Patterning
Material Orientation
Panel Inserts
Rear Apron Panel
Welt Cord
Listings
Seat Cover
Seat Cushion
Seat Cover Installation
Outside Backs
Final Assembly
Seat Cover Build Without a Pattern
Pleated Seat Cover Alignment
Material Choices
Deconstruction
Door Panel Cleat Fabrication
Creating a New Door Panel
Door Panel Assembly
Door Panel Installation
Planning and Layout
Panel Construction
Installation
Armrest Replacement
Console Restoration
Fabrication
Inspection
Create a Headliner
Bow Measurement
Headliner Prep
Windlace
Headliner Installation
Dome Light
Sun Visor
Package Tray
Project Assessment
The Pad
Carpet Measurements
Sewing
Carpet Installation
Inspection and Evaluation
Removal and Adjustment
Header Bow Servicing
Frame Servicing
Frame Painting
Pad Installation
Rear Tack Rail
Well Liner
Rear Curtain
Top Fitment
Prior Damage Repair
Hydraulic System Servicing
Tack Rail Reconditioning
Double-Blank Curtain
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I would like to acknowledge Don Hanson, Russel Peterson, and Lon Burris for the opportunity to work on their projects and share them with you, the enthusiast.
Most of all I thank the one who saw the potential in me as a child, my grandmother, Rose, who taught me how to thread a needle and sew buttons.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Fred Mattson began working on car interiors as a teenager in the 1970s by hand stitching inserts into his own 1969 Oldsmobile and working on the cars of several friends in his neighborhood.
Soon after opening a full-time upholstery business in 1980, Fred’s auto trimming career expanded to sewing car interiors for many prestigious upholstery shops and restoration specialists in the metropolitan area of the Twin Cities, in Minnesota.
Having earned the nickname “Fearless,” Fred works his magic on hopeless projects, restoring them to factory condition by fabricating missing parts and reconditioning the potentially hopeless.
Fred now restores vintage American cars. His clients have won numerous awards and trophies and credit their wins to the high quality and correctness of detail of their interiors and convertible tops.
INTRODUCTION
My goal for writing this book is to pass along some knowledge and spark interest in vintage car restoration. It is my intent to leave you with enough information to take on a project and complete it with confidence and success.
Through years of research and conversations, I have learned a trade that has brought me much joy and pain. Learning about the evolution of the automobile and then applying that knowledge to the restoration of these wonderful works of art gives me much satisfaction. Turning junk into gems is a fulfilling endeavor. I wish you the joy of being a part of the auto trimmer