The one phrase I hear all the time from car enthusiasts is “except for.” My seats are in excellent condition … except for this one seam that is split. The top on my car is like new … except for the rear window that is yellow and difficult to latch. My car is perfect … except for the mouse hole in the headliner.
What I know for sure is, the seat springs are broken, the foam has deteriorated, and the burlap foundation is dry rotted. When the convertible top binding is cracking and it is almost impossible to latch, it is time for a whole new top. Oh, and a mouse hole means a nest and a lot of mouse dirt is lurking just overhead.
Just because a car interior looks good, doesn’t mean that it is serviceable. After 45 years or more of use, compounded by exposure to the elements, everything inside the car needs extensive repair and replacement. Factor in animal and insect infestations, and you have a smelly, filthy mess that is crying out to be replaced with clean and fresh materials.
Most car owners believe that restoring their car’s interior will be really expensive. Well, it is expensive if you go about it the wrong way. You can save money on restoring the interior of your car if you know a few things.
Why Restore the Interior
The interior makes up one third of the car. The engine is one third and the body and paint are one third. Unfortunately, the interior doesn’t get one third of the budget and often becomes an afterthought when it comes to your restoration dollars. As the driver, you will spend a lot of time sitting inside the car. Why wouldn’t you want a nice, comfortable interior?
The value of your car increases dramatically if the interior is in prime condition. An old, worn-out, and damaged interior only detracts from the value of the car.
You can save money by restoring your interior yourself, if you are smart about it. Knowing your limitations and preplanning make all the difference in any restoration. Do not start buying stuff just because it is a “good” deal. Online “box” houses do not care what you buy; they just want you to buy. It is up to you to know exactly what type of car you are working on; purchasing the wrong parts can be an expensive mistake.
Changes cost money. Redoing something because you changed your mind about it costs money. Moreover, if you find yourself in over your head after purchasing interior materials, hiring the wrong trimmer will cost you money.
Working with a true professional gets you the best products for the best price. They also know how to properly install the interior components. If you are a hands-on person looking to restore a dream car, this book will help guide you in the right direction. Any task can be accomplished in many ways, but there is only one way to restore a cars’ interior: the right way.
CHAPTER 1
TOOLS OF THE TRADE
Tools are designed to help you do a better job. Cheap tools are often made poorly and do not operate as smoothly as they should. They often fail prematurely, which can cause damage to your work or injury to you. When a tool breaks it usually is replaced with another, and this frequent replacement gets expensive. For these reasons, off-brand or cheap tools are usually not good choices for the professional. Higher-grade tools made with precision and quality cost you less in the long run because they help you save time working on your projects and achieve professional results. You also get a lot more use out of a professional-grade tool.
It is always a good practice to put your tools away when you are finished using them. You will work more efficiently in a neat workplace, with less time wasted searching for a desired tool. It is also important to keep your tools clean and in working order. As you work on a project, your tools become covered in glue and dirt. Take the time to properly service your tools. Wipe them off when they get dirty and keep them oiled and sharp. With a little care, your tools will stay serviceable for a long time.
Tools can be expensive and take a lifetime to acquire. If you do make a living with your tools, make a habit of not loaning your tools to others as they tend to come back broken or not at all. I know only one thing for sure, and that is, if you take care of your tools, they will take care of you.
As with any specialty trade, upholstery requires some unique tools that can make each job easier to accomplish. Every shop should have the basic tools found in any toolbox (i.e., screwdrivers, socket set, hex wrenches) to perform the everyday tasks of auto upholstery. Upholstery-specific hand tools that are essential to the trade include hog-ring pliers, staple and tack lifters, heavy-duty scissors, and my favorite tool, the regulator. Although not required, a walking-foot sewing machine, foam saw, and steamer are nice to have.
The HooVer Pres-N-Snap tool is the most efficient way to install snaps and grommets in upholstery materials. Not only does it save you time, it installs snaps professionally without crushing or denting the cap. The tool is available at almost any professional upholstery supplier and comes complete with three sets of setting dies.
Most auto trim suppliers have the professional tools you need. Basic tools such as hog-ring pliers and scissors are not very expensive and will serve you for a long time. Entry-level tools range from $12 to $40 per tool, but as your auto trim needs grow, acquiring tools that make the job easier will appeal to you. They will save you time and can earn you more money.
Organizing your tools is not a science but a matter of convenience. Access to any tool should be effortless. Many shops store theirs in overfilled toolbox drawers, and they waste precious time hunting for the right tool. Specialty racking devices are available to help sort sockets and wrenches by size and type.
Keeping all your screwdrivers organized in one drawer can be simplified by just opposing the screwdriver handles: Have the straight-blade screwdrivers point to the right and the Phillips screwdrivers point to the left. This tip alone will save you a lot of time when you are looking for a certain screwdriver.
Specialty tools can be stored in a drawer with similar tools and so on.
Not all tools need to be state of the art. Using a lesser tool may work just fine when you are just starting out in the upholstery trade. For example, an electric knife can be used to cut foam if you cannot afford a foam saw. Another example is a gravity-fed cup gun to spray glue. They work well for most shops and are available at a low cost. A cup gun requires very little maintenance, whereas a pressurized spray pot is great for large jobs and is more convenient to use, but the cost and cleanup are much more substantial.
Sometimes you find yourself needing to accomplish a task and you just don’t have the right tool to do the job. Unfortunately, that special tool sometimes does not exist. Well, you just can’t buy everything, so modifying or fabricating a tool for that specific task is necessary. For example, I needed a long, thin, but rigid stuffing tool. Such a tool is not available in a catalog or online, so I took a simple piece of bar stock that I had in my scrap pile, rounded the end, and polished it smooth to make a great stuffing tool. You will find that the longer you work in the auto upholstery trade, the more creative you become, and overcoming problems soon becomes second nature to you.
Sample Tools List
The list of tools that you use in the upholstery trade can be long. Building a tool set takes time and could cost hundreds of dollars if you tried to get them all at once. Start simply with the very basic hand tools and pick up other hand tools and power tools as you need them.
Please note that the following list is far from complete and not all of them are needed to begin work on a project.
Hand Tools
• Screwdrivers: assorted Phillips, slotted, Torx (The use of a magnetic-tip handle gives you the freedom to carry fewer tools around by providing more variety in a single tool.)
• Hammers: tack hammer, ball-peen, body hammers (A rubber mallet or dead-blow hammer is also quite handy to have.)
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