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Upholstery Discussion

jfb05177jfb05177Member
How about discussing upholstery options I am considering?

For the car, I plan on having something I can cruise around town and take on interstate trips. Hoping to drive it a lot. It is an early L with the two pod dash. The paint is going to be a silver/grey. I do need to watch the cost so I am currently thinking vinyl versus leather.

On the cosmetic side of the discussion, I was thinking of going with saddle colored. My few vehicles have been silver grey with charcoal, light grey and saddle interiors. The saddle did seem a bit odd when I bought the car, but it grew on me. So any comments on the color choice?

On the craft side. Does anyone know the amounts of material needed?
Seats
Dash
Console
Headliner
Bulk head (hoping to have a bump reduction)
Carpet, I was thinking the inner as well as the outer kick panels will be carpet. Also thinking the flat section of the bulkhead

Also any recommendations or warnings?

Other considerations are the plan is to ship the body and trailer full of parts to someone else to put it all together. So I am thinking headliner, carpet, kick panels and bulk head will be done after.

There are only a few local shops available to me. I visited two of them yesterday. The first, I would be afraid that my pieces would be lost amongst all the other unfinished work. The second one was a real experience. From the road, I started just to drive on. Even as I approached the door I was on high alert. Seeing the proprietor made me wish I had of keep driving. BUT, after seeing his shops (motorcycle and upholstery) and talking with him I was impressed. I have a third shop I hope to visit when I can. This third shop is recommended by the local body shop and even the second shop is respected.

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rockyrockyMember
JFB....

On the seat side, I am happy to report the Corvette C4 seats are an easy install, look good, and hold you in place well.

If you have to redo the whole interior, then you have to decide between more options, but seats with black vinyl, or vinyl with cloth insides will match your "generic" black interior easily....

Rocky
jfb05177jfb05177Member
I was thinking of a complete interior. (just to have new with new paint)

However, looking over the pieces with the uphosteror, A good cleaning and my seats and door panels would be OK.

My dash and console are a mess though with all the holes cut in them. when I get a chance I was planning on taking a pic of the lower drivers side and ask if any of those holes were needed. I think I could get a used dash and thus all I would really need is carpet and headliner. That would save me a good 2 to 3K.

a sample of the colors I was thinking about, the darker "saddle" for the dash, console and seat bolsters with the proferated lighter tan in the seat centers and headliner

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Last edited by jfb05177
fordgtfordgtMember
Never been a big fan of saddle color interiors but you have to go with what you like.You can save a BUNCH of money by using a high grade marine vinyl that looks and feels like leather and out performs leather since you don't need to "condition" it regularly. I saved over 3k by using this instead of leather and many people can't tell the difference by look or feel.
jfb05177jfb05177Member
Thanks for the comments and info.

as for the grey exterior / saddle interior, I got such a deal on a 90 Bonniville SSE with that combo and learned to like it

I said my dash had several holes drilled for all types of attachments when I got it. I THINK the holes I have marked with blue arrows are the original ones. Would some one please verify if possible. I am thinking they would be for the odometer trip reset, a side support and the two center warning lamps. I am hoping those holes can be repaired either with plastic bumper repair methods or just bondo and glass cloth

are the warning lights available or would one have them?

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panteradougpanteradougMember
First of all, that original material, as far as I can determine is un-obtainium. Maybe Wilkinson found some, but I don't think so.

Second, you have to have the talent of an Italian seamstress to be able to sew this stuff to the level that the factory did.

I can tell you that the dual pod is a b i tch to do and make it look anywhere near acceptable.

Realistic numbers just to redo the dual pod dash are more like $1,000, on your dash.

It's much simpler to find a dual pod that is good enough to use now.


The labor to do a complete interior is about $3,500. It could go more, plus the materials when and where you can find them.


I just redid my dash going from a dual pod to a single pod. Simply put if I had to do this on a contract for a customer, figure you owe me about $5000 just for the dash.

Too expensive? Then go away and bother someone else.

Traditionally in the So California area, the good upholstery shops are in Tijuana, Mexico. That's where you can find the people who are good enough to sew this stuff together.

Call Hall Pantera. They can give you a quote on any reupholstery you want or need. They have a shop down the street from them that does their Panteras.


It requires special tables and heavy duty machines to do. Even the threads for it are special.

Again, the dual pod is as close to a nightmare to do as anything I've ever seen and you need to deal with that material bubbling off of the fiberglass when you park the car in the sun.
rmccallrmccallMember
Sorry Doug but I couldn't disagree more about re-covering a early dash. My upholstery guy has a material that matches perfectly and he has repaired several dashes and seats for me for very little money. He has replaced single panels in original seats and you can't tell which ones he replaced from the ones that he didn't .
Now,if you could find someone who could repair an L-Model dash without re-covering it...that would be nice!!!


Ron
panteradougpanteradougMember
Ron. I think of it this way.

It's ok to disagree on this stuff. In fact, that's what brings out the solutions like this. Otherwise people who have found solutions sit on their hands and no one else hears of it?

I think your guy is going to be very busy? Works for me.

What's his contact information? Without that, a post like yours is useless and seems to me, a little confrontational? Wink


On the "L", if you mean a single pod US dash, aren't they plastic and crack? My 73 is an L and came with a dual pod, so calling a single pod an "L" I don't think is entirely accurate?

Those are the ones that need to be replaced? The replacements are just fiberglass I think, unless you can find NOS.
rmccallrmccallMember
quote:
Originally posted by PanteraDoug:
Ron. I think of it this way.

It's ok to disagree on this stuff. In fact, that's what brings out the solutions like this. Otherwise people who have found solutions sit on their hands and no one else hears of it?

I think your guy is going to be very busy? Works for me.

What's his contact information? Without that, a post like yours is useless and seems to me, a little confrontational? Wink


On the "L", if you mean a single pod US dash, aren't they plastic and crack? My 73 is an L and came with a dual pod, so calling a single pod an "L" I don't think is entirely accurate?

Those are the ones that need to be replaced? The replacements are just fiberglass I think, unless you can find NOS.


Doug,

My post was not meant to be "confrontational" what so ever.
Believe me, he has way more work than he can handle at all times. Finding an honest ,fairly priced upholstery shop in this area is not easy ! I have been through several.
And I don't see how my post is useless without the contact info??? My contact info is:
McCall's Auto Works
rfmccall@Comcast.net and 410-239-2291.
And seeing as how I do this full time to make a living,that is all anyone would need to know to have their early ( two pod) dash repaired. And yes I was referring to the later single pod dash (late '72-'74) but I think that you already knew that. ;-)

Ron
F firstpanteraMember
quote:
Now,if you could find someone who could repair an L-Model dash without re-covering it...that would be nice!!!

This isnt really a repair, it is a complete recovery. but if you really need your single pod to look original this is the way to go. Just Dashes
I had this done to my single pod. It was done by a different firm but they've since gone out of business. You could probably send them one of the fiberglass repops and have it made to look original. At that time I think it cost me about $700 to have my dash done. Just Dashes was about $200-$300 more.
jtpanterajtpanteraMember
Kingwood Upholstery, Porter, Texas - 281.354.7787 ask for Mario. Upholstered my Bullfrog and Kirby Schrader's dash. My full interior was about $2500 in a leather substitute. Of course, I brought the pieces to him to cover. Mario did not have to extract it from the car. Great job on early dash. Kirby's done in leather - I don't know the cost - maybe double depending on material.

He has received other Pantera owners requests for headliners as he has done several cars with the Pantera logo.

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jfb05177jfb05177Member
NC to TX is a little farther than I care Smiler But the cost info is well aprciated. like the talks I have with the three local shops, they give an estimate for the job including material.

It will be a few weeks before the shop I decided to use can look at all the pieces and decide how much material to buy. Would a guess of 10 yards total be enough?
jfb05177jfb05177Member
I understood, all my pieces are out of the car also.

My post may have been confussing as I meant to say that the initital discussions with any uphostors is they say $250 per seat. I would perfer they say $200 labor and 1 1/2 yards.

the upholstor gave me the name of his main supplier (J&L Fabric, NC) and I have search that the vinyl prices easily go from $15 to $50 per yard.

I have listen to the polite suggestions that I consider going so bold with the saddle interior and now looking at Charcol/gray combination as this seems to be more available from the supplier.

as for repairing the holes in the dash, I have googled bumper repair and noticed there are two part epoxy products that look like they might be good.

another intersting item I have encountered, that is the lack of sporty sytle clocks that I though might go in the hole between the AC ducts. the appreacation of the rally clocks must still be there as the originals are bringing outragous high prices!

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Last edited by jfb05177
jfb05177jfb05177Member
Could some one provide detail photos of the Brake & Brake Wear warning lamps on an L two pod dash? Mine were gone when I got the car

I had the holes in my dash repaired with bumper filler Fusor 132/133. (looks good). I left the two warning lamp holes, hopefully I can find something to install. the Uphosteror is supposed to be finishing up on a fleet project the middle of next week and hopefully I will be next
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