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Last edited by autobonrun; 02-05-2005 at 05:54 PM.. |
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Join Date: May 2004
Posts: 758
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That original brown was pretty dark, but do you think I could change my black seats to tan or cork using this process?
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Thanks for documenting the process and showing the amazing results. I would not have thought this was possible to do, let alone DIY.
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David 83 SC 86 944 Turbo 73 914 1.7 (Chargrilled) 73 914 2.0 (Sold) |
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Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Coffin Point, St. Helena Island, SC
Posts: 205
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Hi. Your post is much appreciated. I've bought a dark brown leather interior and am going to change the seats to black using Leatherique. How much pristine clean, rejuvenator oil, prepping agent and dye did you use for your two seats? Why the lacquer thinner? Thanks for a great post.
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Thanks guys.
JBO, I don't see why you couldn't change black to cork. As you said, the brown was pretty dark. The key is to remove the top layer and break down the old dye so the new dye will "bite". If you talk with George at Leatherique, he can confirm for you that you can redye black seats. I actually sent him a couple photos of what I had and where I wanted to be and he confirmed I could do it.
Keith, it looks like I will go through a 32oz bottle of Rejuvenator Oil, the same amount of Prepping Agent and almost a 32oz bottle of Pristine Clean. Any unused quantities will keep fairly well and you will use both the Rejuvenator oil and Pristine Clean even after the redye to maintain your leather. I bought a 16 oz bottle of dye. It's going to be close but with what I learned on the first seat, I'll be able to be a little more efficient on the second. The dye is not something I want to have left over in any large quantity since it does separate over a year or so, with some of the pigment ending up as a sludge at the bottom and is difficult to remix. Since you are going to apply at least two coats to change seat color, you could thin it slightly to stretch it some. You could easily add 2 oz of water to the 16oz dye and mix that up, return the 16 oz to the bottle and start doing your trim work with the additional 2 oz. I would not add any more than that. Leatheique does keep your formula on file so refills should be very close. At the same time I ordered this dye, I ordered some for my BMW and will tackle those seats this spring. They are light grey and obviously much larger. The use of Lacquer thinner came from a Ferrari club link I read on the internet (http://www.ferrariclub.com/faq/leatherdye.html ) . When I discussed its use with George, he said some of the earlier seats could have a lacquer finish on them and this would remove that coating. Regardless, he did not feel it would hurt my seats even if I did not have this layer. When I tried it, it did remove some additional dye so I stuck that step in. Truthfully, I don't think our seats have that coating so using just the prepping agent should be sufficient. |
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What?!?!
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Looks very good! Do you mind if I ask what the entire process (product and materials) will cost? Also, how well does the "bad wear" areas of the leather look after the repair? I would imagine it looks reasonable, which is what I would expect. I've never performed leather repair and I don't have unrealist expectations.
Thanks, and do you have pics of the "during" phases? Please share more if you do!
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running shoes, couple tools, fishing pole 1996 Subaru Legacy Outback AWD, 5speed |
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Alii&Maui
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WOW! Great info and an amazing result.
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1982 SC Coupe SCWDP#0087 KCSSL#0082 |
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Quote:
Very bad wear areas should be repaired at least to some extent before dyeing, in my opinion. It really depends on what you mean by bad; just worn or actually ripped. I can take a few more photos during the interim steps on the second seat. There may not be a lot to see over the writeup but I'll be happy to do it. |
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Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Centerville, Ohio
Posts: 480
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Nice job!
You mentioned using an artist brush around the piping. Did you do this to make sure you got down into the seams? Does the dye cover the piping as well as it does on leather? I was worried about the piping holding dye since it looks like it's vinyl. Thanks for documenting the process!
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Evan --------- 1987 sun roof coupe |
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Quote:
As far as the artist's brush, it is about a 1/4" brush, not one of the small type brushes used for model cars. I use the artist brush around the piping and metal parts for better tip control and to reduce the amount of dye that could quickly run if not careful. A large brush holds a lot of dye and could quickly fill the piping seam if not careful. I wanted to completely dye into the piping crease but did not want a pool of dye to form there. It takes longer with the small brush, but I'm in no hurry on this project. |
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Nice job. I will keep these tips in mind when I do my drivers side seat.
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Vance '83 SC Cabriolet - The "Matrix" '73 914 - "Spicy Mustard" - SOLD |
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Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Centerville, Ohio
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Thanks,
You're right the piping is leather. (not sure why I tought they were vinyl.) Thanks again for the write up. Refreshing my seats is on the slate for this summer.
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Evan --------- 1987 sun roof coupe |
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Join Date: Jan 2000
Location: Reno, NV
Posts: 3,675
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Excellent writeup.
I'm going to send a link of this thread to a chap who just bought a pair of tired seats from my old SC.
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-- Chief Architect and Mastermind, SCWDP |
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Drive's a 911 Every Day
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: San Jose, Ca
Posts: 1,897
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You did a wonderful Job! Truly professional!
Jason |
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Thanks for the complements.
Leland, hold off for a couple days in sending the link. Don had asked me to take some interim photos, which I've done. I've also thought of some more important tips that will help. I plan to edit the writeup as soon as I finish the second seat. For example, I found that the dye should not be shaken, but stirred (reverse martini I guess). If shaken, it takes a long time for the air bubbles to leave the dye and they end up on the leather. That and a few other tips will be added.
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I'm basically waiting now for it to dry so I can reassemble. I have edited the writeup to include additional items that may help. Sorry for the length of the writeup; tried to cover small things that could ruin the work.
Don, you asked for some interim photos during the process. This photo shows the seat back disassembled from the bottom allowing access between the two sections. ![]() This shows the relative size of the brushes I used and also the piece of covered PVC I shove down between the bolster and seat bottom. I've pulled it up for this photo. If you don't have sport seats, you don't need this item. ![]() This step shows where I've used the artist brush and 1" brush to dye around the edges and piping. This is also known as the "What the hell am I doing step". ![]() This photo shows the seat bottom with its first coat and the back with it's initial thin coat. You can see on the side bolster that the old color still shows through the coat. Not to worry, move on to the next section, and go back over the exposed section with more thin coats until the old color disappears. ![]() This last photo shows what the seat looks like after the first coat but just before the second coat with the airbrush. See this link for the airbrush sprayer I used. Shoulda bought one years ago. ![]() Just for closure, I'll post one final photo of both seats completed after I reassemble the second one next week. |
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What?!?!
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Very, very nice! That's exactly what I asked to see. And once again, great job!! You should be happy for a long time.
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running shoes, couple tools, fishing pole 1996 Subaru Legacy Outback AWD, 5speed |
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Here's the finished product. Sorry for the delay in posting but I had an unexpected trip come up. Not all bad, it was to Rio de Janeiro. At least it gave the dye an extra week to fully cure.
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Driving member
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Those seats came out really nice. good job.
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Jerry '86 coupe gone but not forgotten Unlike women, a race car is an inanimate object. Therefore it must, eventually, respond to reason. |
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Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Cameron Park (NorCal)
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follow up...
autobonrun How has the dye held up after a few months? Is the color still true and is it showing any signs of wearing off? Thanks.
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Mike '80 911SC Weissach Edition '87 325is '02 K1200RS |
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