szrdave Posted November 24, 2010 Report Share Posted November 24, 2010 The seat cover on my bike is has perished and split, I guess from sitting unused in the sun we had this summer. Not a problem i thought, and emailed a few local car upholsters to get some quotes to recover it in plain black vinyl. I was expecting it to cost about £50 or so, but have got quotes back of £85-£165 so far which seems like a lot to stretch a bit of vinyl over the base and staple it down. Or am I just tight?! A quick browse of ebay shows black vinyl and 'heavy duty' staplers at reasonable prices, but will I make a mess of it?! Any advice from someone who has attempted this previously would be appreciated, if it's going to end up looking like a baggy arse I'll save myself the hassle and give it top the professionals! The seat in question: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cagimaha Posted November 24, 2010 Report Share Posted November 24, 2010 Number 6 on this very forum does seat recovering IIRC so it might be worth getting a quote from him? Alternatively if you're not after a mega flashy job then I normally use a local marine upholsterers who charged me about £15 for both seats off a cagiva mito recovering in blain black vinyl a couple of years ago and it's still going strong. Might be worth seeing if you can find one of them? Hope this helps, Ben. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Number 6 Posted November 24, 2010 Report Share Posted November 24, 2010 Doing it in plain black would be £55 but you'd have to get it to me so you'll need to add carriage both ways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gurninman Posted November 24, 2010 Report Share Posted November 24, 2010 It's not easy if you have any sort of shapes apart from totally flat. I did one on an early VFR750 - it took me ages and looked shit.Ended up just covering the seat with gaffer tape. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marcuszs Posted November 24, 2010 Report Share Posted November 24, 2010 I's simple did mine the other day , used some alcantara from ebay Started with this Used 6mm staples and a heavy duty stapler , kept pulling the material tight Ended with this Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fatfreddie19 Posted November 24, 2010 Report Share Posted November 24, 2010 I's simple did mine the other day , used some alcantara from ebay Started with this Used 6mm staples and a heavy duty stapler , kept pulling the material tight Ended with this I did a honda XR600 seat with some cheapo blue vinyl(?) and a heavy duty staple gun, warmed up the vinyl with a hairdryer to help stretch it over the contours and used spray on adhesive on the seat foam. Worked very well! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gook184 Posted November 24, 2010 Report Share Posted November 24, 2010 I bought some black vinyl from an upholstery shop and the gookmother stapled it on to my seat bases. Looks good but not like it cost 80 or 100 quid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
szrdave Posted November 24, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 24, 2010 Doing it in plain black would be £55 but you'd have to get it to me so you'll need to add carriage both ways. I guess you're not near London then? It's a shame, as that's the sort of money I was expecting, and from a PB forum member/with forum recommendation too Unfortunately as I've only got one bike at the moment I need somewhere local who can do a quick job. If I can pick up a h/d stapler cheap off the 'bay I'll give it a go myself, but the shape is quite complex so it might end up more 'dog turd' than 'the dogs bollocks'! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Number 6 Posted November 25, 2010 Report Share Posted November 25, 2010 I guess you're not near London then? It's a shame, as that's the sort of money I was expecting, and from a PB forum member/with forum recommendation too Unfortunately as I've only got one bike at the moment I need somewhere local who can do a quick job. If I can pick up a h/d stapler cheap off the 'bay I'll give it a go myself, but the shape is quite complex so it might end up more 'dog turd' than 'the dogs bollocks'! I'm junction 15 on the M1 you are more than welcome to ride up and I'll do it while you thaw out. With a bit of planning it shouldn't take more than an hour. As you said you've got a shape there that requires a very pliable vinyl, a lot of them only stretch in one direction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaighn80 Posted November 25, 2010 Report Share Posted November 25, 2010 I'm junction 15 on the M1 you are more than welcome to ride up and I'll do it while you thaw out. With a bit of planning it shouldn't take more than an hour. As you said you've got a shape there that requires a very pliable vinyl, a lot of them only stretch in one direction. yep used to have to plan sound system's according to the way the vinyl stretched so yes if you want it to look good and you've never done it before it might be worth the ride, besides it's an excuse to take the bike out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lorenzo Posted November 30, 2010 Report Share Posted November 30, 2010 Obviously, I can't make the distance any shorter to get to him, but I can heartily recommend the work No 6's done in the past, having seen his own bike and also having had him do my own seat. In fact, at some point in the not too distant future I'm going to have to have a word about this GS seat... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dodgy_tom Posted November 30, 2010 Report Share Posted November 30, 2010 Another recommendation for that #6 fella here, did my Triumph seat- and the seat on the DR- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
szrdave Posted November 30, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2010 I'm sold! The seat will definitely be coming to you Number 6, although there is no way I'm riding that far on a bike that uncomfortable in this weather! I've got another bike to look at after Xmas with a view to adding it to the stable, so I'll either post the seat up or ride the (prospective) new bike up basking in that new bike glow. Either way I'll be in touch via pm when I'm ready Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Number 6 Posted December 1, 2010 Report Share Posted December 1, 2010 No problem as and when. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jollygiant Posted December 1, 2010 Report Share Posted December 1, 2010 Great finish No 6!! I have done plain black ones my self. As said warm the vinyl, staple one side in middle then the opposite side then the ends in middle and fill the gaps keep good tension. As not to crease.... Take your time.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pinkbike1 Posted December 2, 2010 Report Share Posted December 2, 2010 Number 6 How much to remove the strap and fit a gel insert into the pillion pad on a 929 Fireblade? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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