I don't contribute to the site much, but I read daily. My question, can I put a one piece headliner of leather in my 53 5 window truck. I have made the headliner out of pvc foam board. Plan to glue closed cell foam to the pvc. Will I be able to stretch the leather to not have wrinkles. I was hoping to use one piece of leather from the front window to below the corner windows to the belt line. If I can't do this, how do people cover the entire inside of the cab? Thanks Steve
3 posts in 5 years. it's got to be easier than the route I took. (would never do it again) welded in an extra roof I had. solid steel double roof should be cooler in the summer. My plan is a foam backed cloth and a couple cans of 3-m spray adhesive. we'll see how that works soon
Does no one in this forum have any ideas on how to put an interior in an advance design truck. Are there any pictures of what has been done to these trucks. Please I need help. Steve
you need to take a deep breath and think about who you are talking to the answers will come but your last statement made you sound like a girl, so many people with so much ability on this site
Where there's a will there's a way, or so the saying goes. Give it a try and see what happens... Personally, I don't think it'll work very well...unless you have a lot of upholstery experience. Stretching that much material over that large a reverse curve is tough. Add to that having to tuck in under the quarter and back glass rubbers while insuring you eliminate wrinkles and provide a positive water seal. The material is going to have a tendency to shrink and in so doing will either pull the underlayment with it or delaminate from the underpayment. Unless you apply a killer adhesive that will never soften you almost certain to end up with a few "bags" hanging down. That's one reason why GM used a two piece design for the cardboard headliner. My leather headliner is attached to the stock style hard board. The rest of the inside is painted. Much simpler and still looks great...at least in my opinion.
Might want to post up on the AD group page and/or change the title to get more responses. Title is asking about a one piece headliner but your question is about using 1 piece of leather for the cab. Try a more general title regarding installing leather upolstery/headliner/panels, as it relates to just more then just the AD trucks with the technique that is required. Just trying to help. Edit..post 5 was done while typing this...good info there.
Thanks for all the ideas. I am not set on any particular plan. Let me start over. I would like to do the entire cab of the truck,what would be the best way? I was just assuming I could just glue foam and leather to the upper back, I have made a panel for the top out of foam board, but at this point it is screwed to the cab. I can take it out and then cover it but then how do I attach it to the inside of cab? NO GIRL HERE JUST TRYING TO BUILD MY TRUCK. thanks all s.
Your only option is to glue the material to the back of the cab and tuck the edges under the window rubber.... Standard procedure whether your gluing material to foam then foam to metal or just material to metal. Rules about adhesion given in my earlier post apply... As the cab sheet metal warms up, even though its a double panel, the glue will have a tendency to soften and the material may (or may not, depending on the quality of the glue) tend to come loose and "bag"... No one can tell you the correct sequence of attaching the material to the foam board on the top of the roof then to the back panel....that's something you'll have to work out as you install the headliner. IF that is what your question is you might talk to an upholsterer who can see the project first hand and advise you on the correct procedure. That is, of course, if an upholsterer will provide that lesson without any prospect of getting the job....
If you use the really good glue, once you stick the leather to the foam, it won`t come off without tearing the foam. thus--not much room for error.
I am going to replace the two piece cardboard headliner in my '53 Chevy truck. Classic Parts makes a plastic replacement headliner (page 21 in their catalog) to which you can paint or glue any fabric you choose to it. My plan is to put dynamat on the metal of the cab and mount a fabric covered replacement headliner with a thin foam liner between the plastic and the fabric. I also plan on using a super glue which will work better than the spray on kind made by 3M, etc. (link below). Hope this helps http://www.yourautotrim.com/noname37.html
I found the same item for $40 cheaper at Chevy Of The 40's. http://www.chevsofthe40s.com The price here is $139 and the one in Classic Parts is $179. Same part. Probably made by the same people. Using ABS plastic you can heat it and mold it, spray paint it, and glue foam and fabric of any type to it.
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