Interior trim material

[JesusofCool]

One of my rear quarter panels has a largish rip in it. But the panel itself is sound. I thought maybe I would buy the material and recover it. I found that Paddocks sell the material by the metre, but before I dive in I though I might canvas your opinions;

1. Is £21/m reasonable - Is there a better source?
2. How well does their "Saddle Tan" match the original (ignoring wear fade for the sake of the question)
3. Does it have the same grain as the original?

I know I can ask them the latter two, but I don't know how objectively they would answer.

[jleyton]

imported post

I've done a lot of trim work recently. I bought mine from Paddocks and I found Graham very helpful.

Because I'd had a concern over the colour match with Aldridges trim, I sent him a sample of my original trim and he confirmed their's was correct before he sent it - can you cut off a bit from the back of the panel to do this ? (or ask him to send you a small sample - doh!)

Most of Paddocks trim items come from Aldridges but Paddocks are often cheaper :?, especially if you order online to get their 5% discount.

I think you'll find the price is similar or better than others but, although they sell it by the metre, the roll is a lot wider than 1 metre:shock: (well mine was) so you may be able to order 1/2 metre as I wouldn't have thought you'd need too much for the quarter panel.

Hope this helps.

Cheers

Julian

[V Mad]

imported post

I know that beige is almost impossible to match, but not sure of saddle tan. £21/m sounds expensive for leathercloth (Ambla). You know that the quarter panels are foam padded with a seam; how are you going to replicate that?

[JesusofCool]

imported post

Thanks for the half metre tip Julian, I was wondering how wide it was.

V Mad - I've done a bit of upholstery before and I know I can get the foam locally. Seam? Wot seam?

Maybe my upholstery isn't original. Do you have a mk1 picture I can compare with?

[V Mad]

imported post

There is a horizontal seam just below the top pad as far as I recall isnt there? You would have to cut a strip out ofthe foam and glue the covering down into the seam.

[jleyton]

imported post

It's too wet and windy to go and check right now but I think Chris is right that there's a seam in the rear quarter panels.

Although I didn't do it in the end, I was going to recover my front doors which have the heat-sealed seam. The plan was to stitch it which, although not original, I think could actually look classier than the seam.

Cheers

Julian

[JesusofCool]

imported post

Yes, that's what I'd do (masking tape, contact adhesive, gap in foam, press in with steel rule), but I don't have one on mine. I'm not so sure now though. I'll have another look tonight.

[JesusofCool]

imported post

I found a pic on the web the shows exactly the seam you describe, but mine definitely doesn't have it. So the question is now whether to recover as it is now, or try to resemble the original without a template.

Julians stiching idea sounds tempting. If it was leather it would be a done deal, but vinyl?