Re-upholstery

[Jimb]

My original seats are leather not vinyl and allen screws.

Jim

[toplessexpat]

I have no reason to replace the "lists". I do not replace what can be reused. I don't know why that topic came up,...
My 3/79 car has Allen cap bolts,...replaced bolts are metric hex on my seats.

Because there was a comment "save the wires". I was purely commenting that on many cars these have rusted, and have lowered tensile strength over time. There's an easy replacement. Apologies for seeking to be helpful.

[wetminkey]

I only meant that if there was no reason to replace, why not reuse? As opposed to the usual strategy of "replace everything", that I see a lot of folks attempt,...
Mine have no more than some slight surface rust, if even that,...
I'm sure that most are fragile, or missing. If I were to replace these, in a convertible, I'd guess I'd shop for stainless first (and go to other wire, if too expensive,...).
I've always been able to reuse the upholstery wires when reupholstering vehicles,...even in the '66 Mustang I sold. None were convertibles, though,...
Sorry that I sounded irritated, I apologize. Your input is always welcome,...!
And, sorry Jimb, I'm not doing leather.

[toplessexpat]

No worries. Tbh I rarely give input on here... occasionally drop in and look - but 99.99% of my efforts are spent either tinkering with a genuine car or on mirafiori.com

[wetminkey]

Glad you stop by this forum! We truly appreciate your's, and everyone's, input here,...
I need to visit mirafiori more often,...!
Extra-firm upholstery foam and adhesive should be here soon,...my carving knife is ready!

[dinghyguy]

why do i have a vision of a turkey made of foam and a seat made of turkey......or at least turkey with foam flecks from the seat carving.

good luck figuring out where the cranberries go in a red interior.

dare i ask if the carb is functioning?

cheers
dinghyguy

[wetminkey]

Cool,...'upholstery foam and adhesive' Christmas 2019!
Perhaps I'll construct a foam holiday turkey while experimenting with the stuff,...!
Pretty sure that the carb will run well now,...but the car has not been started to time and tune. It is FAR TOO COLD to attempt any of that now, so I'll still have to wait for spring to start the car. It's OK, I'm not going anywhere in snow, and day temps in the 30's. Just a real bummer,...
I'll get the upholstery done in the meantime - with seat frame and bun repair, it's no small job,...
Happy holidays, guys!
Todd.

[RRoller123]

(just a side note, don't want to hijack the thread: anyone in Eastern MA or RI, Mark's Auto Upholstery in Foxboro, MA is excellent.)

[wetminkey]

I've always done my own,...it's too easy to DIY. IF you know how it's properly done,...!
Fiat used installers, not craftsmen, to upholster the Spider's seats.
Leather would be a bit more difficult,...

[RRoller123]

For Seat Covers yes, but they rarely fit very very tightly, for exactly the reason that they need to be slipped over by DIY'ers like ourselves. But I had them 100% redone, with new foam, by Mark's. I chose the bolt of "genuine imitation fake authentic leather fabric", told him to match the original stitching pattern as closely as possible, and got the whole lot back, perfectly done, for about a grand, front, back and headrests. Incredibly tight, accurate fit. For me, it was the right choice. For as much as I may know about working in wood, it is the polar opposite when working with upholstery!

[wetminkey]

I've had better luck than that in the past,...but none of the companies that I've worked with before make upholstery for Fiat Spiders. All of the upholstery that I've purchased in the past and installed has come out form-fitting and wrinkle-free.
I'll be able to match the Fiat's dark red original upholstery color easily with what's available,...I've already got swatches from three different companies.
We'll see what the upholstery for the Spider looks like installed. I know a lot of secrets to tighten up installed vinyl,...
Your seats look great, RRoller123! And, you're right,...it's NOTHING like working in wood!

[wetminkey]

Well. A busy day and late eve,...
Supplies came. Upholstery foam is not like foam rubber, and the density that I ordered has an "orthopedic" feel to it, at just 1" thickness! Very nice stuff!! I also received two cans of contact cement for foam ("everything except vinyl" is stated on the can).
Yup, just like YouTube! Ya just carve out the old, damaged areas of the seat foam with the electric carving knife - as flat and smooth as possible - and then contact-cement the new pieces of foam in place. I rough contoured the foam 'patches' with the knife so that they would conform easier as the adhesive dries.
Looks more like first aid has been rendered,...

The adhesive will be strongly adhered tomorrow, and I'll be able to carve at the foam easier. I'll begin to whittle it down to proper shape,...
This is definitely the proper way to repair seat buns!
Enough for today.

[wetminkey]

Pretty cool to find, on the back of my passenger upper seat foam:

Lots completed today. All of the seat-foam repairs are in place and roughed,...pics tomorrow.
Sander and coarse sandpaper, next,...

[wetminkey]

Uppers, with foam patches rough trimmed to shape, and ready for sanding with 36 grit:

Because the upholstery wire pulled through the foam bun, I found some heavy material in our scrap bin, doubled it over the area where the frame-rod cuts into the seat-foam, and covered the entire back with the same material.

It should support the 'rubbers' that pull the wire into the foam, now. I used the same "Foam Lock" contact-cement that I bought to repair the foam,...

[wetminkey]

Damn, jumped a step.
Here's how those upper seat backs come apart,...
At the bottom of the upper, you'll find a plastic strip tightly set into four tabs. Pull/rotate the plastic strip from the tabs, and it will expose the first three 'hog rings', that hold the lower upholstery wire to the frame.

Under that upholstery flap, you'll find a pair of hog rings set into the foam:

Begin to work the upholstery upward and off of the seat frame,...

The horizontal upholstery wire is pulled tight into place by three 'rubbers' (center right,...just below the transverse rod that cuts into the foam!). They need to be freed from the seat-frame 'wiggly wires' that give 'spring' to the seat-back.
Mine were not attached to the upholstery (due to deterioration), but I believe that they can be accessed by reaching up into the upholstery while sliding it off the frame.
Upper seat foam is glued around the edges,...and on a strip at the top of the frame, along the sides, and along a strip at the bottom. Easily scraped away with a putty knife,...as are the foam strip across the upper back and lower side edges.
Assembly yet to be covered,...should be the reverse of this.
Happy New Year!
Todd.