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wire on wind lace WHERE TO BUY?


bifda

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I am looking for some of the wire on welting/windlace that is originally used on a 1928 Studebaker interior, where the headlining meets the sides of the car (in the very top corner) The original although complete, has rusted and so is broken, I would like to replace with something similar. Worst case I can dye a light coloured piece but would prefer a dark burgundy if possible. Any help appreciated.

Wayne

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You've got the name right: wire on welting. Restoration Specialties carries it. They still have some left in taupe, maybe some other colors, as well. See their website at www.restorationspecialties.com . You can download the PDF of their catalog (94MB) from their home page. The wire-on is listed on page 115, $2.00/ft - or should they quote the price in shillings/pence per yard for an old car in the UK. Many useful things in their catalog.

Send a couple of your photos to jeff (at) restorationspecialties dot com. I called there and said someone was looking for the stuff. He'll try to match it. Good luck!

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  • 2 months later...
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As a follow up to my request for the wire on wind lace, I never had any luck. Lebaron Bonney were the only people I could find who listed burgundy or brown and after speaking with someone there they said that they were going to send me some samples of the burgundy and brown that they offer, however it never arrived.

My 1928 Studebaker which I wanted the wind lace for, has a very original interior. I had to remove the headlining etc as I have just had the ash top frame replaced. I wanted to keep as much of the original interior as possible, and after washing and pressing the original headliner this has been fitted back into the car.

The wind lace is something that here in the UK we have never used on English cars which results in it being only obtainable by buying form the USA, however most suppliers only have a beige type.

As I was having no luck finding something that would go well with the original headliner etc I decided that I would have a go at reproducing the wire zigzag using the original material to cover it with.

This is how I went about it.

I took a piece of hardboard and nailed several nails, through it, to create a frame to wrap the wire around. Initially I tried using 0.6mm mig wire for the job but this was thicker the original and resulted in not being able to bend it back on itself easily when fitting. The original wire measured 0.5mm or 0.020" so I ordered some off of ebay and tried agin.

After a couple of hours zigzagging the wire and glueing it into the original material I now had a length of wind lace which was ready to fit. I pre-bent the wind lace so as to create a crease that after fitting, it would assist folding the wind lace back on itself. I have attached a couple of pics of how I made the wire zigzag and also of the wind lace now it is installed.

This has worked out well and resulted in me keeping the original interior as it left the factory in 1928.

I love a challenge and am glad that this worked as well as it did. I hope that this may give inspiration to anyone else that has a problem sourcing an item to keep their car original

Wayne Smith

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Remarkable, Wayne!

The desire to be true to original, and the patience and perseverance to achieve it; just remarkable.

A great many upholstery weaves and windlace patterns are long out of production.

When one is doing the "maintenance" necessary to keep the original vehicle as it was, that additional effort is its own reward.

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Enfield Auto Restoration makes it in any color you want, you can supply the material if you like. Not sure of cost. They are in Enfield Ct, Look at their web site.

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  • 3 years later...

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