Collins looks over his handiwork.His...
Collins looks over his handiwork.His specialty is hot rods, but he did a great job on this old kit car/sports car! Follow along and find out how the master upholsterer sewed up such a sweet interior.
Now that Project Devin is painted and pinstriped (KC, May 2008), it's time to finish out the interior. We took it to Jackie Collins Cars in Weatherford, Texas, for the upholstery and carpet. Collins has been in the interior business for over 40 years and builds complete award-winning hot rods in addition to his custom upholstery work. Two of his rods have been included in the Street Rodder list of best rods of the year. I needed to have both seats and the door panels upholstered, custom carpet cut to fit, and boots made up for the shifter and parking brake handle. Here is how Collins put it all together.
The Devin seats that came...
The Devin seats that came with the car were covered in smooth black vinyl. They didn't fit me very well. I needed less padding in the bottom to let me sit further down in the car, and a lower front bolster to keep my legs from going to sleep.
The seats were stripped and...
The seats were stripped and the padding revised to fit me better. Note the thin padding wrapped over the front edge of the seat at right. Try the seats out before you take them to the upholstery shop so you know what you need to have done.
New upper and lower rolled...
New upper and lower rolled seat inserts were stitched up in high-quality black vinyl and new side panels were cut. Special slitted foam is used to make the rolled panels. The old upholstery can sometimes be used as patterns for the new.
Collins then stitched the...
Collins then stitched the pieces together on his industrial sewing machine.
He made piping for the edges...
He made piping for the edges by wrapping strips of vinyl around round piping material and stitching it together.
The piping was then sewed...
The piping was then sewed onto the edge of the seat panels. Contrasting piping can add a custom touch, but I opted for everything to be the same color.
The backing and sides were...
The backing and sides were sewn together with the seat cover inside out.
The front seat bolster was...
The front seat bolster was formed to fit and glued into place with yellow vinyl adhesive.
The foam padding was covered...
The foam padding was covered with a thin gauze so the cover can be slipped over it. The foam is too sticky and will prevent the cover from sliding into position.
Jackie pulled the new seat...
Jackie pulled the new seat cover into place. This takes a strong grip and healthy arm muscles to accomplish.
He then stapled the cover...
He then stapled the cover to thin wood strips that have been attached to the fiberglass seat bucket underneath the padding.
The backside of the seat has...
The backside of the seat has a zipper sewn into the center. This allows the cover to be pulled over and pulled tight as the zipper is closed. Closing the zipper can be a two-person job, as it was with my seats.
Professional-strength upholstery...
Professional-strength upholstery adhesive was mixed up in a spray gun and applied under the new cover to glue it to the seat.
The edges of the cover were...
The edges of the cover were then stapled to the sides of the bucket where they couldn't be seen.
Jackie used a heat gun to...
Jackie used a heat gun to shrink the vinyl into position. This must be done several times as the seat is assembled.
The lower edges of the seat...
The lower edges of the seat cover were pulled taut and stapled to the seat bottom.
An industrial-grade clothing...
An industrial-grade clothing steamer helped shrink the seat cover in precise areas to get it to lie in position.
Collins tried the seat on...
Collins tried the seat on for size. Sitting in the seat helps form it, and the new cover will continue to settle into its final position over time (setting it outside in the hot sun helps).
The door panels were made...
The door panels were made out of pressboard and attached to holes in the door inner panels with the hidden snaps shown here on the backside. There is an access hole in the door for access to the latch, so Collins left extra material around the hole and cut slits in it for ease of bending.
Collins snapped the panel...
Collins snapped the panel into place and wrapped the extra material around the access hole to be glued into place.
Using upholstery adhesive,...
Using upholstery adhesive, a thin coat was applied to both sides and allowed to dry for a few seconds before pressing together.
The finished door looks like...
The finished door looks like it could have been done in 1959 when the car was built. Note the cutaway for the latch on the back edge. If the upholstered door panels weren't made correctly, the door wouldn't close all the way.
For the carpeting, Collins...
For the carpeting, Collins cut and applied foil-backed Thermozite insulation material over the floor area. This will keep heat from the engine and transmission tunnel away from the interior.
Insulation should be used...
Insulation should be used on the ends of footboxes on kits with side pipes, where the headers may pass close to the pedal box.
The Thermozite insulation...
The Thermozite insulation covers the principal areas where heat could get in.
The carpet was marked with...
The carpet was marked with chalk and cut to fit.
Collins next sewed vinyl binding...
Collins next sewed vinyl binding onto the edges of the carpet.
wrapped the binding over to...
wrapped the binding over to the front side and sewed it down to finish the edges. Remember to leave slits so that the carpet can be installed without having to remove the pedals. Binding makes any carpet job look more professional.
Carpet adhesive was painted...
Carpet adhesive was painted onto the Thermozite insulation and interior panels, and onto the back of carpet panels that do not need to be easily removable. The adhesive is allowed to dry until tacky. Jackie then pressed them together to dry. Removable panels should be held in place with snaps.
Vertical panels along the...
Vertical panels along the side of the footboxes needed to be held in place with screws.
The completed carpet job looks...
The completed carpet job looks clean and professional. Of course, other colors would add more pizzazz, but I was after a no-nonsense race car look.