The 'Stuff I Build' thread. Or...the 'Why I don't have a build thread', thread.

[Old77]

I wanna see that console wrapped! You can definitely tell it was assembled by a cabinet maker

 

[upper_tanker]

I just finished looking through this entire thread. Your work is AMAZING! I've always been an admirer of anybody who can do this type of work as well as people like you can. I know a guy who's in his 70s who works out of a body shop doing this, and he does great work also. This is definitely a learned skill that can take a long time to be proficient at. I would never have enough patience to learn to do it and make it look as great as you can. If I can't do something and make it look really great, I'll pay somebody to do it and have no problem doing so. Much respect to you and everybody like you!

 

[sewlow]

I just finished looking through this entire thread. Your work is AMAZING! I've always been an admirer of anybody who can do this type of work as well as people like you can. I know a guy who's in his 70s who works out of a body shop doing this, and he does great work also. This is definitely a learned skill that can take a long time to be proficient at. I would never have enough patience to learn to do it and make it look as great as you can. If I can't do something and make it look really great, I'll pay somebody to do it and have no problem doing so. Much respect to you and everybody like you!

I think I've mention this in here before, but...
People ask me all the time if I can do 'this'? Let's say 'this' is a '53 Buick Skylark Convertible.
"Yup! Sure."
Right answer to the wrong question.
The right question would be..."Have you ever done a '53 Buick Skylark Convertible before?"
"Well...no."
The confidence to say "Yup! Sure.' comes from knowing my basics. The very first things I learned.
I still fall back on them & use them daily.
From the simplest job (kitchen chairs or a footstool) to the restoration of just mind-boggling complicated nightmares, (Pillow-top '70's Cadillac bench seats! Gawd I hate those!) to fabricating custom one-of-a-kind seats for HotRods from scratch.
They all have same thing in common. Everyone of them.
That would be...a middle center point.
Whenever I feel I'm getting in over my head, I just go back to the beginning. My beginning. Back to the very first rule I was taught. The rule that every project follows. The rule of fabrication.
"Start from the center & work out from there."
Works every time.
I had some great mentors/teachers/co-workers over the years that were unselfish with the sharing of their knowledge. The little tricks they had accumulated over the years. From some guys I might of only learned one trick in 6 months. With others it was a daily barrage of info.
Many weren't even upholsterers. Saddle makers, leather-workers, steel fabricators, woodworkers & machinists. Even dress & suit makers.
Most of those people never knew each other, but they were all consistant on that one point. Find the center & go.

Now when I work on customer's projects, it doesn't matter what the actual vehicle is. I could care less if it's a '34 Packard or a '56 356A Porsche Speedster.
Following the basics gets me through.
Everything else is just practice, practice, practice. The same as learning any other trade.
Mistakes are a leaning process. They happen. Oh well. Ooops. I just look at that as an opportunity to start over, only smarter.

I used to tell my kids that all I did all day was work on jig-saw puzzles. Only thing is, I had to make all the pieces.

By the way, I actually have done 2 '34 Packard Roadsters! 25 years apart!
...and right now I'm sitting in the shop beside 2 complete '53 Buick Skylark convertible interiors! Both are going to be exactly the same. Same leather & colors. One's for a multi-return customer here in Vancouver & the other interior will be completed & sent 2200 miles away to the owner & his vehicle in Winnepeg, where he'll have that installed by another interior guy that I know & trust.
This has only happened one other time. 2 '58 Corvette interiors booked in the same week. Both in black, as original, and both in leather instead of the factory vinyl. Too weird. Makes things easier, though. Just lay out 4 of everything at the same time from the same pattern, all at once.

Ahhh...look at me here, just a ramblin' away. Got sidetracked.
Came here to post up the last of the wagoon pix.
Next post. Gimme a sec.

 

[sewlow]

Armrests not installed yet.

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The cranks don't have the clips installed to hold them on. Just on as a test fit. Making sure the mechanisms still all work with the D/P installed. Ya just never know! PitA to remove the handles with fluffy new foam underneath the new vinyl. I'd hate to put a tear in one!
The pix of the passenger side door panel shows their final positioning.

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Should of taken the moving-blankets out. I use them to cover up & protect installed pieces while I'm working on others.

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[df2x4]

@sewlow Just curious, have you ever made belts or watch straps? Your last post about working on anything from simple to nightmare status got me wondering. What's the smallest, simplest project you would recommend to someone who wanted to try making something out of leather?

 

[sewlow]

Belts & watchbands require the use of specialty jigs & tools, along with the manual dexterity that, after 40+ years of pulling, stretching & the beating of seats, covers & convertible tops into submission, the ole digits just don't have anymore.
There's just some stuff that isn't worth my time to do.

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I don't get the really good good-guy prices on materials because I'm not purchasing in large enough amounts.
I don't buy 5000 yards of material at a time. More like 20 or 30. Those large Co.'s are paying $5.00/yard for the same material that costs me $30.00/yard.
Same with leather. What I pay $20.00/sq.ft for, they're getting for $5.00/sq.ft.
I buy 4 or 5 hides at a time. They buy 400-500. Of just one color!
That's why people can buy pre-made carpet kits for less than what I pay for the basic roll-stock.
I can't compete with the big guy's buying power.

 

[skylark]

A 53 Skylark convertible is one of my dream cars!

 

[Maroon96]

@sewlow Just curious, have you ever made belts or watch straps? Your last post about working on anything from simple to nightmare status got me wondering. What's the smallest, simplest project you would recommend to someone who wanted to try making something out of leather?

I got started in leather a few years ago when a guy helped me make my first knife sheath. I realized then it's just getting into it thats the daunting part. I'm mostly self taught with a some tips picked up from leatherworker.net and a friend who makes stuff occasionally.

As far as a simple project to start out on, I'd recommend getting a belt blank from panhandleleather.com. Then get a border stamp, edge slicker, and wax from Tandy leather. Look on the leather worker forum for ideas or order of operations. You can get belt blanks from Tandy as well, but they aren't near the quality, thickness, or length as the ones from Panhandle and cost more. Although I've never made it to one, Tandy does have classes if there's a store near you.

Once you take that first step, you'll find the basics are pretty simple. While carving/building a saddle or something takes practice to do well, a simple belt isn't to hard. Take the time to study it after your'e done and see what you can do to make it easier and make less mistakes next time. Don't get discouraged by those mistakes, just make them better next time. That's the journey. Good luck.

 

[sewlow]

Last week. '67 Chevelle SS396 Headliner. Rare interior color.
Long term project.
Rest of the interior is a kit that was done a couple of years ago. Not by me. Because of that, I didn't take pix. Not my work.
Looked good, but whomever did it, just pulled the new covers on without going through the rest of the seats before-hand.
Rear seat was good. Passenger seat, too.
But that driver's side bucket. The outer support springs in the cushion & backrest were broken. Every time I got in or out...'click-click click-click' as those broken pieces worked against each other causing the rest of the springs & framework to sag & bind along that outer edge.
As soon as I sat on the seat, I knew what was wrong. Drove me nuts over the length of the job. 'Click-click. Click-click.' Grrr.
This is typical of these type of seats. Just the nature of the design. ...and a common repair! Why it wasn't fixed is beyond me. To me, that's a sign of laziness, a lack of knowledge or the installer just didn't pay attention. Or cared enough about the job & his shop's rep to fix properly.
The customer didn't know until I pointed out the problem.
While the seats are apart, inspect the frame work & the springs. The seat's already apart & a quick look only takes a couple of minutes. If the problem is going to take more than a hour to fix, then the customer needs to be notified & the repair time cleared with him.
The installer should've spotted the issue & it should of been fixed. No excuses.
Otherwise, it's like building a house on a cracked foundation.

"There's never time to do a job the first time, but there's always time to do it over." is not a money-making proposition!

But the original installer is not getting the opportunity to do it over. Now, after the vehicle's outa paint & body, the seat's coming back to me to be fixed up properly.
...and the owner's paying twice for a job that shoiuld of been done right the first time.

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Off to get the body work & paint done. Vinyl roof is to be removed. It won't be replaced.

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[HotWheelsBurban]

Absolutely beautiful! You are an artist!
There's a guy in central Texas named Vernon McKean who has done interiors for over 50 years, my parents knew him before I was born. He did a 55 Chevy coupe for my dad, that unfortunately I have no pictures of. He and his daughter did the interiors in Jimmie Vaughan 's 51 Chevy Fleetline and 63 Riviera. His pleats are always straight too and his stuff matches up like it's supposed to. Couple years ago I saw him in Lafayette, Louisiana at a show. He had a 48 Ford coupe that he'd done the interior and trunk in. 89 years old and still doing beautiful work!
I grew up knowing this man was an automotive artist. You are too, even more amazing than him, and that's saying something!