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EFV-8 Club Forum / General Ford Discussion / Upholstery Kits

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Posted By Discussion Topic: Upholstery Kits -- page: 1 2     Roy C C ascio 02-04-2010 @ 6:14 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 3 Joined: Oct 2009 I would like some input on upholstery kits made by both Lebaron Bonney and Cartouche for a 4 door 40 ford . I have samples cards from both and all info.,but there is a price difference,s . I would just would like to know for myself what other member's think .I know some of you have installed these kits your self. RC BrianCT 02-05-2010 @ 6:55 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 95 Joined: Oct 2009 Did the quality [thickness] of the cloth seem to be less for the Cartouch? I have samples from both co's and the 34 Bedford cord seemed to be heavier from LB but the price for fabric seems outrageous. doning 02-05-2010 @ 7:11 AM reply profile send p.m. New Member Posts: 158 Joined: Nov 2009 LeBaron Bonney is the way to go. Sure, it costs more but it is worth the money and it fit's right. 42wagon 02-05-2010 @ 7:13 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 584 Joined: Oct 2009 I can't tell you anything about Cartouche or sedan upholstery kits. What I can tell you is that I have had nothing but first class service from Lebaron Bonney. I have used their upholstery kits for a 31 Model A roadster. Both the top and seat kits. The kits were expertly made, had good instructions, and included everything needed. For my 42 wagon I had them make up and install upholstery on the seats. We did a great deal of research and bought custom colored hides and vinyl as their already manufactured kits did not match the colors used in 42. I also purchased their kits for the roof and cowl trim. Doug Belinski was extremely helpful throughout the process. You might be paying a little more but you are getting a great product and great service. Ted 37RAGTOPMAN 02-05-2010 @ 7:34 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 1958 Joined: Oct 2009 if you have to do it TWICE, is gets EXPENSIVE, what you have to ask yourself, would you be happy with the cheaper price and NOT so Nice, or pay more and be HAPPY,,!! with what you bought, also are you going to sell the car,in near future or keeping it for a long time ? its the same amount labor, hope this helps, 37RAGTOPMAN I did a 30 MODEL A TUDOR,for a customer,with LeBaron Bonney kit, I bought the seats aready done,,and everything fit perfect and went in with no problems,and they are there if you need them, supereal 02-05-2010 @ 8:08 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 6819 Joined: Oct 2009 If you haven't installed a car's interior before, you will find L-B to be a vital resource. They install interiors at their factory, and actually know how to do it. We had a problem with a Model A headliner that came down the day after installation. I called L-B, and they told me it was the result of a faulty "blind stitch" machine, and overnighted me a replacement. When a seat back cover on a later car came apart after it was in place, they remade it twice. The second time I learned that it was necessary to steam the vinyl cover to get it on without tearing the stitches. L-B is a first class vendor, and if they are a bit more expensive, they have earned it! donclink 02-05-2010 @ 10:33 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 45 Joined: Oct 2009 Roy, I used the Mac’s Cartouche interior kit for my ’47 Tudor Sedan about four years ago. I made the decision based on originality and price. My ’47 has the Red/Green striped broadcloth and the Cartouche sample cards had the correct fabrics for the seats, seat backs, door panels, door and quarter armrests, and rear footrests. The kit included the cowl kick panels and the headliner. I had the LeBaron Bonney samples as well, and couldn’t really see all that much difference. The LB kit, at that time was over $4,000. The Cartouche kit, during Mac’s early spring upholstery sale (15% discount over the internet) was under $1,800. The $4,000 price tag for the LB interior represented 40% of what I invested in the car at that point, and I couldn’t see it adding 4K in value to a sell price. I have a nice ’47, mainly because it must have led a sheltered life, and it was remarkably solid to begin with, but I still couldn’t justify the LB expense. Nothing against the quality, it speaks for itself. I installed the Cartouche interior myself, and I’m not a professional. Had I invested the money for the LB interior, I would have felt compelled to have a professional install it. The car picked up a Concourse 1st in Dearborn in 2008, and a Dearborn Award in Auburn last August. None of the deductions were due to the interior in either year. Mac’s customer service was very responsive to anything I needed. My advice would be to balance the cost of the interior to the overall sale value of the car. Good luck… flatheadfan 02-05-2010 @ 6:14 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 450 Joined: Oct 2009 I have used car interiors from both suppliers (L-B and Cartouche). The L-B went into a '35 coupe. Nothing fit right. I had to remake each panel and send back both door panels to be re-made (they had a "rib" where the door pull should go). In each case L-B corrected the problem BUT, I had to pay for the return shipping and of course I lost installation time. The last "repaired" item I received back from L-B had a covering that was a different shade and thickness than what they previously had sent me. I called them about the difference and they said they had changed suppliers and they were no longer stocking the "old" material. Needless-to-say, I wasn't a happy camper. When it came to my next car ('31 coupe), I decided to give Cartouche a try after my L-B experience. The price was much cheaper than a comparable L-B kit. The result- everything fit like a glove! No installation difficulties, instructions were clear and nothing had to be re-made. The only "problem" I had was a "screw-up" on my part where I messed up a panel. I called Cartouche (talked to Dave) and explained my problem and was honest about the situation. Two days later I had a new panel expressed mailed to me at NO COST! Can't ask for better service than that! Obviously, I can only speak from my limited experience but I would have no hesitation about using Cartouche in the future. One more thing. I went with their optional synthetic materials (looks and feels like original material). The stuff wears like iron. (MHO) Tom trjford8 02-05-2010 @ 6:59 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 4214 Joined: Oct 2009 I have installed several LB interiors, some for myself and some for friends. Like flatheadfan I found some fitting problems with LB.Some of the panels were cut too large and needed to be trimmed. The material quality is very good. I have all the material samples that LB has to offer,so to satisfy my curiosity I ordered Cartouche samples. On some of the material I could not tell the difference and on others there was a slight difference,but not enough to justify the additonal cost of the LB kit. I have not installed a Cartouche kit so I can't speak to the fit quality. I will say that I saw Don's car at Auburn and the kit looked as good as any LB kit that I have seen in a V-8. donclink 02-06-2010 @ 6:53 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 45 Joined: Oct 2009 Tom, thanks for the compliment on my car’s interior. The quality of Cartouche materials and fit are there, especially since I installed the kit! As I mentioned earlier, I was primarily driven by price, and was really pleased of the level of quality of the kit. My ’47 still had the original interior, except for the headliner, which had been replaced about 1998. The Cartouche kit included a headliner, but there was no reason to use it, or the wind lacing (plus I didn’t have to mess with the rear window). The door and quarter panels are top notch, with exact material match, and exact fit. All I did was to remove the stainless trim piece (glad it wasn’t a ’46), mark the locations of the trim mountings, drill small holes and re-mount the trim. I had originally planned to have a local upholstery shop install the seat backs and cushions, but I got quotes of about $225 apiece for the front seat backs alone! I picked up some books on auto interiors, got a number of large spring clamps from Harbor Freight, a good hog ring pliers from Eastwood, and had at it. If I ran into major problems, worst case, I figured, was to fall back to Plan ‘A’ and have someone else do it. I started with the rear seat back and cushion, as they looked to be the least complicated. This is where I caught a break for the entire job. After removing the original covers, I discovered that the original Ford padding was in excellent shape. The padding supplied with the kit was large rolls of cotton batting and sissle padding to cover the springs. This is exactly what was described to use in the auto upholstery guides I had on hand. The Ford padding was more like a sewn mattress that was attached to the springs with hog rings. The fit, as you would expect was perfect. The other thing I noticed was that the ‘old car and mouse’ smell was primarily in the seat cover fabric. After airing out all of the padding, there wasn’t any smell left. At that point, I decided to retain the original padding, a choice that would later pay off on the front seat backs. The rear springs, back and cushion were in excellent shape. I did replace some of the burlap used in the rear back springs, as that’s where the mice had invaded sometime in the past. The rear seat back only involves hog rings, and the seat cushion involved using the tack strip and hog rings. I retained the original plastic buttons, although Cartouche supplied new, fabric covered, buttons. I also discovered that Ford stenciled the dates on the back of each seat cushion or back covering. The dates on my interior were Oct 22nd, 1947. OK, half done. The front cushion and backs were a little more challenging. The front cushion springs were in good shape, except for the end springs being weaker, and a slight depression where the driver sits. I followed the tips in the books, and stuffed cotton padding and foam rubber in the spring coils at the sides of the front cushion, and built up the weak seat springs for the driver with layers of foam, cotton and sissle pad. I re-attached the original seat padding and installed the front cushion cover. It went on like the rear, but I had to stand on the spring frame bottom to get the fabric around the back to be able to use the hog rings. There are no wrinkles or sags in it, and the corner springs are much stiffer. The rear carpeted foot rests bolt to the front seat extensions, and were supplied in the kit. They fit well, although I looked like I fought off a shark attack when I was finished. Those ‘razor tooth’ fasteners are painfully sharp, and it takes a little effort to get the carpeting positioned evenly, and the teeth bent over. Now for the real test. I can’t recall where I picked up the ‘garbage bag’ tip on getting the front seat back covers installed, but it is the ONLY way that I can see to make it work. I slid a black plastic garbage bag over the seat back, with the padding in place, and slid the seat cover over that. When it was positioned where I wanted it, I made a small cross cut in the vinyl for the seat back pivot stud to come through. It takes a little effort to get the side trim piece correct, and to tack nail the cushion bottom. I slid my arm up the seat back and pulled out the plastic bag before closing up the bottom. It will come out in pieces, but it came out. Job finished. Are there differences between LeBaron Bonney and Cartouche kits? I believe there are. But in my case, not nearly enough to justify the cost. I’m very happy with the results, and it will most likely outlast my ownership of this car. The following photo links compare the original interior with the progress on the new interior installation. Original Interior When I got the car: http://donclink.com/1947_Ford/DSCN0393.JPG http://donclink.com/1947_Ford/DSCN0394.JPG Original Interior with New Cartouche Door Panels: http://donclink.com/1947_Ford/DSCN0644.JPG http://donclink.com/1947_Ford/DSCN0645.JPG Completed Cartouche Interior: http://donclink.com/1947_Ford/DSCN1843.JPG http://donclink.com/1947_Ford/DSCN1844.JPG http://donclink.com/1947_Ford/DSCN1850.JPG http://donclink.com/1947_Ford/DSCN1851.JPG http://donclink.com/1947_Ford/DSCN1852.JPG

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