65 Mustang Restoration
So,,, I decided it was time to bite the bullet, and redo the seats,,, something I knew nothing about & had never done it before. All I knew was,, several years ago, I got a killer deal on a new standard upholstery kit complete with new foam for the front seats. So how do I learn how to do this,, well,, I guess I go back to old faithful,, You Tube.
I found several interesting upholstery videos, and one of the best was the video by CJ Pony on redoing Mustang seats,, it was very informative & they actually recovered a front seat. It's amazing what you can learn on you tube,, I have always tried to see how several people do things & try to combine the best parts of all of the different technics. The big problem with CJ's video was,, they showed several different styles of TMI's new seat covers & foam options,, and after seeing them & deciding that we are now keeping the car,, the wife & I decided to upgrade the seat upholstery.
1st problem,, finding where I put the seats,, found the rear seat right where it was suppose to be,,, the front seats,, Gone! Luckily I was able to locate another set of front buckets,,, sad shape, over priced & smelt a bit funny.
My luck,, the tracks are shot,,, heck, what's another $120?
I took several shots of how everything was put together,, where extra padding was placed,, and stripped the frames completely down. FYI,,, It's super important to get a set of the BEST & Meanest Side Cutters around for cutting through all of the Hog Rings you have to remove! Thank goodness I had already bought a $50 set of Knipex side cutters from the Mac Man,,, because,, the also new set of Mac side cutters were just too wimpy.
Below,, this is the only section of burlap I reused,, it was in great condition and it was serving a pretty important purpose,, basically, it is a flexible spacer that holds the springs in just the right location.
The next fun part,,, was cleaning & coating the frames (the part they left out on the CJ Pony video). Overall, the springs were in very good condition,, very little rust,,, but where it was rusty,, I sanded those areas & then treated those areas with an acid that eats rust,,, and then coated them with Eastwood's After Blast,,, followed by a coat of their Rust Encapsulator.
From this point on,, I was going to need some help,,, and luckily, my wife volunteered. We decided to start with the back section of the rear seat,, looked the easiest, so this is where we dove in.
While watching videos,, I like the guys who used nice new vinyl as a base cover for the springs, rather than burlap. Vinyl is a bit more on the solid side,, and the factory burlap was laced with support wires throughout it,, and new burlap doesn't come with that option.
The vinyl was very easy to work with & really seemed to spread the load over the springs.
My wife took me to her favorite fabric store,, and while searching for the vinyl we needed, I came across several types & thicknesses of upholstery foams & this very nice 2" thick & firm fibrous padding that worked great for the padding we were needing.
The seat covers that we chose to use are called, 1964-66 Deluxe Pony Mustang Sport R Seat Covers and Foam, made by TMI. Not to brag,, but man are these covers nice! We finished both sections in only a couple of hours,,, and I think they turned out great. My buddy just paid $500 for the labor portion of getting his seats done,,, and for about that amount,,, I was able to get this kit.
Now,, the front seats,, again we started with the refurbished frame & covered it with vinyl.
The new foam comes with very large bolsters (sides) which I was a bit worried about since I'm not a skinny little person,, found out later that I didn't need to worry.
These are the "Listing Wires" which help to tuck certain sections of the seat covers down into the cushions,,, you can see the wires that are also built into the foam cushions. Below you can see the Listing Channels in the covers.
These are the hog ring pliers used for installing the covers. Above,, this is the way I found it was the easiest to install the rings on the 2 listing wires,, it's not real easy,, but it went quickly once I got the hang of it. Once you hook both wires,, then re-grip & squeeze!
See,,, not that hard,,, no big deal, but it has to be done for the seats to turn out properly.
Then it was just a matter of stretching the sides around the frame. After that we installed the new rear covers included in the kit. Take your time with this part or you can mess up the backs pretty easily since they're not that thick.
And here's the final product. The only items not included in the kit, were the 4 plastic washers that go between the arms that connect the seat back to the base,, and the bolts & plates that you normally install on the seats that allow you to adjust how far back the seat back portion will lean forwards/backwards. I had to buy both items from National Parts Depot. I ended up Not using the bolt kit because the wife & I both enjoyed how the seats sat without them when we installed the seats in the car & sat in them,, a test fit you might say.
Though not pictured,,, we also purchased a pair of new adjustable seat tracks off of ebay,, and I'm glad I did,, they sure are nice!
Needless to say,, we are Extremely happy with how these seats turned out,, and I can't even begin to stress how comfortable they are. The bolsters are perfect & hold you nicely into place,, no more sliding all over the place. TMI has a Super Nice Product here!
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