[8317R]

I have purchased Vans foam for the RV6/7/9 seats and am using their patterns. I am having a real hard time figuring out the corners of how they fit together. It was hard enough learning to sew a straight line. Would anyone that has made or had made seats from this foam have pictures of the corners that I might use as reference? Thanks for any help you can give.

 

[Bcone1381]

Another idea rather than an answer. Go to JoAnn FaBric and buy inexpensive fabric, Try some things and brainstorm a few solutions using it then use it to make a pattern for your final installation. Use large stiches when sewing the patterns to ease taking apart the pattern you end up with.

 

[Roadjunkie1]

I have purchased Vans foam for the RV6/7/9 seats and am using their patterns. I am having a real hard time figuring out the corners of how they fit together. It was hard enough learning to sew a straight line. Would anyone that has made or had made seats from this foam have pictures of the corners that I might use as reference? Thanks for any help you can give.

I've been using a sewing machine since I was about 12. (Thanks, Mom!) My first project was a pennant for my swim team: The Durango Sailfish. Turned out pretty decent! Even surprised my Mom! I once upholstered my old VW Squareback in denim made from old Levis with back pockets everywhere to put things in! The seats themselves were new denim but the sides and backs were Levis! It was pretty cool and I got a lot of comments on it!

That said: I recently made an arm rest for SuzieQ and had plenty of fabric to play with. The first one was less than ideal but gave me loads of information on how to do the one that is in the airplane now. So: practice. Yes: go to WalMart or JoAnns and get a couple of yards of some on-sale fabric that is similar in weight to your upholstery fabric. Sew up a bunch of things. Get used to using your machine. While you are there, get a couple of boxes of needles, the thicker ones for upholstery. You will break a few before you get the hang of it!

How you sew corners will depend on what your corners look like; what type of corners you are trying to make. If it is a corner where the sides come together, sew the ends of the sides (where the corner is) together first. Then sew the back and front to that. Someone at JoAnn's will likely be excited to give you some instructions as well. The UTube videos I found were for upholstering dining room chairs............

Good luck!

 

[wcalvert]

Kudos to the forum for not immediately recommending you contact XYZ seat builder, "they did a great job and blah blah"... this is a builder's forum after all.

Good on you for taking this on yourself. Like any new skill, it will take some time and in this case, some wasted material (think of it as the price of education). The previous ideas about using some practice material (something of the same weight and weave you intend to use would be ideal), asking for advice at a supplier like JoAnn's, and watching youtube videos for the basics. You'll also want to look into renting/borrowing or buying the right machine. A simple single needle walking foot is what you want. From there the options go to the moon.

Regarding those pesky corners, there are a bunch of options depending on the final "look" you're looking for. The simplest is called a "boxed corner", you can modify that slightly to make a rounded box to contour to your foam. An angled ear corner might work as well. You'll figure it out.

There are a ton of techniques that will make your task easier: consistent hem margins, good pinning or clipping, thread size to match the fabric, foot pressure etc...

The seats in my -7 are Sunmate foam from Dynamic Systems Inc., and the material structure is dependent on a good sub base shape. Sounds like you have your foam already. My covers are just like you'll see in ANY Boeing plane, wool twill around the sides and Aussie sheep skin for the tops. They rock. Be happy you're sewing fabric and not sheep hide!

Some of the accessory pouches and stick boots are leather, another branch that has it's own peculiar requirements.

Keep at it. My guess is that you can buy a good machine and do this yourself for the price of having someone do it for you. When you're done you own a new skill that can never be taken and a sewing machine for the next project! Build on

 

[PhatRV]

I used the stock neoprene seat covers designed for the 2009-2012 Jeep Wranglers. You can buy them from Amazon or from other big online store. There is a wide variety of colors to choose from.

Amazon.com

For my RV8, the covers for the seat bottoms will fit without additional work. For the seat back, some nip-tuck and hand sewing was needed. The neoprene is quite thick. I got all of my heavy duty threads and sewing supplies from JoAnn. The seat cover came out rather nice. The two holes are for the headrest. Nobody will notice them other than the Oshkosh Lindy judges.

 

[lr172]

I upholstered seats in my 6 and my 10. I did not like the vans templates. Suggest you make your own from scrim. The vans templates match the foam and this is wrong. The fabric panels need to be smaller than the foam, however, how much smaller varies based upon the material used. If using leahter or ultra leather, DO NOT use the wife's sewing machine. You will need a walking foot machine. patterns are easy to make for the square / rect pieces. For a real challenge, make patterns for the 10 seat backs.