Bike Seat Repair.

Does anybody know what would be the best way of fixing a small split in a
vinyl bike seat ?

I have a CB 250Y that's 5 years old ( always park it in the shade ) and in
the last week it has developed a slight split about 10 mm long on the side
of the seat near where my thigh is positioned.

This split has just broken the surface and the underlying canvas material is
exposed but not broken.

Is there any way of stopping this split by bogging it up with rubber glue ,
paint or whatever or will I need to take it to an upholsters to get them to
professionally weld it together.

I am in Perth , can anybody recommend any bike seat upholsterers in Perth
or how to fix this small split.

Also what do people recommend for conditioning a vinyl bike seat ? , would
Amourall or a leather conditioner do ?


Thanks.


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Sandgroper

 

I recovered mine on the weekend. Not a huge job. Having a pnuematic stapler
makes all the difference. I can probably do it for you for around $50
including vinyl.

Fraser

 

Forgot to mention I am in Scarborough.

Fraser

 

Here is a pic of my CB showing the shape of the seat , it has no stitching
on it , the split is directly above the "C" on the side of the seat near the
top of the seat curve.

< http://members.iinet.net.au/~steveray/bike/cb250.jpg >

Thanks for the suggestions , I was hoping that I could somehow stop the
split from getting bigger by filling it up with something and then
conditioning the rest of the seat to make is soft and elastic.


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Sandgroper

 

Just get some vinyl from clark rubber or some one, pinch your wifes
sewing machine get slightly heavier thread and do it yourself (piece of
cake)

 

Thanks for the offer , but I will need to wait a bit for when I can get the
time to get it done , at the moment the split is not too bad , so I will
have to see how it goes.

I have done a quick search about getting a motor trimmer to recover the seat
and from what I have read , it will cost about $100.


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Sandgroper

 

Air operated stapler Jordan

I recovered my seat using one and they are good, the normal hand operated
stapler has not got enough grunt to do the job properly

 

Yeah right....just put the seat on the sewing machine and try to sew the
seat to it.

The seat cover is stapled to the seat base frame

 

Listen to Johno Sandgroper.
You can get a stapler for under $20 at Bunnings (get a good one and make
sure you get the appropriate staples [and make sure they're the short
ones]), half a metre of black vinyl from Spotlight and Bob's your mother's
brother. (Maybe a bit of contact-cement for the tricky spots...
beeeeeeeautiful!)

 

It runs off an air compressor. Works like a dream. $50 is what I paid for the
stapler and I have some vinyl around so I'm not looking to really make any
money.

Fraser

 

I tried with my stapler that I use for stapling targets to wooden beams at the
gun club. It went about half way in the plastic. The air jobby works a treat.

Fraser

 

Yeah I had a cheapie and it was hopeless. The $20 one with adjustable
tension does OK but your wrists know about it after a while.
The air-stapler would be ESSENTIAL if you were making any sort of habit of
it! (and $50 is a bargain)

 

Not all seats are one piece, they need sewing before fitting.Some do not
use staples (mine does not) (re upholster mine every couple o years )

 

Thanks for the suggestion , but I don't think that I have the dexterity ,
patience or the time to be able to do it myself , so I will get a
upholsterer to do it.


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Save planet Earth
It is the only place that has Pizza and Beer !


Sandgroper

 

BLACK!

Geeze you can be a boring old fart when you really try, Clem. ;-)

regards,
CrazyCam

 

Thanks , yeah that what I was thinking , whacking a bit of cloth back tape
to the split to hold it together and to stop if from drying out /getting
wet.


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Save planet Earth
It is the only place that has Pizza and Beer !


Sandgroper

 

Fiberglass, two pieces which clamp the vinyl.
It is a 1982 BM ex police( the seat is a copy of a real one, made in an
aircraft factory as a foreign order for a bloke who sold it to me 25
years ago at the auction when I got the bike because they made spares
for him)

 

I got a blue seat made once but it was a bit too flower-power for me!
http://www.users.bigpond.net.au/bargearse/1st_xj9.jpg

 

You may find that the electric stapler hasn't got enough grunt either
Got one of those as well
tried it and it isn't a patch on the air operated one
The plastic seat base is thick and hard

 

Use a better quality cloth tape, you will find that the cloth tape will
split quite easy as well.