How much fabric to re-do my seats?

In restoring my old 66 Bonneville, how much vinyl do I need to buy for the re-upholsterer to do both seats; 60/40 split front and the back bench? There won't be any special back seat except maybe a fold-down center arm rest.

Since I can't find an upholsterer with the vinyl I want, I'm buying it myself... for those of you not familiar with Los Angeles' Fabric District, you are missing a spectacle of wonder. I found vinyl so convincing that I was sure it was leather. And, at $10 a yard I can afford to get extra... but how much is extra???

Thanks

Oh, by the way... its 60" fabric.

Well, the first question in determining fabric amount is what are the dementions of the seats, both parts (lower and upper) for the front and rear?

I have the numbers written down and I can figure out the real estate, but I didn't know if there were special techniques used by upholsterers, like if the fabric goes left to right or front to back? How much extra do you need for seams? questions like that. Its like a patient bringing his own scalpel to the operation. Being a layperson s/he may bring an #04 scalpel when the doctor had planned on using an #06.

If I recall, the seats are approximately 67" wide. The cushions are about 24" deep, and the backs are about 30" tall??? That sounds close, but I don't have the paper in front of me. I know it will take more than covering the original seats would since I'm going to fit a 60/40 in the front, but I guess I was hoping someone would say "6 is safe for a small car, 8 is safe for a big modern car, and 11 is safe for a big classic like that" But, again... layperson here. Maybe you can't make blanket statements like that.

I'm in the position to buy it inexpensively (I think) at about $12 per yard for excellent UV upholstery vinyl, so I don't mind getting some extra. Thoughts?

I always order extra, just to be safe. Basically measure the seats and figure out the approxamate amount need..neight-width. For the dips, etc...you can try to measure those and then add in the amoung after measureiong though if you take the time. Now you have an approxamate number. I always try to order 20% more, just to be safe. If you need 5 yards, order 6, etc. @ 12.99/roll yard, an extra yard on top of you the estimate should be more than enough, 2 yards I would think for sure. At that price it doesn't cost a lot to pad room for error. Also, this will give you a little extra in case you ever need to do a repair doen the road. You'll already have the material to do the repair, so you know it is the same. Now if it was something expenseive like Novasuede thats a different story, as @ $60 a roll yard wholesale...that can add up quick. The seams if I remeber on the last seat I did where link 1/4", maybe 1/3"...not a lot. It's hard to estimate without being there to see the seats and measure then myself, but being your in the LA I gather and I and the shop are in Portland, thats kind of hard to do, LOL. I hope I helped a bit

Hey, I'll drive up later today... Just kidding. :)

Thanks for the help. I think I'll go down tomorrow and just get a bunch. I might want to use some for door panel inserts or to cover a console or something. I'll try to get a brand name or a style for you when I get down there. Its the same stuff that my BMW cabrio had in it... its a vinyl that is backed with nylon fibers that only let it stretch one way. Any vinyl can have a realistic grain, but when you push your hand into it the stretch is the dead giveaway. I really wanted leather, but its going to be ivory in color and I thought a really good vinyl might be easier to keep it looking nice.

Thanks so much for your help!

10-11 yards will be pleanty of material to do the job and have a moderate amount left over. When you have your interior re done yo'll want to have that extra anyway just incase something comes up and you need it. With the way these fabric places discontinue their fabrics you dont want to find out that they dont make it anymore after you have something go wrong. It realy fuc@#$ yur day up after working that hard to get it right. So extra is always better.

10-11 yards will be pleanty of material to do the job and have a moderate amount left over. When you have your interior re done yo'll want to have that extra anyway just incase something comes up and you need it. With the way these fabric places discontinue their fabrics you dont want to find out that they dont make it anymore after you have something go wrong. It realy fuc@#$ yur day up after working that hard to get it right. So extra is always better.

Very true...extra is ALWAYS better than being short a few yards...LOL :)

no shit. Keyston decided to discontinue the velvet I was using to redo the interior in my van and I had to surch high and low to find 8 more yards of crushed velvet with the same shade of color and the right amount of crush to finish the job. I wont ever redo the interior in something as big as a van with crushed velvet again though. It's like a dust magnet.

Sweet choice in cars by the way. Are you restoring it back to original?What engine do you have in it?

Sweet choice in cars by the way. Are you restoring it back to original?What engine do you have in it?

Funny you should ask. I have two cars that are original; one is a 96 SS and its only original since I haven't torn into it yet. The other is my wife's Tercel :)

The Bonneville is but a mere shadow of its original condition. Caddy 500 engine, 14-bolt rear axle, one-ton front spindles and brakes, and the list just gets bigger... Click on the link in my sig and you'll get a list of my cars, then click on the Bonneville link and visit all three Bonny pages if you have the time. There is a real story there!

The only real part you won't find is my latest decisions about the interior. The exterior is going to be the color of whipped butter. The interior is going to have sage carpet and interior pieces with cream vinyl like I discussed above. The interior will be simple yet functional, but absolutely luxury. I like the look of long bench seats and long dash lines, so I don't want to interrupt that, but at the same time I need the seats to please my backside. I might keep the bench, but 60/40 it and make a little bit of bucketing in the contours. The dash will be an exotic hardwood with white-faced VDO gauges. I'm not sure of the hardwood; maybe bird's eye maple, but there will be a lot of it and it might be a little busy. I thought of something simple like birch, but it might be too simple. Still tossing that one around.

Then nice thing is, the gauge panel is flat, so customizing it will be super simple. I also found a guy who has a CNC wood machine. I'm going to cut text in the panels, finish the panel with epoxy, then light the text from the back. He can make accurate text down to 6pt in any font, so I'm really stoked about that.

Anyway, I ramble. Check out the site if you're bored :)

You have some good tastes. Very keen sence of color schemes. I like custom work myself. I hate to see a classic goddied up with add ons but as far as the seats and door panels I like to customize them to highlight the lines of the vehicle. I like leather for old classics. It may be a wallet buster at times but it sure puts that added luxury into the workmanship. Even mixing it up a little and doing a leather velvet combination Is something I like. And I have found that memory foam may be exspensive but substatuting 1 inch from the top of your seat foam with it is wourth every penny of it. I never have liked the vinyl wrapped paneling they used for door panels in old 50-70's vehicles. They just look too plain to me.I usualy redo them with fiberglass and add a little body to them. I look at the body of the car from the side and note any identifying lines and try to accent them with the door panels in some way. I also like my car audio, so I usualy integrate a set of hidden component speakers into them so that you cant even tell they are there. I have also found a guy here in denver that takes old stereos and re builds them using modern day components. He showed me an old 57 chevy radio that looked like it was in mint condition and it was actualy a flip down panasonic cd player. He dont sell them cheap but they are wourth every penny he asks for them. He also re builds them back to their old glory. Even adds on little options like front and rear speakers or preamp outputs for amplifiers. If anyone wants them. He's a genius. And He is realy old. looks about 60 or 70 years old and listens to ozzy. Very interesting old guy.