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Seats before the fuselage….

ZAM

Active Member
Patron
As I’m waiting on the supply chain to catch up and deliver my QB wing and fuse, I thought I’d work on my seats. So, at OSH, I spoke with Janice @ Hi Tech Foams and ordered the foam. Yea! I’m have have work to do. Except…I don’t have a (nearby) fuselage to experiment with shapes, nor have I found templates or plans to work from. I do have access to a HD walking foot machine, and a boat upholsterer who could help with/finish the job nicely if need be.

I sorta assumed there would be plans/drawings and possibly even templates, but the preview plans don’t seem to have much. I did notice the Van’s store implies that templates come with the purchase of their foam.

Here’s the questions:
Can one construct and cover seats without a lot of access to the fuselage (and done well)?
Are there plans/templates/etc available to construct “generic” rv8 seats, without buying the entire Van’s foam seat kit?
Anyone have a recommendation for the covering supplies?
Should I set the foam aside until I have a fuselage to work from and continue to obsessing over electrical design?
 
I wouldn't start work on the seats unless you have access to a fuselage.

I have the Van's foam kit, and it is going to need quite a bit of work to get it to fit properly (stick interference, harness slots etc), and I can't imagine getting a good fit without a fuselage to reference.

The Van's foam does come with some full sized paper templates, I have heard they aren't that great though - But I haven't tried using them yet.
 
Leaning that way..

I wouldn't start work on the seats unless you have access to a fuselage.

I have the Van's foam kit, and it is going to need quite a bit of work to get it to fit properly (stick interference, harness slots etc), and I can't imagine getting a good fit without a fuselage to reference.

The Van's foam does come with some full sized paper templates, I have heard they aren't that great though - But I haven't tried using them yet.

Thanks Hugh. I’m starting to think the same.
 
It would probably take you about an hour to measure someone's seats if they gave you access to their machine. They are not that complex.

I paid to get mine made, and they turned out fine, but if you have an expert they should be able to reproduce them easily.

I'll bet there is someone who has a set of seats in your neighborhood that is not yet flying - if you can borrow them for a day or two and take them to your upholstery person, they will be able to get all the measurements.

Having the fuselage, in my opinion, would help but would not give you all the info you need. The shape of the front seat bottom is pretty interesting...
 
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