CountryBumkin Posted November 11, 2019 Share Posted November 11, 2019 It's not surprising to find a seam or tear/crack in the vinyl beach seat on a 33 year-old truck. Is there any product (like a glue?) that I can put into this crack to keep it from growing? This rip is on the seat base (the photo is rotated). So there are forces on it every time I sit down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1986F150Six Posted November 12, 2019 Share Posted November 12, 2019 I do not know of a way to stop the growth of the crack, but I have had that same piece successfully replaced on the seats of my truck and my son's truck. A local upholstery shop did it. I was supplied with a book of samples from which to pick a matching color [keep in mind the color of your seat may not be the same as when new]. The end result was quite good and cost approximately $75. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danny G Posted November 12, 2019 Share Posted November 12, 2019 I do not know of a way to stop the growth of the crack, but I have had that same piece successfully replaced on the seats of my truck and my son's truck. A local upholstery shop did it. I was supplied with a book of samples from which to pick a matching color [keep in mind the color of your seat may not be the same as when new]. The end result was quite good and cost approximately $75. leather/vinyl repair kit probably could slow it down/help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArdWrknTrk Posted November 16, 2019 Share Posted November 16, 2019 Mike, that comes from sliding in and out, more than the driver always sitting there. I recovered my seat just a couple of years ago and the welting right in that spot is already pulling loose. Add the fact the vinyl's plasticizers have been offgassing for 30-odd years, and that it gets stiff and prone to cracks on cold days... I'd say it's amazing your seat looks as good as it is. Gluing over the crack isn't going to help much, but you could try something like Amazing Goop, Shoe Goo, or E 6000. (all really the same thing with slight variation in consistency). Don't let it get into the foam below or it will dry to form a hard spot. I'm interested to see what you come up with and how it turns out. 👀 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rembrant Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 I do not know of a way to stop the growth of the crack, but I have had that same piece successfully replaced on the seats of my truck and my son's truck. A local upholstery shop did it. I was supplied with a book of samples from which to pick a matching color [keep in mind the color of your seat may not be the same as when new]. The end result was quite good and cost approximately $75. Since I'm getting my interior all fixed up and painted I decided I better look into getting my seat fixed as well. For a 36 year old seat it is in really nice condition except for a few small cracks on the driver's side. You can tell that this piece of vinyl has lost a lot of it's flexibility over the years and is kind of stiff. I was investigating vinyl repair kits and I just didn't have the confidence that I could do it and make it presentable. At least the cracks look natural...lol. Thanks to David's reply here, I contacted a local shop and they said they could replace that one panel and come pretty close to matching the color too. The guy said if absolutely necessary they could dye the new piece to match better, but I'll see how it looks first. He seemed confident that he could find a match that most people wouldn't even notice unless you pointed it out to them. Taking the truck to show him in the next few days hopefully. See if I can get some samples. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 I do not know of a way to stop the growth of the crack, but I have had that same piece successfully replaced on the seats of my truck and my son's truck. A local upholstery shop did it. I was supplied with a book of samples from which to pick a matching color [keep in mind the color of your seat may not be the same as when new]. The end result was quite good and cost approximately $75. Since I'm getting my interior all fixed up and painted I decided I better look into getting my seat fixed as well. For a 36 year old seat it is in really nice condition except for a few small cracks on the driver's side. You can tell that this piece of vinyl has lost a lot of it's flexibility over the years and is kind of stiff. I was investigating vinyl repair kits and I just didn't have the confidence that I could do it and make it presentable. At least the cracks look natural...lol. Thanks to David's reply here, I contacted a local shop and they said they could replace that one panel and come pretty close to matching the color too. The guy said if absolutely necessary they could dye the new piece to match better, but I'll see how it looks first. He seemed confident that he could find a match that most people wouldn't even notice unless you pointed it out to them. Taking the truck to show him in the next few days hopefully. See if I can get some samples. Cory - I think that is going to work out really, really well. Your truck sure is going to be great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danny G Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 Cory - I think that is going to work out really, really well. Your truck sure is going to be great! What kind of cost is that going to run? I think a full recover kit is like $200. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rembrant Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 What kind of cost is that going to run? I think a full recover kit is like $200. I don't know yet, but David mentioned above he had his done for $75. I'd get the whole thing done if it was only $200, but I've heard of others around here paying a lot more than that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArdWrknTrk Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 What kind of cost is that going to run? I think a full recover kit is like $200. I don't know yet, but David mentioned above he had his done for $75. I'd get the whole thing done if it was only $200, but I've heard of others around here paying a lot more than that. Though many years ago, I got the local auto upholstery place to replace the horizontal panels in my seat for $200 US OTD http://www.bellsautointeriorofgreenwich.com/ I brought them the seat (while sitting on a milkcrate ) and picked it up after a day. Mind, this isn't a "cheap" shop. They do leather interiors for very expensive automobiles, and convertible tops as well. They are 500' between the Ferrari dealer and Porsche, while Aston and Bugatti are across the street. ETA: until I went to get the link I didn't even think about McLaren, Pagani or Alpha Romeo... the Mercedes, BMW and Audi dealers within a block are pedestrian in comparison. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1986F150Six Posted May 29, 2020 Share Posted May 29, 2020 What kind of cost is that going to run? I think a full recover kit is like $200. I don't know yet, but David mentioned above he had his done for $75. I'd get the whole thing done if it was only $200, but I've heard of others around here paying a lot more than that. Cory, the $75 was as previously posted. The same shop would have charged ~$350/400 for a full recover. They had a book containing all the color possibilities and allowed me to select the color. The "welting" [?] was worn on the driver's side as well. This ingenious gentleman was able to cut the existing welting and splice the new piece by inserting a short piece of welding rod in each end [the old & new], for additional strength. This was on my son's truck and the repair is still great several years after! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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