Seat upholstery questions

[VW]

After stalling for a few years I've finally ordered some fabric to recover my seats. They are vinyl with fabric center panels. My plan is to just replace the fabric panels.
I want to sew some panneling into them, not much, probably just split each panel into maybe 4 smaller strips.
A few years ago I tried sewing some moquette to some vinyl and my sewing machine flew through it so not really anticipating big problems (famous last words!), however, I'm new to this kind of thing and I have a few questions.

To do the panels I planned to sew the fabric for some scrim foam. But what thickness? Not looking for big sculpted pleats. 6mm?

Secondly, I think I read somewhere to glue the fabric to the scrim foam before sewing the pleats so it doesn't move about, is that right?

Thirdly, thread. I'm very confused about thread size. Also, bonded polyester? Nylon?

That leads me on to the final question about needles. I was just going to use whatever is in the machine. I guess I should be using something specific though.

The vinyl isn't that thick and is still soft, the fabric is quite thick but not moquette thick.

I'll put my progress in my Bedford c.f. thread when I get going.
Thanks.

[BenzBoy]

I run a car interiors business so feel qualified to answer here!

What sewing machine are you using?

Is the fabric you're using an automotive cloth, or something more general use? Is there any stretch to it? If you do need scrim foam then 6mm will be a safe bet, as it should go through most machines.
Gluing the foam to the cloth will make the job a bit easier but there's a fair bit of debate within the trimming community about whether to glue or not to glue. High temp spray contact adhesive is what you need, such as Trim Fix (find it on eBay)

I recommend using a bonded polyester thread although bonded nylon will work too. 40s weight will be fine (the lower the number, the thicker the thread, so 10 is very thick whereas 60 is thin).
Needle depends on your machine and what sort of size it can use, but a regular point needle will be fine, no need for leather points. I can be more specific on needle size if I know what machine you're using.

[VW]

I have 2 machines available to use. Mine, which is in the loft, a frister rossmann of some description, simple, all metal, 60's, normal decent quality household machine.
The second is pretty much the same but a Jones, or singer, can't remember. It's my girlfriend's and had the benefit of being set up, in its own table, and ready to go.

The fabric is an upholstery fabric, but not automotive specific.

[VW]

I don't expect there to be any stretch, (it's not arrived yet).
I don't really care if the glue fails, I wasn't going to glue it at all. Just read that it may make sewing it easier. What happens once it's a seat may not matter?

[VW]

I'll probably use this machine

[VW]

These aren't my seats, but they are similar.

I'm.replacing the cloth inserts and want to replicate the sewn panels. As you can see, they aren't very sculpted. I was going to use 3mm scrim foam but then thought that may be too thin, so changed ideas to 6mm.

[BenzBoy]

If you want to sew in pleats like the photo, 6mm foam won't give you a very deep pleat but your machine might be the limiting factor on how much bulk you can put through it. Ideally 10 or 12mm foam would give you deeper pleats, but you will get a pleat with 6mm. You're right that 3mm won't be enough here. I'm assuming your plan is to basically stitch through from the top in straight lines to create the pleats (top-stitched pleats). If so, I recommend cutting your panels oversized, stitching in the pleats and then cutting the panels to the right size. The reason being that each stitched pleat will shrink the panel by a fraction, so if you cut it to the desired size first you end up with a panel too narrow!
As for needles I can't really advise any further as I'm not familiar with those machines. I'd opt for one at the heavier end of the range of needles that your machine can take, but no need for special points, a regular one will do just fine.
Bear in mind that a lot of the upholstery threads come on large spools which domestic machines can't use easily as the pegs are too small. I believe Gutermann and the like produce smaller spools of bonded polyester or bonded nylon on small spools suitable for domestic machines though.

Edit, sorry I just re-read your post and you said you weren't looking for deep pleats, and plan to cut the cloth into strips and sew. This will give you a pleat effect but just bear in mind that when you come to sew the front panel you'll have a number of bulky seams to deal with at each pleat. This may or may not be a problem depending on the capabilities of the machine and the materials involved. I'd do a test piece with a top stitched pleat to see if that gives you the desired effect as it would be easier to sew the panel together. You can mark straight lines with chalk to follow, to get a neater finish too.

[VW]

Thanks

I'm not cutting the cloth for the pleats, your first thought was right. I'll just layer the cloth and foam and sew lines in it.
The main reason for doing it is so it's not just one flat bit of cloth, sewing it to a foam backer just makes the seat cover feel more stable.

I think she had a load of needles, I'll see what she has before I buy any more.

I had noticed the threads seem to come on large bobbins so was already expecting to either wind some onto a smaller bobbin, or make an adapter on the lathe to fit the bigger bobbin to this machine.

[VW]

What is the limiting factor to how thick a foam I can use in this machine?
I imagine it won't make much difference to the needle, so is it more about how high the foot will lift?

Wondering if I can make a guess at how thick a foam I might be able to sew.

The foot will squash it anyway won't it?

[BenzBoy]

Yes it's going to be the foot height which determines the thickness more than anything. Also I'm assuming that it will be a regular presser foot on the machine so making it as easy as possible for the machine to feed the work through would be a good thing. Proper industrial upholstery machines have a walking foot which "walks" over the material as it's fed through meaning it all gets fed through at the same rate. The needle on those machines also moves to pull the work through. Those old domestic machines are more robust than today's versions so they can cope with a little more heavy work. The foot will squash it to a certain degree but you may find the work doesn't feed through smoothly if it's too thick, meaning knotted threads and bunched seams out of alignment. It's something you're going to have to test for yourself to a certain degree as it's very specific to each set-up.

[VW]

I think I'll just go with 6mm then. 3 will be too thin I think, more might be risky. As pleat definition isn't a concern there is no need to risk making it harder.

[VW]

I think it is a regular presser foot, material is just walked by the gripper thing underneath. Another reason for glueing the fabric I guess.
I'll get some glue when I order the scrim and thread.

Looking forward to giving this a go! Not my usual work. I've made camper curtains before and I once 're covered a recaro, but that was sewn by hand (and that's why I never did the passenger seat 😂)

I've put up with ruined seats for 4 years, will be nice to get them looking good again.

Thanks for the help, once these are done I'll look at making a new headlining and carpets.

Just need to convince the girlfriend the headlining needs to be deep buttoned black crushed velvet 😉

[BenzBoy]

I think it's wise to play safe and go with 6mm. And without a walking foot the glue will help the machine feed it all through together. Good luck with it! It'll be satisfying to stand back look at, it'll make a big difference.

Hand-stitching a Recaro?! You're mad! It's bound to be easier than that!!

Give me a shout if you need any more help, I'll be happy to advise.

[VW]

It took 3 days! That was in my ghia (you were at that ppc shoot too right?)

Doubt you remember my seats though 😂

[BenzBoy]

Jul 1, 2020 12:36:54 GMT VW said:

It took 3 days! That was in my ghia (you were at that ppc shoot too right?)

Doubt you remember my seats though 😂

Yes I was! That was a fun day, if a bit chilly. Can't say I remember your seats but I certainly remember your car!

[firelion]

You did a nice job! Hope I can repair my seats with new upholstery machine!