so i was waiting for paint to dry... (on the rollfast)
i decided to try my hand at recovering a seat. it started with Kev saying that the target bike i turned into a rat, needed a white seat. so... here it is. i will try to answer any questions as best as i can.
1. here is the seat off the target bike.
i went to my local fabric store, Joann fabrics, and got a piece of white marine vinyl. i got a discount cause it was a scrap. $3.48! you cant really see it in the pictures but the vinyl has a leather like grain to it.
2. take the seat apart.
this seat has a plastic frame/pan, as you can see, the cover is held on w/ staples:
i pried out all staples w/ a thin flat blade screwdriver and needlenose pliers.
on this seat, the cover was also glued on with spray adhesive. peel it off carefully, as to not tear the foam.
3. cut out a piece larger than the old cover. better to cut it bigger than you need, than too small.
i used a friend's electric staple gun, but i would imagine a regular one would work. i used 1/4" staples.
i put a few staples in on one side. be careful not to have any poke through.
the stapler didn't have the power to put the staples into the plastic all the way, so i used the needlenose pliers to pinch them in the rest of the way. i wrapped some tape around one side of the pliers, as to not damage the vinyl on the outside of the seat.
you really need to pull and stretch the material in all directions to get it to fit. it may take some trial and error to get the material to fit right.
i almost have it all stapled up. you will need to work out all the wrinkles around the corners. you may even need to cut some slits if it is bunching up in the tight spots.
have patience...
here it is all stapled up.
i put staples all the way around. go back and make sure all the staples are fully seated, and make sure none are going to poke through.
next, trim off the excess...
here is my finished seat!
i hope this was somewhat informative.... let me know what you think. and feel free to ask questions!
october
i decided to try my hand at recovering a seat. it started with Kev saying that the target bike i turned into a rat, needed a white seat. so... here it is. i will try to answer any questions as best as i can.
1. here is the seat off the target bike.
i went to my local fabric store, Joann fabrics, and got a piece of white marine vinyl. i got a discount cause it was a scrap. $3.48! you cant really see it in the pictures but the vinyl has a leather like grain to it.
2. take the seat apart.
this seat has a plastic frame/pan, as you can see, the cover is held on w/ staples:
i pried out all staples w/ a thin flat blade screwdriver and needlenose pliers.
on this seat, the cover was also glued on with spray adhesive. peel it off carefully, as to not tear the foam.
3. cut out a piece larger than the old cover. better to cut it bigger than you need, than too small.
i used a friend's electric staple gun, but i would imagine a regular one would work. i used 1/4" staples.
i put a few staples in on one side. be careful not to have any poke through.
the stapler didn't have the power to put the staples into the plastic all the way, so i used the needlenose pliers to pinch them in the rest of the way. i wrapped some tape around one side of the pliers, as to not damage the vinyl on the outside of the seat.
you really need to pull and stretch the material in all directions to get it to fit. it may take some trial and error to get the material to fit right.
i almost have it all stapled up. you will need to work out all the wrinkles around the corners. you may even need to cut some slits if it is bunching up in the tight spots.
have patience...
here it is all stapled up.
i put staples all the way around. go back and make sure all the staples are fully seated, and make sure none are going to poke through.
next, trim off the excess...
here is my finished seat!
i hope this was somewhat informative.... let me know what you think. and feel free to ask questions!
october
