Advice on bench seat refurb

[McDeezl]

Hi,

I've spent hours going through the many threads on 67-72 bench seat refurbishing. Decided today to tear mine apart to get a handle on what there is to work with .. or not.

Most of it seems to be in decent shape .... the frame and springs are rusted but all intact and no broken or fatigued springs. The foam seems to be pretty decent too, I've seen guys threads here work with worse foam than what I'm looking at. Thinking that I'll just get the frame and suspension sandblasted and epoxy primed black and good to go with that. The foam, not sure.

So one of the things that came out of researching threads here is that apparently there are several different models of benches. They vary by year, full foam, half foam, full spring, etc. Even read one thread that said there are different benches from U.S. to Canada trucks. Looking at mine all I know is that it is from a '72 base model pickup (Canada) and would guess that it is what they call half foam. The bench foam is maybe 3" thick on the section that sits direct on the springs. The back foam is a bit thicker, maybe 4" or so.

So questions .... is this a bench model worth re-doing or are there better fuller foam benches that make a nicer job? It seems comfortable enough sitting on it but nothing to compare that to. Would you work with this foam or go with new stuff ... they're crazy expensive for replacement foam sets but have seen some guys repair old foam by gluing in sections. Not sure I need to or it's worth doing that. When purchasing new covers what information do I need to provide to get one that fits correctly? Are they all the same size or several different for different bench models? I'll most likely go with black vinyl and orange/black houndstooth inserts.

From that bit of an explanation and photos below, any feedback, suggestions, experiences or answers to questions would be greatly appreciated.

Thx!

Sean

[dfwright]

Your foam looks to be in pretty good condition. I would personally sandblast and repaint the metal, and reuse the foam. One of the things guys have run into is that the new foam is thicker than the original foam, and makes you sit higher in the cab when used. I know for me, I'm pretty close to the steering wheel, with foam just like yours there. Any thicker, and I'd be too high on the seat.

Be sure to carefully check the springs on the driver side on the outer edge -- these tend to break, and need repair, although from the look of your foam, your seat may not have carried the "load" or the abuse that mine has seen.

Oh, and from the pictures, yours seems look exactly like my non-Canadian 72 bench

I ordered my new cover from member "Truckseats" here on the board. He needs to know the year, and what level you want -- fancy or extra-fancy. The plain covers like you and I had are not reproduced

[randy500]

I don't think they make foam unless you have a full-foam seat. I also haven't tried to install a new cover on anything but full foam because the covers that are reproduced came on full foam seats. Overall the covers look the same shape but I wonder if they fit the non-full foam seat correctly.

From what I can tell the back foam seems to be the same, full foam or not.

[Zeroman]

I just went through the same on my seat which is the same as yours....full foam back with spring/foam bottom.

Like Randy500 said, blast the frame and repaint.

I reused my original foam as the the 2"+/- foam bottom is not reproduced. I had to do a little repair, but it is very easy. All you need is some 1" foam from the sewing store, an electric carving knife, and some spray adhesive. The pic is the seat back repair.

I did add a 1" thick foam "topper" to the seat bottom after the repair. I just used the spray adhesive and then the carving knife to contour the edge a bit.

I also covered the whole seat back and bottom with 1/4" polyfil...the stuff quilters use. Then the covers are installed.

I had no problem with the seat covers fitting with the seat bottom not being full foam. It fit fine. Maybe the 1" topper helped with that.

When putting on the hog rings start in the center of the seat and work towards the ends.

Just be sure to take note as to how the back cover is finished out at the seat bottom...it is a little tricky to get it to look correct.

Oh, and go ahead and buy the package of 500 hog rings. It takes more than you think.

For listing wires(the wires that the hog rings attach to) I used hanger wire on the advice from a local upholstery shop. Just bend the ends over. I had to put two together for the width, but again, I just bent the ends over to join them together. I have also heard of people using welding wire from a MIG welder.

I now know why upholstery shops get the money they get....it was quite a workout.

Good luck, and have fun!

[Zeroman]

Oh, I almost forgot......

The upholstery guy also said to use burlap against the springs and the frame on the back, then use a felt in between that and the foam.

I used that thin dark gray felt most people use on speaker enclosures. It worked great.

I think it looks really slick. See pic.

Another fellow gave me the tip to use two big wire ties instead of the "s" hook to adjust the seat mechanism. You leave the zip ties loose, install the seat, then tighten the inner zip tie until the seat operates properly, then tighten the outer one and cut off the ends. That's a whole lot easier than jacking with that darn "s" hook. You might need to make the hole in the frame larger to accommodate the zip ties. See pic.

[McDeezl]

Awesome feedback and suggestions guys ... thanks so much for that, it really helps a lot!
At least now I know I'm not dealing with some oddball bench seat and I can get a cover that will fit. Will probably take the frame in to get sandblasted and painted this week now that I know its all good. The suggestions for burlap / felt / 1" topper foam I will look at doing for sure.

A couple of close up pics of the frame and springs on the drivers side where they usually fail. Whoever had this truck in its first life was obviously lighter weight than the guy in its next life!

[In The Ten Ring]

I have this coming up too. My dad had my truck's bench seat reupholstered in 1991 and even with my skinny legs back then I sat up too high.

My legs are much more beefy now and they don't make tilt steering with a 3OTT.

[CUSTOM/10]

I just went through this several month back. Sean, your seat is the thinner foam seat and as fare as I'm aware no-one makes a replacement for it, only the thicker/full foams are reproduced. And the issue with the new foam is that there denser than the originals causing you to sit up higher putting your head closer to the roof and your legs closer to the steering wheel.
From the pics of your foams, I would reuse them, maybe some added foam or repair areas if needed. If you did by the new thicker foams they would have to be modified to work anyway. Just make sure your springs are all good, no weak or broken ones, repair or add a thin layer to the top of the bottom foam, ( as others have mentioned ) put a new cover over it and call it good.

My seat is the full foam, and I used the new denser foam. Yes my head is closer to the roof and my legs are close to the steering wheel but I do have a tilt wheel to help with that. as for being closer to the roof, I may have to use my seat belt so I don't hit my head when I hit a bump in the road. "LOL" ( Haven't driven the truck with the new seat,( isn't on the road yet )

Gary

[McDeezl]

Got the hardware blasted and epoxy primed / powder coated. Looks pretty nice for stuff that is going to covered over and be invisible for another 40 years!
No broken springs and seem ok to go ahead with as is. With my luck I'll hear something go snap the first time I sit my big derriere on it after its done!
A couple of closeup pics of the foam. The back is in really good shape and the bench foam needs just a bit of work. You can see where the factory had hog ringed just the bench foam alone pre-cover to the frame and left divots in the foam edge when I pulled them. Will glue and shape a few chunks of foam over those and also the bit of concave area on the drivers side of the bench foam. Then glue a 1" topper foam on that and blend shape it to the original bench top.
Looking at what other guys have done at this and will glue burlap to back/underside of foams where they sit against the springs. Am thinking also might be an ok idea to use a piece of light indoor outdoor carpet cut to shape of bench springs where they contact foam .... put fuzzy side against the springs to eliminate noise and will better distribute the load weight from foam to springs. Anyone tried something similar to that and results?
Talked with Tim at Truckseats and will be getting houndstooth covers from him. He's mailing me a couple of samples to make sure I make the right call on colours for the houndstooth. The orange black looks quite a bit lighter shade than the hugger paint and red black looks like it might be closer but photos can be deceiving. Sometimes contrast is better than matching too so samples will certainly help.

[McDeezl]

And pics of the bench foam. Guessing that with these spring seats and thin foam the factory clipped the foam to the frame with hog rings to keep it in place before putting the cover on.

[da.slyboy]

I've been looking at this site:
https://www.classicmuscle.com/bench-seat-foam

Looks to have the right size for the partial foam seats. Trying to get more info to confirm.

[McDeezl]

I had a look at the site and it says for 67-68 trucks and visually appears to be the full foam...notch on underside front corner of bench. Pretty sure the partial foam spring seats were 71-72 only. The price sure looks good though compared to other places. Curious to see what info and details you get, keep us posted.
Thx!

[68is4me]

Looks good, anybody have any advice if you do have a broken spring? Can you weld it back to together?

[dfwright]

Originally Posted by 68is4me

Looks good, anybody have any advice if you do have a broken spring? Can you weld it back to together?

I've always been told that broken springs need to be replaced. There are a number of really good posts on the board about replacing springs and sourcing components to do it.

[McDeezl]

I would second that as well. Some guys will claim they successfully welded springs but I would say they got very lucky if they did. Replacing broken springs would be the way to go either sourcing them new or finding good used somewhere.

[McDeezl]

Reading through other threads on the subject and found a really good image that shows the model of bench I'm working with and gives a good idea what the difference is between full foam bench and spring half foam bench. Apparently these spring half foam benches were the base model seat but reading a whole lot of posts about guys who bought the replacement full foam and major issues with sitting too high. By the sound of things the spring seat half foam may be less comfortable but you'll (I'll) avoid potential problems with height and replacement full foam.

So brings me to another question .... I want to glue in some patch foam in the area of the bench where your butt sits on driver side, worn down about 1" or a bit less maybe. Cutting that section so that I just patch a section on top of existing rather than a section of entire thickness ... cutting vertical with an electric kitchen knife seems to be the preferred method and easy enough but how would you cut horizontal between the vertical cuts? I would like to cut a section about 1" deep and maybe 12" across and then glue in a foam insert patch section that fits into that. Then I plan to glue a 1" topper foam across the entire top surface of the bench foam and shape the edges before covering. The 1" deep cuts would be simple enough but how to cut the 12" across section without making an uneven mess?

[mike16]

there is no way to weld springs and have them function like a spring. the spring will almost emeadiatly fail right next to the weld.

also sand blasting the spring is not such a good idea. sand under pressure can wear away the hardended surface of the spring and soon enough the soft center too will fail. sand blast the frame ...yes but avoid sandblasting the spring metal itself. better to chemicaly etch the surface befor powder coating the surface. best might be to simply paint the spring steel surface with linseed oil, boiled dries faster, and then upolster the seat. linseed will resist corrosion and rust will not stain fabric.

[schovil69]

Originally Posted by McDeezl

Reading through other threads on the subject and found a really good image that shows the model of bench I'm working with and gives a good idea what the difference is between full foam bench and spring half foam bench. Apparently these spring half foam benches were the base model seat but reading a whole lot of posts about guys who bought the replacement full foam and major issues with sitting too high. By the sound of things the spring seat half foam may be less comfortable but you'll (I'll) avoid potential problems with height and replacement full foam.

So brings me to another question .... I want to glue in some patch foam in the area of the bench where your butt sits on driver side, worn down about 1" or a bit less maybe. Cutting that section so that I just patch a section on top of existing rather than a section of entire thickness ... cutting vertical with an electric kitchen knife seems to be the preferred method and easy enough but how would you cut horizontal between the vertical cuts? I would like to cut a section about 1" deep and maybe 12" across and then glue in a foam insert patch section that fits into that. Then I plan to glue a 1" topper foam across the entire top surface of the bench foam and shape the edges before covering. The 1" deep cuts would be simple enough but how to cut the 12" across section without making an uneven mess?

Hot wire cutters are used my modelers on styrofoam. Not sure, but maybe they can be used on seat foam to make the cut you're wanting? Home Depot, Menards, Lowes, etc. should have one or some to choose from.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Proxxon-Hot...FQkIaQodp_UKcQ

[In The Ten Ring]

I have this problem coming up. My father got my seat redone back in 1990 and although I could easily drive it when I was 16, I was a lot skinnier back then!

I sat in the truck some yesterday and ugh, it was hard to get into it, especially with my sidearm in pocket carry. Once she's running I am driving her to a local vehicle seat restoration shop and getting something done with that seat.

*I am a bit overweight, literally 20 pounds, but I'm doing P90X and I expect my legs to get thicker with all the weight lifting.

[54blackhornet]

I just had the seat in my 71 GMC recovered in original embossed style vinyl by a gentleman who has been doing this since the early 70's. The seat was in much better condition then most I've seen. The exposure to sun had dried the vinyl out and it was cracking in numerous places. The full foam underneath looked perfect so we both decided to reuse it. Big mistake ! When you sit on it now everything is nice and firm except the drivers area is much softer and I'm not a heavy guy at 195. I wish I had replaced the foam now....

[McDeezl]

Hmmm, very good to know especially for the guys working with full foam seats as they can actually purchase replacement foam sets for those. Mine is the spring/half foam version however and those foams are not available as replacements even if needed to buy one. I've placed the bare foam onto the bench spring suspension and seems ok to me so just going to patch up that foam a wee bit and add a 1" topper to it, call it a day. I suspect that the support and comfort with mine is more to do with the springs and less to do with the foam anyways. So I've got foam ordered and on the way and have which cover configuration I need worked out with Tim at Truckseats so that will be ordered in the next couple of days.