Upholstery

Any DA40 related topics

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vontresc
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Upholstery

Post by vontresc »

Just trying to get an idea of costs involved. Our -40 now has 3500+ hours, and the front seats are pretty worn. It is time to look at getting the leather and foam replaced. What have you guys. done? Get new covers from Diamond? Find a local shop? Also what should I be budgeting?

thanks

Peter
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astaib
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Re: Upholstery

Post by astaib »

Hi Peter,

I had all my interior seats + sides and roof plates done for 3k€ by an old lady specialist in car upholstery.

Arnaud.
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Roxi5m9
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Re: Upholstery

Post by Roxi5m9 »

I’d love to hear more about experiences and costs as well as we should do our interior soon. Any recommendations in the Midwest or Southeast would be appreciated.
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perossichi
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Re: Upholstery

Post by perossichi »

My front seats (2002) were a mess. The co-pilot had a 2" long cut in the leather and the pilot's seat was severely worn in the small of the back area. They were also dirty.

I bought a leather reconditioning kit from Leather World Technologies (they sell materials for car seats). I picked the grey color from their color pallet. You use vinyl filler to replace tears and holes. Clean, abrade and dye the seat. It takes a lot of patience as the dye requires at least 5-6 thin coats to cover everything. Then you seal with a silicone compound. I also redid the back seats which were dirty but in better shape.

I did this in 2017 and have flown 500 hours since then and the repairs still look like brand new.

The only problem is that this approach requires time and patience for the repair to come out well.
Front_seats_small.jpg
Sold 2002. Powerflo, Hartzell composite two blade, 530W/430, 345 transponder.
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Re: Upholstery

Post by PeterK »

astaib wrote: Fri May 14, 2021 7:39 pm Hi Peter,

I had all my interior seats + sides and roof plates done for 3k€ by an old lady specialist in car upholstery.

Arnaud.
Wouldn't that require new weight and balance?
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Josh F
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Re: Upholstery

Post by Josh F »

The seats can be pretty easily refinished. Find your higher-end car upholstery shop near you. Pull all the seats out and have them repair and re-dye the seats. It won't cost you much

Peter, which kit did you use from Leather World? I just bought a 2008 XLS and the leather seats are in BAD shape - the center panels for lumbar and seat pan need replacing on all 4 seats. I'd love to fix them, but my reserves are already deep in the hole on required maintenance, so I'm interested in the DIY solution.
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Colin
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Re: Upholstery

Post by Colin »

On the other forum I frequent interior work by non-aviation people is considered A Bad Thing, primarily because the materials in the plane all have a fire rating and, oddly, they do not in a car.

Of course, this matters less with our planes since there have been so few post-crash fires.
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Charles K
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Re: Upholstery

Post by Charles K »

I'm also interested to know which kit from LeatherWorld as well as which color (thinking F37 Lt Grey). Mine are a bit dirty as well. Thanks!
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Re: Upholstery

Post by perossichi »

I used IN52 Lgtgray2 as the color from Leatherworld technology.

The key to getting good results is to apply everything in very thin coats and be patient.

When u use the vinyl filler, also apply very thin coats and sand with 800 grit emery paper.

I should have taken before and after pics, but tears and worn spots are now gone. The silicone sealer works great.

I used a hair dryer to dry dye coats so that I could put on several coats per hour.

Make sure you allow the final dye coat to dry for at least 24 hours before putting the seal coat on.

I used the color prep solution very vigorously and with multiple applications to get rid of a great deal of dirt on the pilot and co pilot seats.
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Josh F
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Re: Upholstery

Post by Josh F »

My key interest is repairing the lumbar inserts and seat pan inserts. Any sense whether the Leather World product could work on something like this:

https://lonemountainaircraft.sharefile. ... 2f713f5732

Thanks again,
Josh
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