My First Venture Into Seat Repair

[Dave Swanson]

I am rejuvenating a 1970 Ambassador that was sitting for 41 years.  There is a build thread going in the appropriate section of WG. 

The seat was in such a state  that I initially thought it was a lost cause. The cover was discolored from the long term storage, a section of the stitching had given up the ghost on the right side, and the seat pan was very rusty. I had no experience with seat repair but with some research in hand I decided to have a go.

Soap and water did next to nothing for cleaning the stained and very dirty cover. I had heard that the non abrasive Goop hand cleaner worked well. I bought some and was amazed by the results!
I carefully removed the cover and had the lost stitching expertly repaired at a local upholstery shop.

The foam was surgically removed from the pan and found to still be in very good shape overall. After I sandblasted and painted the pan, the foam was gently cleaned and reattached it to the pan using spray adhesive.

I purchased some thin batting material that was more than big enough to cover the entire seat. After spraying the foam and pan edges with spray adhesive the batting was applied and pulled taught all around. I was afraid of wrinkles, but the characteristics of the batting material let it conform to the seat with gentle pulling in all directions.

Gluing the cover back on came next with 3M Windo Weld adhesive. This was probably the most high anxiety part of the process but it turned out very well with the help of many spring clamps.

Next was tackling the MOTO GUZZI stencil. I experimented finding the correct size and font for the MOTO GUZZI by printing them on clear velum paper and holding them up to my 1974 seat. Once I landed on the correct size and font Callie Graphics made up the stencil using a pdf file I supplied.

Saving this seat is in keeping with the concept of the preservation and not restoration.

[Huzo]

You guys are just…Different.
Special…👍

[bigbikerrick]

That turned out amazing, Dave!
Rick

[Chuck in Indiana]

Saving this seat is in keeping with the concept of the preservation and not restoration.

That gets you an attaboy! 

[nc43bsa]

What paint did you use for the lettering?

[Dave Swanson]

What paint did you use for the lettering?

I used white Humbrol enamel mixed with just a smidge of Humbrol silver.  Little tins of this are available at my local hobby shop.

I used stencil sponges that were dabbed on a separate piece of paper to reduce the amount of paint on the brush before dabbing on the stencil.

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

Is the stencil a self-adhesive strip or some other type?

[Dave Swanson]

Is the stencil a self-adhesive strip or some other type?

Self adhesive. 

[wirespokes]

That's looking great! Well done.

Restorations are really nice, but there's something about a good refresh, bringing the condition up to 'very good survivor', that pleases me more.

[TN Mark]

Really well done Dave, congratulations to you.

[DoubleGuzzi]

Restorations are really nice, but there's something about a good refresh, bringing the condition up to 'very good survivor', that pleases me more.

I may have suggested that in the beginning, especially as he already has a gleaming one.
I thought Dave might've at least attempted to restitch the cover though. 

I hadn't heard of "batting material" before, so it's a school day for me.
 

[Dave Swanson]

I may have suggested that in the beginning, especially as he already has a gleaming one.
I thought Dave might've at least attempted to restitch the cover though. 

I hadn't heard of "batting material" before, so it's a school day for me.
 

The batting helps to smooth the old foam out.    A different type of recovering job, but Windy explains the batting concept at about 1:45 minutes in.  https://youtu.be/oHnh2S4jDpw?si=gAaSxQs2CUfLlf6S
 

[DoubleGuzzi]

The batting helps to smooth the old foam out.

Yup. Got a cut-down Triumph Speed 400 seat, where that's exactly what I need. Fortunately, I haven't applied spray adhesive to the cover yet.
(I was never quite happy with it.)
Cheers!