[29 Chev]

Met with Chubien today and he got his 850 seat back and left me with a couple of seats off of Bolens 900's - also got to meet member AAHayes face to face at the same time. The plan is to try and recover one and see how close I can make it look to an original 900 seat - if it turns out ok then I will do the other one for him and possibly have one for sale (if he doesn't find another 900 to rebuild ) - time will tell. I thought I would do a post on this one since it uses a crimped or rolled lip around the outer edge to hold the cover on which presents a new challenge to a seat recovering - hope you don't mind another seat recover project Attached are pictures of the two seats and a picture that I found on the site of what I believe the 900 seat should look like (minus the duct tape)- if someone has a better picture of a 900 seat that shows the pattern of the cover feel free to post it as it may be helpful. The seat I am going to start on has bolts along the edge that appear to have held a replacement cover on it at some point in its life so they will have to be removed and the holes filled in. This will be a project that will get worked on as time permits so the updates may be intermittent - fyi

 

[WrenchinOnIt]

As stated here , in the spirit of undertaking an arduous task

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=if+you+think+of+it+bring+two+beer+commercial&view=detail&mid=A9502899118C613817EEA9502899118C613817EE&FORM=VIRE

Know a guy who needs one, and oh ya a 900 seat recovered as well. So indeed think two.

 

[boyscout862]

I find it very interesting to watch your work. Please keep posting. Good Luck, Rick

 

[Bolens800uk]

Another interesting restoration thread by 29 Chev which I will be following closely. If it like his previous workmanship, we can expect great things. No pressure

 

[fonz3482]

I 1st need to find a 900!!! Looking forward to seeing this seat done.

 

[Rainier]

I notice one is red and one is black. They only made them two years , so was the different years have different colors?

 

[29 Chev]

I notice one is red and one is black. They only made them two years , so was the different years have different colors?

I believe they were both red when they left the Bolens factory - the black cover is one that someone has made and riveted on to the seat pan at the back.

 

[Bolens 1000]

I believe they were both red when they left the Bolens factory - the black cover is one that someone has made and riveted on to the seat pan at the back.

Correct only red pads, black is not OEM

 

[29 Chev]

In between coats of primer and paint on the lawn mower deck cover I removed the old rusty bolts from the seat that will be the test subject (no pressure he says ). Most of the heads of the bolts got ground off with the die grinder and then turned out with a pair of vise grips - the holes are going to be interesting to weld back in on the lip and back side of the seats. Then I dug out my pair of modified vise grips that I made a few years ago when I did the seat off my brothers Simplicity Landlord and played "roll up the rim" to see if I could win a metal seat pan with the lip spread apart and not badly distorted or ripped (sorry Tim Hortons). I did one pass around the seat to start the lip to spread and then a second pass to spread it wide enough to remove the remains of the outer edge of the old cover which was still in one piece after 50 years - you can see the welt that was sandwiched in between the cover at the outer edge to keep the cover from moving when the metal lip was crimped down. I think I won so now I get a chance to play with a metal seat pan to fill in the holes and clean it up in preparation for new padding and a cover.

 

[Chubien]

Looks much better already

 

[fonz3482]

Looks much better already

I was thinking the samething! Just removing the rusted out edge and the old torn material made it look alot cleaner. :rocker2: You've mastered every seat repair/recover up to this point, Can't wait to see what you come up with for this one! :worshippy1:

 

[Bolens800uk]

Looking great by just removing the 'edging'.

Making an impact already.

 

[framesteer]

I have a 900 that has the bottom 2/3 of the seat left. I thought maybe they heat-formed that seat vinyl, as there are no "darts" sewn into the fabric to conform to the "bucket" shape. Maybe they crimped the seat material, heated it, then drew a vacuum using the hole in the bottom of the pan? I did some searches online and found some heat-formable vinyl material.

 

[Husky]

This is very interesting and I did enjoy your seat cover post last time. Thanks for taking time to post this.

 

[29 Chev]

I have a 900 that has the bottom 2/3 of the seat left. I thought maybe they heat-formed that seat vinyl, as there are no "darts" sewn into the fabric to conform to the "bucket" shape. Maybe they crimped the seat material, heated it, then drew a vacuum using the hole in the bottom of the pan? I did some searches online and found some heat-formable vinyl material.

Could you post a few pictures of what remains of your cover - I am interested in seeing what the pattern looks like and possibley the spacing and width of the pleats? I believe the original was heat formed to the pan shape when they formed the pleats - unfortunately I have not mastered heat forming vinyl and from what I have seen where the material is stretched during the heat shaping process creates a thin spot that is usually the first place for the material to crack or rip (just my opinion). I will see what I can come with for a fit by sewing the pleats in and probably adding a seam or two - time will tell.

 

[toppop52]

With properly applied, correct high temp glue and a heat gun used with judicious skill and care, virtually any vinyl is heat-form able. I use to cover car dashboards in my upholstery shop, most with no seams. I don't know how the Bolens seat came, whether it was 1 pc or 2 pc foam, but often it's easier to fit the foam in 2 pieces, bottom and back, or two layers of thinner foam, glued carefully to the pan.

I'm going to step back, because 29 Chev doesn't need my help, he does beautiful work! I just thought someone might get a bit of help from my experience. :thumbs:

 

[29 Chev]

With properly applied, correct high temp glue and a heat gun used with judicious skill and care, virtually any vinyl is heat-form able. I use to cover car dashboards in my upholstery shop, most with no seams. I don't know how the Bolens seat came, whether it was 1 pc or 2 pc foam, but often it's easier to fit the foam in 2 pieces, bottom and back, or two layers of thinner foam, glued carefully to the pan.

I'm going to step back, because 29 Chev doesn't need my help, he does beautiful work! I just thought someone might get a bit of help from my experience. :thumbs:

Always great to get input and advise from some one who has worked in the trade - appreciate the input. I may try and use the heat gun and experiment with it when I get to the stage. It will probably be warmer when I am ready to make the cover and I can also set the vinyl out in the sun and see how pliable that makes it.

 

[toppop52]

Start at the lowest point and work out the edges. I'll be watching, because I can learn stuff too!

 

[29 Chev]

Start at the lowest point and work out the edges. I'll be watching, because I can learn stuff too!

When you say the lowest point are you talking in a wrinkle in the material or at the bottom part of the seat where the pleats would be? I am also curious as to what tool was actually made and used to spread the outer lip apart where the material is held - did it look similar to what I used or was it a different design?

Thanks

 

[WrenchinOnIt]

Stew, maybe these will help, if you want dimensions of that center embossed area let me know