What did you do to your 2002 today !

[BarneyT]

Installed my stock wheel covers on my 72 Ceylon Gold tii…

[its55]

18 minutes ago, BarneyT said:

Installed my stock wheel covers on my 72 Ceylon Gold tii…

personally I love the stock look 

 

 

[jimk]

23 hours ago, Lucky 7 said:

Everything I read said Tex 70 was the largest recommended for home machines, but I went with Tex 90 and it’s worked fine. I didn’t even need to buy new needles. 
 

Also, I guess bonded polyester is the way to go because it withstands the heat and UV the best.

I have this heavy duty machine that needs a good home.  it was given to me by the widow of a good friend who would stich leather and sailboat sails.   I never had time to learn how to use it.

[M3This]

On 10/11/2023 at 5:31 PM, Lucky 7 said:

Yeah man, happy to help.  Keep in mind that I’m just leaning, so my process may be far from correct. I did watch some YouTube videos, so I can’t be that far off.🤣

 

Here’s how I did it:

 

Step one:  start by running the standard blind running stitch along the seam. Fabric is face-to-face with the stitch line along the back. I’d recommend having the stitch run 3/8” back from the edge (you’ll see why in a second). I learned that for this stitch, match the thread to the fabric, in my case black. 

 

Step two:  spray tack the ends over so they’re down flat next to the seam. Not too much spray, it really only needs to stay down for a minute or two. 

 

Step three: now you run your topstitch.  Contrasting thread is nice, but to each their own taste. I did mine 1/8” offset from the  blind seam. There’s a marker on the deck, but it gets covered by the fabric so I put a tape marker on the foot.  
 

Worth noting for this stitch run, use a longer stitch length. Most home machines max out at 4, use that. You want your French stitches to have some nice separation.  You can see how I’m keeping the original blind seam on my tape marker. 

 

Step four: enjoy!

 

The straight seams are pretty easy actually, but I found that it gets much more complicated when the seam gets curvy.  Go slow and you’ll do okay. 
 

 

Hope that helps. Like I say, I’m just learning, but I’m getting more comfortable each day. At first it took me half an hour to get the damn machine threaded!🤦‍♂️

 

My father use to do upholstery in the 70s (motorcycle seats and VWs) when he was in college and I have always wanted him to teach me.  I feel like this is a skill most guys overlook but is a really valuable skill to have. 
 

Great work on teaching yourself and it looks your doing an amazing job for just learning. 

[Steve76063]

1 hour ago, jimk said:

I have this heavy duty machine that needs a good home.  it was given to me by the widow of a good friend who would stich leather and sailboat sails.   I never had time to learn how to use it.

Man, that looks sturdy!  All metal I suspect-I bought a 'heavy-duty' sewing machine a few years ago, and it's mostly plastic (as is most everything these days).  If I didn't have my new machine, I'd seriously look into getting yours!

[Lucky 7]

21 hours ago, Steve76063 said:

About a month ago, I covered my shift surround with leather and did my first attempt at French Seams...I think it turned out OK, but I really like your idea of tacking down the seam edges before French Seaming - I'll try that on the next part.

 

Before (I'd 3D printed my own shift surround as my old one was ratty, and I added a USB outlet (the square cutout at the back), and fitted a cup-holder (you can see the mount on the right side).

 

After.  Yeah, the curves are tricky, and my seam around the USB cutout could have been a lot better.

Looks nice man!  I like the USB port location, smart. What material did you use? If it’s leather, I’d imagine it’s even more difficult. Four-way stretch leatherette makes it easier to fudge things, it’s my beginners cheat code. 

[Lucky 7]

1 hour ago, M3This said:

My father use to do upholstery in the 70s (motorcycle seats and VWs) when he was in college and I have always wanted him to teach me.  I feel like this is a skill most guys overlook but is a really valuable skill to have. 
 

Great work on teaching yourself and it looks your doing an amazing job for just learning. 

Thanks for saying, I’ve been having a good time figuring it out. I think you’re right, sewing gets a bit gendered for some reason. It’s pretty awesome though, much more architectural than I realized. It reminds me a lot of paper craft, like those Eiffel Tower kits I did as a kid.  The inside-out-and-backwards thing hurts my brain. 

 

As soon as I got started, I gained immediate respect for anybody who is actually good at it. 

[jimk]

1 hour ago, Steve76063 said:

Man, that looks sturdy!  All metal I suspect-I bought a 'heavy-duty' sewing machine a few years ago, and it's mostly plastic (as is most everything these days).  If I didn't have my new machine, I'd seriously look into getting yours!

A member already jumped in for it.  Going to a good home that does leather work.

[visionaut]

My mom taught me how to sew. It’s a really useful skill for anyone.  And I still have/use her old cast-iron Singer sewing machine - which looks very similar to the one Jim posted above.

 

Sewing is ‘architectural’ - great observation @Lucky 7! And nice work with those French seams…

[Swiss 2002Tii]

6 hours ago, its55 said:

personally I love the stock look 

 

 

Me too!

[ricsix]

I continued the interior work in Frank and it’s coming together. New carpet, headliner, redid the rear seats, today I reinstalled and wired the console. Front seats are with the upholsterer and should be finished before too long. It will be nice to move it in and out of the garage with a real driver’s seat! 

[zinz]

Blasting through the central Texas Hill Country in the Inka car today. Looking for clear skies tomorrow for the solar eclipse 😎

 

 

Speedo reads high by about 10mph annnnd the odometer got stuck on this trip

 

Ed Z

[jimk]

18 minutes ago, zinz said:

Blasting through the central Texas Hill Country in the Inka car today. Looking for clear skies tomorrow for the solar eclipse 😎

 

 

Speedo reads high by about 10mph annnnd the odometer got stuck on this trip

 

Ed Z

What gear were you using?  3500 rpm in 5th and a 3.90 is about 75mph.

[zinz]

Just now, jimk said:

What gear were you using?  3500 rpm in 5th and a 3.90 is about 75mph.

This Inka still has the 4 speed and 3.64 diff. 

[jimk]

8 minutes ago, zinz said:

This Inka still has the 4 speed and 3.64 diff. 

Well, then get the 5 spd in so the speedo is reading right