Wow, it's actually here--the last installment in our build series of Sacramento Vintage Ford's Mail Order F-100! Now that the rest of the truck is done, we need something to sit on while we're doing burnouts!
Upholstery can been one of those big apprehensions toward the end of any project. Many times there isn't much dough left to even get one done, and who wants to crown their years of hard work with a "cheap" trim job? The days of going down to T.J. for the afternoon and calling it "good" are long gone--people demand more these days than seats stuffed with hay...or worse.
RodDoors is a company that realized this and saw the need to provide not only the products to do the job, but also counsel and advise customers to make sure they get a well-designed interior that utilizes colors and materials sure to make them happy with their investment. There are almost too many options to mention when it comes to interior schemes, which is enough to overwhelm almost anyone when they walk into the upholstery shop unprepared. RodDoors stresses the pre-planning when it comes to this stage in the game. They have a comprehensive Web site and catalog, but even more impressive is their knowledgeable over-the-phone assistance at your disposal. For those who don't want to think about it too much, they have loads of complete combos, ranging from mild to wild already put together, as well as many packages from the minds of top-notch stitchers like Sid Chavers and Ron Mangus.
Whether you choose to tackle it or have a pro seal the deal, follow along as we show you what it takes to install RodDoors' unique approach to a custom interior for your car or truck and look for the full feature of Sacramento Vintage Ford's Mail Order F-100 elsewhere in this issue.
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 Here's our Lassen II bench...  Here's our Lassen II bench seat from RodDoors that came covered in Raisinette Ultraleather with Chamois Ultrasuede inserts. After unpacking we found both halves of the bench seat, mounting brackets, slider hardware and all the mounting hardware. Now we just have to put it together. |
 The seatback mounts to the...  The seatback mounts to the bottom where it has hinges to fold forward, and the hinges pop on over the studs on the frame of the seatback, add washers and nylocks and we're set. |
 The already upholstered cover...  The already upholstered cover for the back of the seat has these wide plastic "clips" that slide under the seat springs in the seatback so there's no hardware showing. |
 The screws that secure the...  The screws that secure the cover in place are down in the hinged area that meets the seat bottom--this'll be about the only time you'll see 'em. |
 Next, the tracks for the seat...  Next, the tracks for the seat slider get bolted to the underside of the seat bottom. There are some cone-type washers that come in the kit, and they go between the slider and the seat with the big side of the cone toward the slider like so. |
 The release cable for the...  The release cable for the seat slider gets routed through some of the hog rings on the back of the seat bottom on its way to the other side. |
 The brackets that mount the...  The brackets that mount the seat to the floor allow for all kinds of adjustment. The seat can be positioned many ways--high to low, front to back, tilt it forward, or lean it back. We pretty much centered everything for the initial mounting leaving equal adjustment in any direction. |
 Seat position is a critical...  Seat position is a critical part of any build. This needs to be done with the primary driver, and the vehicle needs to have the pedal assembly, steering column, and steering wheel installed so everything can be checked to see if it's comfortable for the driver. Also measure as many times as it takes to make sure the seat is square in the cable. Do a visual check, as well. If things are caddywhompas it'll show. |
 To get started on the installation...  To get started on the installation of the Trinadad Copper carpet we had to remove as many obstacles as we could that were coming through the floor... |
 ...like the steering column,...  ...like the steering column, pedal pads, and the gas pedal. |