Seat Upholstery ??? | GTAMotorcycle.com

Seat Upholstery ???

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Delboy

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Hello. Quick Question

My brother is building a little vintage race bike for the VRRA this year and is in the final stages. The bike came with a little Cafe Racer seat that he is putting back on. It looks like a Lossa seat which are actually pretty good.

The pan and foam are in good condition, the cover is ripped and needs to be replaced. It should be a simple job as the original is made up of 2 pieces of vinyl stitched together and the pan is plastic so its just stapled on.

I used to use the guy right at the bottom of Whites Road in Pickering who worked out of his garage, but he's gone as that area is all re-developed.

Any recommendations? He's not looking for a full custom upholstery job, just a new cover.

He's in Pickering if that makes a difference

TIA
 
It would be quite easy to de-stitch the current seat, lay the two pieces flat and use them as templates on top of new vinyl (get a half meter at FabricLand) and take it to the pants hemming place at the mall to stitch them back together if he doesn't have access to a sewing machine or doesn't have the patience to do it by hand. Then a couple of minutes with a staple gun.

On that side of town I bet it would be worth checking with Bickle Racing.
 
Delboy said:
Hello. Quick Question

My brother is building a little vintage race bike for the VRRA this year and is in the final stages. The bike came with a little Cafe Racer seat that he is putting back on. It looks like a Lossa seat which are actually pretty good.

The pan and foam are in good condition, the cover is ripped and needs to be replaced. It should be a simple job as the original is made up of 2 pieces of vinyl stitched together and the pan is plastic so its just stapled on.

I used to use the guy right at the bottom of Whites Road in Pickering who worked out of his garage, but he's gone as that area is all re-developed.

Any recommendations? He's not looking for a full custom upholstery job, just a new cover.

He's in Pickering if that makes a difference

TIA
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Get a chunk of real leather from a discarded leather sofa, use that leather glued to a waterproof vinyl backing layer, the stuff like you put on a new house. Works awesome, dirt cheap if you have access to the scrap materials :| I have a bunch of Brown leather scraps kicking about if you need some, no black.
 
Trials said:
waterproof vinyl backing layer, the stuff like you put on a new house.
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Explain more. I'm not sure what you are talking about here? Do you mean Super 6 Poly? Wouldn't a waterproof layer below the leather keep it wet as it could only dry from one side?
 
GreyGhost said:
Explain more. I'm not sure what you are talking about here? Do you mean Super 6 Poly? Wouldn't a waterproof layer below the leather keep it wet as it could only dry from one side?
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Thick black sticky rubber like sheet material that has adhesive on at least one side even better both sides, they use it to seal under steel roofs and around door frames, cut that to patch form and seal the damage, the leather adheres to that with contact cement, leather forms to shape far better then naugahyde. Rain dries off super easy with a paper towel just as long as the leather is directly adhered to the waterproof layer.
Leather is also not as slippery as naugahyde which works well. You could add a waterproof to it but I never have and it has never been a problem, will outlast the original.
 
Trials said:
Thick black sticky rubber like sheet material that has adhesive on at least one side even better both sides, they use it to seal under steel roofs and around door frames, cut that to patch form and seal the damage, the leather adheres to that with contact cement, leather forms to shape far better then naugahyde. Rain dries off super easy with a paper towel just as long as the leather is directly adhered to the waterproof layer.
Leather is also not as slippery as naugahyde which works well. You could add a waterproof to it but I never have and it has never been a problem, will outlast the original.
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Ah, Blueskin (or similar). Thx.
 
Trials said:
Get a chunk of real leather from a discarded leather sofa, use that leather glued to a waterproof vinyl backing layer, the stuff like you put on a new house. Works awesome, dirt cheap if you have access to the scrap materials :| I have a bunch of Brown leather scraps kicking about if you need some, no black.
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Sofa leather is too light for a bike seat, it’s also chrome tanned so the surface will deteriorate quickly in the sun and under normal use on a bike. Best to get veg tanned leather from an old MC jacket or Tandy leathers.
 
Mad Mike said:
Sofa leather is too light for a bike seat, it’s also chrome tanned so the surface will deteriorate quickly in the sun and under normal use on a bike. Best to get veg tanned leather from an old MC jacket or Tandy leathers.
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Tell that to my 1986 BMW saddle that started to develop tears in the sides in 1990.
gofar.jpg
 
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If you are going to cover foam with leather you should not laminate the leather unless it’s perforated. Not only will it be hard to sew, the leather will stretch and wrinkle and Leather will rot when it can’t breathe. The best solution it to apply a topical wax to the leather and seams AND drill several holes in the seat pan to let moisture breathe out.
 
You are not covering the foam with leather, that would soak through like a sponge. What seat pan does not already have air holes? other then trials bikes

How about we hose mine down, dry it off fast and I take you for a pillion ride ;) see if it still works.
The leather was stretched to put it on, no seams, cows are not built in flat pieces.
 
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Trials said:
Tell that to my 1986 BMW saddle that started to develop tears in the sides in 1990.
gofar.jpg
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It's possible the leather on a really good sofa is veg tanned and would be suitable. You can usually tell the difference by looking at folds and heavy wear areas, chrome tanned leathers will have spidery cracks where veg tan will have patina. If you slice chrome tanned the surface will have richer color, veg will be about the same all the way thru. Chrome leathers are also a lot stretchier, they would need to be tightened up after a while if you use them on a bike seat.

7-8oz (approx 3mm) is the best thickness.

Use nylon bonded thread and a leather needle.
 
;) could be it was a Tandy cow
but only the expense was the contact cement and I would have been in a hurry to get er done

besides, he's VRRA so leather is period correct (y)
 
Chicago's Seats, he's in Oshawa. He does custom seats.
He can probably make you a vintage looking cover?
905-431-3515
 
Trials said:
;) could be it was a Tandy cow
but only the expense was the contact cement and I would have been in a hurry to get er done

besides, he's VRRA so leather is period correct (y)
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I used to have a custom cut and sew operation that did fur and leather work. We didn’t do upholstery but we did sew the occasional seat cover for clients who brought in a pattern. I did a few leather Lycette solo seats, these used 9oz milled veg tanned hides, one was done in hair-on cowhide.

I still have the machines and some great leather, I think I’ll try to knock out a custom for my old Triumph.
 
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