Ever had an old beat up seat cover that just doesn’t look or feel the same as it did when it was new? Maybe you just want to change the look of your ride. Installing a new cover can be a little tricky but is well worth doing yourself to save a little money and get the look and feel back you once knew. Here are a few tips to get you back in the saddle!
Material Type and Fit
The material the seat cover is made of can really make the job easy or very difficult. I’ve done both. There are many cheap covers out there, not only material wise, but the way they fit. Working with a flexible material is best. The material should have some stretch to it and also fit as close to the original shape as possible. A good seat cover should have seams where needed and the seams should be well reinforced.
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Tools Needed:
9 Step Process:
Step 1: Get all your tools and new cover ready
Step 2: Remove the old staples using pliers and a flat head screwdriver. I like to use a magnetic bowl to keep track of them.
Step 3: Remove old cover down to bare foam. Check the foam condition. Repairs to the foam can be made depending on your time.
Step 4: Pull the REAR of the new cover in place first.
Step 5: Pull the NOSE of the cover in place.
Step 6: Grab one of the FRONT CORNERS, turn the material inside out to line up the corners of the seat cover. Do the same to the other side.
Step 7: Check to see if the cover is centered. Pull the front corners tight and evenly. Now secure in place with a staple or two. Wrinkles in the curve (saddle) can be remove by pulling the material between the corners and the front. Secure the corners with a couple staples.
Step 8: Now pull on the sides to remove any remaining slack. Once tight, place a few staples along the sides.
Step 9: A good quality seat will be pretty much done at this point. Now to finish, continue pulling the seat cover as needed and adding staples all the way around. When you are finished, everything should look even and relaxed. There shouldn’t be any really tight spots to where it’s pulling staples out or tearing material. If it’s done correctly, it will look and feel amazing again!
Finished Product:
Good luck on your re-covering your next seat. It can be a fairly simple process when working with a nice, quality seat cover. Be patient and if you have to remove staples to get things right, there’s nothing wrong with starting over.
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