuther used seat. if you, or a friend, are crafty with a mig welder, you might try your hand at fashioning a new replacement part. remembering that these parts will never be seen.

[Danno]

yeah, what mike said. It is important to do all the steps though, don't just clean the foam, don't just brush the wires and pan.

Clean the foam, brush the wires/pan, and then do some sort of paint prep to it (converter+paint, POR15, etc). Those parts all still look good, I'd keep it all after some work.

[azygoustoyou]

Thanks guys! I was planning on painted the metal. It was the cushion I really was concerned about. That stuff is pretty hard on the cushion. I think adhesive was put on the bottom of the cushion and then the seat bottom started to rust and it stuck to the adhesive. I'll show the pics of the finished seat when it's finished. I do need help figuring how to get the round seat reclining adjustment knob apart on the side of the seat without breaking it. Pic above. Does the center just pull out?

[racydave]

Brady, I had mine apart last spring... seems there was a clip, then the rod pulls out. Its important to get this "clocked" properly to re-install. Dave