Rejuvenated my seats - leather crack filler and dye

[J-Dub]

I am also impressed. I have never done more than a simple color touchup on a worn bolster. Great work!

[Tazio Nuvolari]

Used a liquid from Color Plus in Palmyra PA called Soffener with very good results. A friend recommended using neadsfoot oil. The liquid was fairly old and results were nowhere near as good as with Soffener. Cost is $ 33.00 for a pint. Did the two{2] front seats about 6 times using a toothbrush for application and still have about half a can remaining. Am pleased with the transformation ! Tazio Nuvolari

[Dionysius]

Thanks to all who posted the results of their leather work. They look great. This may be on my spring or summer project list, assuming leather is easier to work with in warmer temps.
Ken

[dr bob]

Lots of great efforts and results shared! Thanks! All of our methods and materials are similar, sometimes from different sources. I'd have to look in archives for the pictures of my seats prior, but they were way less severe than the seats in Carmagic's posts. Way south of the OP's seats with just the color scuffed off. My repairs are at least fifteen years in service now, and are still hold up extremely well.

Without admitting any guilt yer onner, I used a readily available acrylic crack filler with maximum flexibility and durability. It comes carefully disguised in a tube labelled "Alex Plus" painters caulk from the local orange-shelves store. Used sparingly so as not to fill the surface texture, just to go after the real cracks into the leather. A plastic body-filler applicator would work well for a bigger area I guess. I chose to use just fingers to apply it to carefully targeted spots and cracks, so I wouldn't end up with an obvious smooth area in the textured leather.

Prep and application the same as the procedure described in several posts so far, from prep 'scuffing' to final sanding. For the finish, I went to a local specialty paint store near our home above Los Angeles, and worked with the folks there to get a perfect color match, using a latex paint intended for canvas banners and such. Figured it would be the best for the wear and the flexing.

I did have a few 'cracked through' splits in the drivers bolster that demanded backing, and ended up using leather patches harvested from a prior project's trimmings. Carefully thinned them and tapered the edges. Then tucked them under the seat leather with the rough "split" face out for better gluing. Mask to the edges of the crack, and added some yellow contact cement after they were in place using an metal-stemmed "acid brush". Quickly cleaned and removed the masking. Then drew the cracks closed with the glue still full wet using Gorilla Tape. Let the work sit for a day or two before disturbing anything so the glue had a chance to dry completely. Then the finishing steps over the repairs.

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Several years later at a 928 gathering, a seat repair craftsman was invited to do some work on guest cars, and he graciously allowed me to watch and "help". Extremely graciously. His methods were virtually identical, except that he used a blower-driven HVLP applicator for the color coats. He did a lot more blending with the mist his rig could generate, vs. my "dab with a dry foam bush" method. As far as the crack filler he used, it was in a small paint can instead of the caulking-gun tube, but otherwise same consistency, method and result. His dried faster though. I initially tried to apply the color with an airbrush, but thinning the paint I bought to get it to airbrush caused some color drop-out.


Meanwhile, the OP's challenge doesn't demand more than the scuffing and a color coat. The bulk of the work will be the initial "softening" and cleaning needed to get the color coat to bond well.

After the repair work I did, I have adjusted my getting-in and getting-out technique some to bit of a stiff-arm pivot vault over the bolsters. No dragging belt loops or full back pockets over the bolster; just get in and THEN sit down.

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Please share back pictures and comments on methods and results. There's always plenty to learn from others on stuff like this. It's also that final inspirational nudge for folks who have early signs of wear that can be fixed before it becomes more serious leather damage.