Leather Seat Cover From Scrap!

[Guest]

Wanted to show a bit about my Leather seat cover Project. Just finished it up mostly.
Here's one finished pic:

My Pics are difficult so I notepadded them, Hopefully I can get in a good order:
starting leather:

I noticed a leather sofa (months back) next to a dumpster (in apartments) with bunch of large items nearby.
It was pretty nice grain leather but no good otherwise so I skinned it , and threw bag in back of my truck.
Ugly red color.
So:
dyeing leather on grill:

I placed my leather in a 5gallon bucket with 64oz. cleaning vinegar from $1 store. Let it soak a day, rinsed it out with water and let it dry. (Didn't dent the ugly red/brown color much)
Then I got 2 boxes of black RIT brand fabric dye and followed directions using a steel 5 gallon bucket and my BBQ grill. (PIC above) . The wood rod is off a toilet plunger (whatever)...
checking color :

Didn't follow RIT directions exactly, left it soaking about 3 days.
Tools for wax: Gloves, brush hot air:

The leather was a little thin (But good) so I got together a 3" paintbrush and rubber gloves ($1 store, gloves came with two pairs, gave one pr. to wifey, acted like got them for her...incase she ever figures out how to clean anything). The Blow-dryer was $3 at thrift store. I might have switched the tag. The mini heat gun is purple for "embezzeading" stuff or something girly. it's as hot as a heat gun. Too hot sometimes.
wax bucket:

Next I got a cookie or popcorn metal can, and some vietnamese wax budda candles an idiot a-hole I worked for/helped last year gave me. I melted/ heated the wax until worried it could ignite. Then quickly brushed it all over the INSIDE of my leather. The gloves were probably essential, worked good.
I layed the peice on top of the grill and used the heat (blowers) to make sure it soaked in good.

starting to form/checking:


I made sure the size hadn't changed much (it's exactly how much I needed).
checking fit underneath, barely enough still has cushion:

Can still see the seat cushion corners (trimmed later). Made sure I'd have enough to pop-rivet on using my $5 harbor freight pop-riveter. I had to invent getting the 3/16th" rivets to stay/hold.
After over half the 25 it comes with, I used a 1/8th bit into the plastic, And used the next smaller nose piece. Had to work the rivet in, take it out, fit it into tool and try and press and break rivet in one squeeze. That worked well then. A pain getting each spent rivet rod out. But only way. So I trimmed the tips off some very short wood type screws, threaded a sharp screw in and back out and then used blunt screws in between the rivets (HF didn't have the short stem rivets the tool comes with and the longer rivets would'been too long).
I have pics of finished bottom of seat, but not loaded because photobucket took all night last night to work with these. So I'll try again soon.

I am very Pleased with results. The NEXT TO /LAST STEP though was crucial: I used an iron to flatten the rider portion of seat and stretch the sides in. It was set on 8-9 (of10) heat setting, so had to work quick and press spots and pull. Then lastly the rivets and screws were fastened in the sides of rider part of seat, after a few days making sure the fit was right in that most difficult spot.
I chose to attach this cover right on top of the vinyl cover. But I had to cut some vinyl and pull a few staples where the rivets would not have been snug enough.
I really wanted to cut pool noodle pieces in half and glue to the vinyl with the 10 minute/24 hour cure super glue , to create a higher ridge behind each seat portion.
But didn't think I'd have enough leather. I would have though (Urgh, oh well).

It was a "last resort" type job though and next pic(s) are how bad it got this summer:
ripped seat:

(burn holes from PO, I had patched with duct-tape shaped vinyl and super glue):
Like said I'll try and load one pic of the rivets and screws underneath later.
( hopefully not Too many pics) I'd post pics on the bike but I'm bluing the tank, and have it polished and half blued right now, gotta finish tommorow because it rusts like crazy and it's partially blued and fully polished...How was I to know that waxy tripoli blocks blueing and have to steel-wool it now (Another seperate post , soon maybe). Goodnight!

[Buffalo Bill]

Not bad, good results, but you sure did a lot of hard work preparing it.
Looks just like a Katana seat pan.
Me, I just buy some marine upholstery at the Joann fabric store @ $15 a yard.

[AMK]

That's a nice job.
I wonder about the dye transferring to your jeans though.

[BurntKittyForge]

Not bad, good results, but you sure did a lot of hard work preparing it.
Looks just like a Katana seat pan.
Me, I just buy some marine upholstery at the Joann fabric store @ $15 a yard.

Thankyou very much Sir, getting Positive comment from you means a lot to me!

I bought the Rit dye at Joanne Fabric for $2.50/ bx.
I never go in there much and I had looked EVERYWHERE for a new zipper for my favorite jacket, remembered and checked with a nice lady there. Besides online that's the ONLY place that had a full heavy duty zipper replacement.
I was very happy to find that there.

I didn't mind the prep work because I've been trying to get much more back into my hobby of knife making and will need something for sheaths. (also a reason I like the style / going for certain [d*mn word?] with this MC)
One cool thing about using leather is IF I had more time I could stamp like anything at all into the leather (words/designs)...

Oh, It might be exact same seat/ pan as Katana. Most of the parts these years (from what I've seen/ordered) are same, or just different finish.
The Katana has a chain and sprockets.
Didn't know until a few ebay salvage ads show vids of running Katana. Ads read something like: "GSX1100G / GSX1100 Katana" for most parts/ads I've gone to.

Urgh! There was a ripped Katana seat/ good pan recently for $18 ...(with the seat removed, the area there is level with the top of the side panel, all sorts of room for whatever custom seat design, except for width wise because there's components directly under...)
Had another thought but burned out from work at the moment. Thanks again!

That's a nice job.
I wonder about the dye transferring to your jeans though.

Ideally the couch would've been black to begin...
All leather gets dyed to whatever color and the heat used helped it take.
I had some black gloves that bled dye (from rain) while new once.

By using the wax (it's really soaked in almost "Cuir Boille" grade) I doubt it'll ever get wet enough.
I used a scrap that was no way useful on this piece tested the wax, with the mini heat-gun applied too long it shrank too much in one spot (wrinkled there), it felt like the tongue leather portion of a boot and was "waterproof".
I do plan on wearing black jeans the first few rides to work though!
Thankyou for the compliment!

Darn, had something to add, burned out from work today.

[tatu]

Good work there, thanks for sharing.

[ddaniels]

Looks good. Nice job.

[BurntKittyForge]

Thanks very much for the kind words.
I want to post two finished pics before thread gets longer (since last Pic was "before" pic...feels sort of like posting a bad pic of my old lady, like Hmmm...
one side:


and "After" of same side previous pic yesterday I think (Took these for myself, hence the mess):


In the first finished pic I'd set a plastic bag over the seat with a metal bar and it still had indentation from it (temporarily).

I'm in process of blueing/ clearcoating tank (my "new" passenger peg looked so good it started all this cosmetic stuff/ winter gets too cold for paint a lot so trying to keep ahead).

It wasn't a "toilet plunger rod" I noticed because there's a screw for a table on it...the plunger at $1 store would work same though.

Well I wanted to get the finished underside pic too but it's raining/storming tonight.
Oh, and the seat feels dry as can be, it's still a little too waxy.
But I was going for firm/ much less stretchy than vinyl and it seems to have worked perfect.
I'll update on how stuff goes/holds up too.

Forgot what else, (stupid work, wish I could work on MC ALL day!)

Gonna hit the back portion w/ iron again some and maybe add couple more screws there.
This is/was my first attempt, have other ideas, could do another much faster, etc. (This method easiest)

My exhaust hanger(angle piece) and pipe clamps, I'm going to re-do very soon as well.

And in background next to my old BBQ (new one not in pic) is an outdoor stove top (almost complete) my wife wanted (made one for neighbor...jealous, had to make another)...Good night for now. (Beat from work again)...Crap, long winded , going to cover the dents with some creative metal stuff soon too...Urgh!

[AMK]

Seat turned out nice!
Are you going with a gun type bluing on the tank?

[lurch12_2000]

Looks good. A lot of work to salvage and dye, but if you want the patina leather look and trying to make do with whatever is laying about, you did it. But I'm with Mr Bill in that nice marine vinyl for less than $10/sq yd with my wife's coupon at Joann's Fabric and we did the makeover on my GS850G seat for under $10. The metal seat pan with the metal tacking tabs and a hair dryer(tumble vinyl for about 5 minutes heat in dryer first) made it very easy to go with a single sheet cut to size. The vinyl does not slide when riding, is the right color, durable in hot or cold, won't soak up rain water and already has a backing so works/looks great. I'll give you credit for ingenuity if nothing available but it's cheaper, as long lasting, as comfortable and easier with marine vinyl. It also has a multi-directional stretch to fabric to work out the folds on the edges.

Note: I would not use rivets on a plastic seat pan. Too much of a hassle. A good staple gun with 1/4" staples is much easier and more effective. I've used rivets on an old BMW R65 seat and what a pain in the butt to remove old ones and to seat new ones while stretching the fabric correctly. And I've done plastic seat pans on my more modern bikes with staples.

Here's my seat we did this week:

[Buffalo Bill]

I did want to use leather for a bike seat, and when I made the seat for my GSX 7/11 Katana. I had a nice piece of brown deer hide that would have been great. I cut it out and threw it over the seat foam and whatta ya know, there's a bullet hole right in the middle!!!!
I was really bummed, but I did have a piece of grey upholstery vinyl that would work so I used that.

[BurntKittyForge]

Buffalo Bill, That was one of my favorite threads to read through ever (Your 7/11 Katana project)!
Seat came out good.
You could still use the Deer Hide, just need another panel on top of the hole (could cover entire portion).

Panel sections OR sections on top of each other would've been my first choice for my seat cover project
But it would take me MUCH more time than this method (I don't have enough free time for let alone other work needed).
Perhaps if I get another seat pan I might do another using thicker leather and panels (so I can take my time).

I got one small hole from 1/8th" bit on the front part of my cover (up on the tank part) , hit me I could use a stud(s) from a second hand studded belt to cover the whole or entire section...Don't want to look like a perv though, LOL.
My leather had one hole and it barely went under the pan (lucky).

Seat turned out nice!
Are you going with a gun type bluing on the tank?

Thanks! and Yes, I am using " Birchwood Casey Super Blue" ($8.50 from walmart)...
The Birchwood Casey "kit" comes with degreaser and swabs (that work best), and rust inhibitor...(walmart didn't have "kit" , I prolly wouldn't have bought it, hard head )
The bottle Didn't come with useful instructions at all.
the one bottle would be enough for a few tanks, IF used properly...
I used acetone but still, then tank is HUGE for cold blue (Have to do sections and wash with garden hose every 30 seconds to one minute)...I realize I will need thick clearcoat layers (for it to stick)...

My advice don't EVER start without a block of hours ahead of time and plenty overview. (been raining three days! keep rubbing rust off, can't wax it because then won't blue, fine steel wool works but rubs off previous...gonna do a seperate thread maybe on it.
I see AWESOME potential though (but left it on too long and it turned lighter aaaaaannnnd , surface rust/nothing (until redid it properly , couple times)...

Looks good. A lot of work to salvage and dye, but if you want the patina leather look and trying to make do with whatever is laying about, you did it. But I'm with Mr Bill in that nice marine vinyl for less than $10/sq yd with my wife's coupon at Joann's Fabric and we did the makeover on my GS850G seat for under $10. The metal seat pan with the metal tacking tabs and a hair dryer(tumble vinyl for about 5 minutes heat in dryer first) made it very easy to go with a single sheet cut to size. The vinyl does not slide when riding, is the right color, durable in hot or cold, won't soak up rain water and already has a backing so works/looks great. I'll give you credit for ingenuity if nothing available but it's cheaper, as long lasting, as comfortable and easier with marine vinyl. It also has a multi-directional stretch to fabric to work out the folds on the edges.

Note: I would not use rivets on a plastic seat pan. Too much of a hassle. A good staple gun with 1/4" staples is much easier and more effective. I've used rivets on an old BMW R65 seat and what a pain in the butt to remove old ones and to seat new ones while stretching the fabric correctly. And I've done plastic seat pans on my more modern bikes with staples.

Here's my seat we did this week:...

Your vinyl seat came out nice. I would've tried staples just to see whether sturdy enough, but my current staplegun has a very weak "punch" to it so didn't bother.
I had recently purchased the $5 pop-riveter (HF) , for some future body work on my truck (covering rusty fender parts w/ stainless from scrap grills). When I saw an ad for stock leather seat, noticed pop-rivets, decided my idea must be viable...Short blunt screws (All-around) would be my choice, next time, due to ease of removal/replacement.

The cost of this cover for me total was Hmmm: $5 dye (one more @2.50 would've been better), about 35 minutes single burner propane (?$??), $1 rubber gloves...I'm not counting the tools because actually got for other stuff...so besides some Propane, about $6 total +/- $2 .

I was lucky on the leather, but paying attention for it at thrift stores, there's been other leather bits for about $10 or $20 (large bags,occasionally jackets, etc.) Women do look at a guy funny while feeling the purses to check quality of leather . I had more very nice grain leather off a chair (in past) free as well.