Installng Moss leather seat kts

[tcremesal]

I'm thinking of buying and installing Moss leather seat kits in my 48 TC. Has anyone done this recently ? Thanks, Tim

[stephen stierman]

I did my top, curtains, and full Moss interior probably about eight years ago.

[ian theobald]

see my post recently .job will be made much easier if your old seats original to copy as in my case not so and would be nice to know details such as how pleats finished with seat back etc . Also as to how much wadding on sides to eliminate puckering .I had no clue as to how thick seat squab was at back so just did what I thought looks ok and made other seat exactly the same. Found some old off cuts of green leather hidden in wadding and much darker in colour to what Moss supplied but happy with results. Kept old vinyl covering for dog to sleep on over hessian bed ,good luck

[tcremesal]

Stephen And Ian : I've started , Was there much stretching and refitting to deal with on the top ? I'm doing the seats first. Remaking wood seat back . Did you purchase the horse hair padding kit ? I bought only the foam kit for the seats. Thanks for your input.

[stephen stierman]

I found the kits to be similar to a few others that I have done, there is typically a bit of stretching involved to position things as they should be. I did not use horsehair padding and the results were fine without. Again keep in mind that after installation, there is some stretching of the material, so if you are not pleased with a result, you can reposition as needed. These were done on the island in the kitchen with good lightening and at a comfortable working height. My wife was away........

[tcremesal]

Stephen : What did you use in place of horse hair? I'm looking for an alternative . Something softer. I like a looser fit.

[ian theobald]

My seats had a rubbery foam on seat squabs with Dunlopillo stamped .Bit of a moulded shape to them as not entirely straight from front to back but a bit of a dish as well as sitting on sloping wooden base.
as for seat back may of been foam from memory .
Not much stretching as did not have much material at bottom left over as cut out over transmission tunnel may of been incorrect.
I lined piping at bottom with bottom of foam before it rounded off underneath so sits just on top of seat bottoms .
If you have original seats then you are lucky so take photos if possible as you de construct making note of how and where piping fits .Even the vinyl moss supplied for rear of seat with sewn piping was barely enough to cover and took a while to work out what height to attach from top so I have taked like books suggest but instead of a 1/2 inch board have fitted fibre board over complete back of seat placing inside edge of piping on inside edge of board and folding all material over to get a nice neat edge over top of seat.
Then board was screwed on behind using seat stays and railing and a few neatly positioned screws with cup washers at corners over wheel arch and bottom,
The reason being in case of any re packing plus the cut out over floor tunnel required a patch of wood to tack bottom material.

[ian theobald]

You may of noticed that I folded tops over 45 degree on corner and lined backing piece to finish exact in line removing piping inside at ends a fraction and glued ends together,
You can see rear cut out to allow seat to hit floor and was too low.
The moss Kit would not allow for piping to follow arch as would of had piping run along bottom of seat several inches above seat bottoms.
The seat now rests on transmission tunnel neatly where front curve is and have fitted extra wood behind over top hence reason for fibre board backing for complete seat.
I have yet to do rear tub or doors as need passenger door to be re hung first .
Timber in car is very solid but not original and car is rattle free.
Under the car is steel angle plate fitted to timber the entire length, the dash is triple thickness but alas passenger door is too low and front sill around scuttle has had some welding which will need grinding off but from inside has solid timber,
Over all car is very straight.
The roof is a Robbins hood with a large window which is a shame but is in good condition as are side curtains.I would like to find a rear cover or half cover to match .
Best of luck with seats

[stephen stierman]

Stephen : What did you use in place of horse hair? I'm looking for an alternative . Something softer. I like a looser fit.

I recall using a thin layer of foam over the squab. As I restored items they were stored in a safe place, attached is a photo of the seat bottoms after the covers were installed. Keep also in mind that after some years of use these do take on a bit of nice patina as leather will do.

[ian theobald]

another picture of seat bottoms.

I measured height both sides back and front to keep level and did the same for matching seat.
Make sure leather faces outside around bottom of seat. Just pull cover taught but not to tight and put just enough wadding on the sides so as not to look like a rice pudding all puffed out.
I had to remove most wadding as was polyester stuff and bunched up so had to purchase some wall flock.
Possibly Kapock ?[is available so if possible retain old wadding if you have it and note how was fitted.
I have some picyures as well of my MGYT which I owned some years back .Motor trimmers did not want to know about it so copied how originally done as I still had original.

[tcremesal]

You Chaps are all most helpful. Love my TC and the comrades.

[LFD059]

I recently completed the installation of Moss leather seats, door and side panels and arch covers buying the TC kit. All went pretty smoothly except for the seat back, which was my fault, as I tried to stretch the new leather over the existing back and spring frame, which was a bit flattened out from continued use and some broken springs which I had repaired. 85% went on OK, but the remaining upper corner just wouldn't stretch enough over the upper back springs and tore. I took it to an auto upholster who stitched a new piece in and fixed it good as new and mounted the rail and back plates for $200. The other upholstery items all fit well but require patience when installing, as no instructions come with the kit. Most you can figure out though. One suggestion I would recommend is to use small screws in the hidem strip instead of tacks, as there much easier to remove and won't cause damage to the thin wood backing, vinyl or door frame if you have to remove the newly installed item for what ever reason. I did, and it was a very delicate operation as not to damage the new paint job or break/tear the vinyl or backer board. I only wish MOSS would provide some "to do" instructions to accompany their products, as catalog pictures only go so far.

Rich

[tcremesal]

Thanks for the tips , Rich. I took the seat back apart. Kept the springs and built a new back . I'd like to use something other than horsehair.

[ian theobald]

You are so correct in screwing trim rather than tacking. I did this when making door trims for my MG YT several years back as did not like the idea of nailing trim on .
Being a Y Tourer meant was on my own Jack as far as trim went so was able to copy seats as under covers was original leather .As for door trims I was fortunate that another owner had remnants to copy.
My roof frame of welded galvanised pipe was a mess but local fabrication place was able to make new bows after showing them a TD model ,the side was about 3 inches longer on one side as car had been in a side on smash so was an easy way to make hood fit.
Later when I get home I will try and take measurements of typical dimensions for seats as you are correct that the Moss kits come with no instructions so a good reference would be handy as in my case all original springs for seats were long gone or did MG change to rubberised foam later on in the production as my bases look old and molded to shape and manufactured with Dunlopillow stamped in them.
My TC is a very late 49 model.
If any members have a good pattern for a half cover would like to hear as don't have one but perhaps Robbins still in the business of making one for TC model.
My hood is of black vinyl but shame has a large rear window.
I hope is ok on this forum to include some pics of the YT seats showing how copied from original patterns if that's ok.
When doing the hidem for door trims I also cut and mitred the corners and butted together and glued as disliked how Hidem puckers around sharp corners.I stapled Hidem as well as glued as did not have facility to sew on to ply trim. A local shoe repairer sewed pockets onto ply with a hand operated machine as local motor trimmers would not do for fear of breaking needles or machines
The YT shared many similarities with the TC but also the TD. Was a shame I sold