How cheesey would it be if I used.....press pleated panels?

I just got the quote from a local upholstery guy to redo the complete interior on the Fleetline. 3,000 bucks I know it's not that much for a complete but............I am on a budget.

Now, before I offend all of the upholstery guys on board I know that you get what you pay for etc etc....I know it's a lot of work ...blah blah blah, but I only have so much money to go around.

Here's what I was wondering. I thought about having the seats done by a professional and trying my hand at the carpet, door panels etc.
I was wondering how cheesey it would be to use press pleated material?

 

Here's a link to what I am thinking.
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=115914&highlight=press+pleats

 

I don't see a problem with it. You'll have the pride in doing it yourself.

 

I guess my question is how cheesey would it be up next to a pro seat with real tuck and roll? The doors on my 50 are huge and a large focal point....

 

When I built my mild custom 54 Chevy, I chose to use pressed pleats, because it was more in line with what a kid in the 50's would use on a mild car.

 

Not cheesy at all is my take on the matter, if you can get the same width of pleats and a matching grain and color... Not everyone has $3000-$8000 to spend on an interior, but I sure wish they did though Factory cars used pressed pleats and so have tons of regular guys throughout the years. If the same pattern is used for seats and door panels, it'll all tie together nicely and look just fine.

Sure I love the look of tuck and roll and I love sewing it up, but it's pricey, no doubt. When used as inserts with a contrasting color for two tone, I think you'll be happy with the look.

 

OK, now that I hooked an upholstery guy.....
I am looking at a Jade green metallic, something very similar to a factory 50's color. What colors would you use? I was looking at stark white but everyone gasps when I say this.

 

They also make s***ched material just like that, had my truck seat done a couple of times...........OLDBEET

 

I don't think it'll look too cheesy, but I'm a cheap ******* too. You can always redo the doors later if you don't like it.

 

keep it all matching. if you cant spend the money to have it all done do it all in the pressed pleats. I have seen it done and it looks too diffrent.

 

I don't think it's cheesy, all the 60's GM cars had heat sealed pleats (64 SS cars chevelle's impala's etc. ) My question is where can you get heat sealed pleated material other than SMS in oregon, and there pretty expensive ? Gary

 

I was gonna say the same thing, and I think it would look fine.

 

my wifes low buck t had this stuff in it.....for the money it worked great ....without the nasty dirty seams that would have happened.....lol brandon

 

I wonder how much it would save doing the seats this way?

 

I did mine like that 2 years ago and they still look great. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=97283&highlight=automotive+stud

 

How expensive is this pleated material? Roughly......

 

My cheesy 56 seats.

If your car has the original seats, you can order some pretty nice upholstery kits including door panels. Check the small ads in the back of the hot rod magazines. You can get the cl***ic 50s look with a nice color selection at a very reasonable price..

Pressed pleat were all we knew in the early 60s. Real sewn tuck and roll was expensive then too.

I did a Lebaron Bonney kit on my 36 Ford including the headliner. They gave you everything from the springs up. It wasn't that difficult and what an ego boost.

To me pressed pleats are the real deal.

 

Tommy, the kits I have been priced run about 2 grand. I know I sound like a cheapskate but I am.

 

This stuff is $25 bucks a yard but it's really wide so a yard is quite a bit. We've ordered from him a couple of times with good experiences. 95% of the public wouldn't even notice.


http://www.garysupholstery.com/foamback.html

Mootz

 

So if I ordered this stuff, let's say 3 yards it would come 9 ft long and 54 inches wide? What direction are the pleats running?

 

Try www.garysupholstery.com for the material. And here is an interesting tech article I came across when I was Googling a search for you. Being nearly as self-professed economically minded as you, I am strongly considering it for my A.

http://cl***icroad.com/modelA/interior2.htm

Hmm. Mootz beat me to it while I was writing this post-but check out the link.

 

I bought my seat covers and the pleated material at JC Whitney so they matched and went to the local material store to buy smooth material with the same grain as the pleated. I am very happy with my interior. Including my sewing machine I have 600 bucks in my interior. And half of that was for the seat covers.

 

It comes on a roll and the 3 yards would run across the pleats. So the pleats would be 54 inches long top to bottom. That make sense?

Mootz

 

Root !
I bought 10 yards from Gary's Upholstery to do my Sedan.
It's not cheesy, it's period correct in my opinion, and affordable
for us DYI Hot Rod guys and gals.
Rolf did his own, as many others have too, so I'm going to do it too !
If I can custom fabricate ch***is and bodies, why not upholstery!
You Can Do It !

 

We're gonna do it......I just hate farming out stuff.

 

my 50 chevy is done in press pleats since 59

 

Sweet Teddy!

 

Press Pleats, or Pleated Marine Vinyl, or "Bolt-a-foam" has been used since way back and is some cool and affordable stuff to use if you can't afford a grip on something to put your *** on.

If you want the Tuck & Roll look on a press pleat budget, just fold the pressed pleat at the seam and s***ch along the backside, then cut off the press pleat just beneath your fresh s***ching...viola...tuck & roll! Plus since the press pleat vinyl is usually 1-1/2" wide between the pleats, you get roughly 1" tucked pleats after doing this.

This is the route we're going in my gal's '53 Chevy 2dr due to a limited budget and not really caring what anyone else thinks.

 

If Rolfe could use it in the nicest A i have ever seen so can you. I did my coupe with it in the late 60's and was happy with it. Go for it.
The pleats run top to bottom and would be 54" wide.