Foam Forming
5/29/03
Foam Forming
I spent two weeks away from the foam on my seats to give them some time to dry out. I tried wetting them down to freeze the foam thinking it would make shaping the blocks easier, but there really wasn’t an advantage. I found using a coarse sandpaper on a high speed sanding disk was the trick. Once the rough shape was made, a fine paper was attached to the sander (320 grit) for final smoothing. Anytime using the sander extreme care had to be taken to keep the the disk from grabbing the foam gouging it. After a few minutes of sanding, I was covered in foam particles. It was not a good idea to wear black! The good thing is this was latex rubber, so there shouldn’t be any negative health affects in breathing in this stuff…I hope!
I finally got three cushions shaped well enough for a test. I wanted to see if I was on the right track in shape, size, and overall fit to the new leather cover.
With the rubbery texture of the latex foam, it would be difficult to slide the leather cover on for my test, so Frank suggested I cover the foam with a smoother material. I hog ringed some of the fabric in place to give the seat the right shape, and installed the new leather cover. I found the top foam piece needing more volume, along with some minor adjustments to the sides, but the general shape is good. With the leather cover in place, I can feel that the softer foam gives a very plush feel to the seats. I think all this work will be worth it!
Previous Restoration Day
Next Restoration Day
Home page