bgbdlinc
Well-Known Member
I finally had to face my biggest fear for the BGBDLINC -starting the interior work. I can't afford to send it out and can't afford to leave it alone, so as a novice I decided on what I was capable of doing. The scary part for this job is that mistakes and minor imperfections will be staring you in the face (as opposed to hidden bubble-gum welds underneath the car that you swore you would redo).
I was not going the 'stitched route' by buying a heavy duty sewing machine and practicing for many hours. Simple slab-type door panels, rear panels, and kick panels would be a good start for me with lots of thinking and analyzing and patience.
I figured out the door measurements and accommodations for original window sill trim, an arm rest (actually a split bumper guard), access for the electric window switches and electric seat switches. In addition, I figured that the great expanse of the door panel needed a design element to visually break it up. For this I selected a curved piece of the original stainless roof trim that was in a pile of parts from the original car.
Overall the process entails making a template of thin cardboard. This shape gets transferred to a stiff panel material. This in turn, gets transferred to foam
and eventually to vinyl.
A sheet of 1/4" foam is applied to the entire surface and cutouts are done for the door latch (upper left), door popper (lower left), the arm rest location (central), sill trim (upper edge), curved stainless trim, and two areas for switches. Cutting out the foam in these areas, allows the vinyl to be recessed into these spaces and look 'puffy' or 'stuffed'. Perimeter screw holes have to be drilled and marked accordingly with the panels mounted on the door for securement.
Then the vinyl has to be cut leaving about a 3" border around the perimeter. The vinyl is glued down with contact cement. Then when that is dry, the edges are folded over and glued as well onto the back.
From the back side of the panel, holes have to be poked through with a sharp instrument to indicate on the 'good side' where to mount and adjust. The perimeter mounting holes for the panel to the door are OK as is. Holes for the arm rest and the curved trim need enlarging with tiny scissors in an '+' shape.
Rectangle openings are cut corner to corner and folded through the opening and glued to the back side.
I've purposefully limited this demo to just one panel for simplicity and, of course, the process has to be repeated for the kick panels and the rear seat panels (cardboard template, backing panel, vinyl, etc).
Note: From my experience Elmer's spray glue is just a waste of time for these panels since you are putting glue on foam as well as the back of the vinyl. Don't cheap out -use a good quality (expensive) contact cement where you brush cement on both surfaces, let dry, and carefully lay the vinyl down without wrinkles (nerve wracking, I'll admit). Also, never use spray glue inside the car -that shit goes everywhere you don't want it to go (don't ask me how I know).
I didn't bother to look for exotic hidden clips for mounting any of these panels. I went with screws with those raised washers attached (I'm sure there is a name for them) and used them as a decorative element, upfront and visible.
The result is this for a first timer....
One final note. The stainless curved piece required some creativity to mount and I can do a little post on that if anyone is interested.....
I was not going the 'stitched route' by buying a heavy duty sewing machine and practicing for many hours. Simple slab-type door panels, rear panels, and kick panels would be a good start for me with lots of thinking and analyzing and patience.
I figured out the door measurements and accommodations for original window sill trim, an arm rest (actually a split bumper guard), access for the electric window switches and electric seat switches. In addition, I figured that the great expanse of the door panel needed a design element to visually break it up. For this I selected a curved piece of the original stainless roof trim that was in a pile of parts from the original car.
Overall the process entails making a template of thin cardboard. This shape gets transferred to a stiff panel material. This in turn, gets transferred to foam
and eventually to vinyl.
A sheet of 1/4" foam is applied to the entire surface and cutouts are done for the door latch (upper left), door popper (lower left), the arm rest location (central), sill trim (upper edge), curved stainless trim, and two areas for switches. Cutting out the foam in these areas, allows the vinyl to be recessed into these spaces and look 'puffy' or 'stuffed'. Perimeter screw holes have to be drilled and marked accordingly with the panels mounted on the door for securement.
Then the vinyl has to be cut leaving about a 3" border around the perimeter. The vinyl is glued down with contact cement. Then when that is dry, the edges are folded over and glued as well onto the back.
From the back side of the panel, holes have to be poked through with a sharp instrument to indicate on the 'good side' where to mount and adjust. The perimeter mounting holes for the panel to the door are OK as is. Holes for the arm rest and the curved trim need enlarging with tiny scissors in an '+' shape.
Rectangle openings are cut corner to corner and folded through the opening and glued to the back side.
I've purposefully limited this demo to just one panel for simplicity and, of course, the process has to be repeated for the kick panels and the rear seat panels (cardboard template, backing panel, vinyl, etc).
Note: From my experience Elmer's spray glue is just a waste of time for these panels since you are putting glue on foam as well as the back of the vinyl. Don't cheap out -use a good quality (expensive) contact cement where you brush cement on both surfaces, let dry, and carefully lay the vinyl down without wrinkles (nerve wracking, I'll admit). Also, never use spray glue inside the car -that shit goes everywhere you don't want it to go (don't ask me how I know).
I didn't bother to look for exotic hidden clips for mounting any of these panels. I went with screws with those raised washers attached (I'm sure there is a name for them) and used them as a decorative element, upfront and visible.
The result is this for a first timer....
One final note. The stainless curved piece required some creativity to mount and I can do a little post on that if anyone is interested.....
