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DIY foam to replace horsehair seats?


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Hello all,

I have some original vinyl seats in my '78 B210 that have thinned down and dried up horsehair inside.  Has anyone taken off the vinyl slips and added some foam using the same vinyl coverings?   I was wondering if there are basic seat bottom and seat back foam inserts that can be purchased and installed without using upholstering services.  I have somewhat intact vinyl just the cushioning/horsehair has broken down inside.  What are your thoughts?

 

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I hate to say it but those buckets (in name only) are the worst POS ever made. They have a steel bar across the lower back that I've hit my tail bone on so may times. I just hate them. Maybe made for smaller Asian asses or something. I have doubts that any amount of foam can save them. Unless keeping it original and not worried about creature comfort, I would get some that are 35 years newer and actually a bucket with bolsters on the seat and seat back. I've heard PT cruiser seats are good, fit and they give them away..

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I hate to say it but those buckets (in name only) are the worst POS ever made. They have a steel bar across the lower back that I've hit my tail bone on so may times. I just hate them. Maybe made for smaller Asian asses or something. I have doubts that any amount of foam can save them. Unless keeping it original and not worried about creature comfort, I would get some that are 35 years newer and actually a bucket with bolsters on the seat and seat back. I've heard PT cruiser seats are good, fit and they give them away..

Hilarious!  I agree.  Daily driving or a single long drive in these seats can cause all kinds of back pain and dysfunction and are just plain uncomfortable new, let alone disintegrating.  I'm a sucker for originality so I'm trying to make some sort of plan to throw foam in.  I'd like to Por-15 the floor and install a carpet kit but don't want the horsehair dust crumbling out of the seats like it currently does. 

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Hilarious!  I agree.  Daily driving or a single long drive in these seats can cause all kinds of back pain and dysfunction and are just plain uncomfortable new, let alone disintegrating.  I'm a sucker for originality so I'm trying to make some sort of plan to throw foam in.  I'd like to Por-15 the floor and install a carpet kit but don't want the horsehair dust crumbling out of the seats like it currently does. 

 

If you want a more firm seat, investigate "Motorcycle Foam", it's way more resilient.  As far as preventing crud from decorating your carpet [usually the deterioration of the jute fiber padding, not the rotting foam] I went to my local do it yourself moving franchise and bought a roll of the thin expanded vinyl padding which they sell to insert between chinaware pieces and preserve a slight chance that your china won't disintegrate during a move.  Put the "chinaware" foam sheet on top of the steel springs [it's surprisingly a very good fit for a bucket seat rump area]. Add a layer of jute or burlap and hog ring in place.  Put the vinyl motorcycle or standard vehicle foam on next and top off with the upholstery layer.

 

If there is an offending cross brace in the rump area of your bucket seat's frame, use insulating foam tubing sold to provide heat insulation to water pipes!

Edited by MikeRL411
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