Any interest in custom bike seat instructions?
11-03-10, 04:58 PM
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Any interest in custom bike seat instructions?
I had an old bike seat laying around, some fabric and upholstery skills and I got bored, so I decided to reupholster the seat. Would anyone be interested in seeing instructions for doing this?
Instructions:
Stuff you will need:
-A staple gun with (short) staples
-A flat head screw driver
-A sharp razor blade
-Pliers or other tool for gripping staples
-Vinyl
First, if you are using two or more pieces of vinyl, lay them face to face. Sew them together in a line. I did the line twice to strengthen the seam. Cut off some of the extra vinyl, but leave a thin margin or your seam will be weaker.
I decided to make a diamond shape by sewing two triangles on the seam. You can make any sort of design you want, or no design at all.
Use your screwdriver to remove all the staples from the seat and clean out any dirt. You will often end up removing only one side of the staple, use your pliers to get the other side. Peel off the vinyl from the foam core while trying to save as much of the foam as possible.
Your first four staples should be one on either side of the seat, one in the front and one in back. On this seat I decided to start with the sides, which didn't really work out. I ended up taking the staples out later. Starting with the back is probably easiest.
Try not to do the staple directly through the side of the seat, it might stick out and poke you.
Make sure your staple gun is pushed against the plastic when you staple, or your staples will end up looking like this.
After the first two staples, my seat looked like this. You want to stretch the vinyl as much as possible or you will get wrinkles. Don't be gentle, use your muscles!
One staple in the front. You can see how much the vinyl needs to be stretched here.
After my first four staples, I put one in the rounded part of the back of the seat. Try not to get too much vinyl on either side of the staple or you will get pleats.
When you put more staples in, stretch the vinyl a lot and pull away from the extra vinyl. In other words, if you are starting from that middle staple in back and moving towards the staple on the corner, pull the vinyl towards the back staple when you stretch it. This will prevent pleats, but takes some practice.
Put more staples in wherever you can get your staple gun to go. Make sure to stretch the vinyl tightly over the seat!
Put more staples in and then cut off the extra vinyl. Be very careful not to cut the vinyl that is stretched over the edge of the seat. This has happened to me a few times.
The finished product.
Instructions:
Stuff you will need:
-A staple gun with (short) staples
-A flat head screw driver
-A sharp razor blade
-Pliers or other tool for gripping staples
-Vinyl
First, if you are using two or more pieces of vinyl, lay them face to face. Sew them together in a line. I did the line twice to strengthen the seam. Cut off some of the extra vinyl, but leave a thin margin or your seam will be weaker.
I decided to make a diamond shape by sewing two triangles on the seam. You can make any sort of design you want, or no design at all.
Use your screwdriver to remove all the staples from the seat and clean out any dirt. You will often end up removing only one side of the staple, use your pliers to get the other side. Peel off the vinyl from the foam core while trying to save as much of the foam as possible.
Your first four staples should be one on either side of the seat, one in the front and one in back. On this seat I decided to start with the sides, which didn't really work out. I ended up taking the staples out later. Starting with the back is probably easiest.
Try not to do the staple directly through the side of the seat, it might stick out and poke you.
Make sure your staple gun is pushed against the plastic when you staple, or your staples will end up looking like this.
After the first two staples, my seat looked like this. You want to stretch the vinyl as much as possible or you will get wrinkles. Don't be gentle, use your muscles!
One staple in the front. You can see how much the vinyl needs to be stretched here.
After my first four staples, I put one in the rounded part of the back of the seat. Try not to get too much vinyl on either side of the staple or you will get pleats.
When you put more staples in, stretch the vinyl a lot and pull away from the extra vinyl. In other words, if you are starting from that middle staple in back and moving towards the staple on the corner, pull the vinyl towards the back staple when you stretch it. This will prevent pleats, but takes some practice.
Put more staples in wherever you can get your staple gun to go. Make sure to stretch the vinyl tightly over the seat!
Put more staples in and then cut off the extra vinyl. Be very careful not to cut the vinyl that is stretched over the edge of the seat. This has happened to me a few times.
The finished product.
Last edited by RoboMonkey; 11-06-10 at 02:47 PM.
11-03-10, 05:09 PM
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sure!
11-03-10, 05:32 PM
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Why even ask? YES!
I have some saddles in a box that I would love to reupholster. Reupholstering your beat up favorite classic saddle is full of WIN.
I have some saddles in a box that I would love to reupholster. Reupholstering your beat up favorite classic saddle is full of WIN.
11-03-10, 06:06 PM
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11-03-10, 06:21 PM
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Post them.
11-03-10, 07:51 PM
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11-03-10, 09:10 PM
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11-04-10, 08:58 AM
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11-06-10, 02:07 PM
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I posted instructions to my blog, and can post them to the forum also if anyone wants me to. I've had a lot of experience upholstering, so I'm not sure if my instructions are clear enough for someone without upholstering experience. If you want me to clear anything up, just ask.
My second seat:
My second seat:
11-06-10, 02:20 PM
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Yes you should post these up on the forum; anyways, what size/ length staple would you recommend? I'm scared of using too long of a staple and in terms getting my bum pricked by them... 
11-06-10, 02:29 PM
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My staples are about 7.8 mm long. I just had them lying around and didn't pick this length out specifically. Try not to make the staples go perpendicular to the side of the seat as these tend to stick out. It's better to aim for places that are more padded.
Last edited by RoboMonkey; 11-06-10 at 02:35 PM.
11-07-10, 04:56 PM
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I just use regular old vinyl. You mostly need to consider durability and water resistance. If you are worried about that you could try marine vinyl, though I'm not sure if it's necessary. You could try the shiny type like you see on my seat, but it's harder to work with.
11-18-10, 10:43 PM
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Update: If you are using vinyl, don't use white/light colors. The dye in your clothes can rub off and stain it. I don't notice this on my black seat but it is obvious on a white seat I did.
