Guest Lt Morty Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Hi.I'm new to shiny old cars, but have been restoring and playing with military vehicles from WWII era for more than 20 years.I'm considering to buy a 1941 Buick Special four door touring sedan. But it needs a new interior...Does anyone know what it will cost to have a firm to put in a new interior? Can someone give me a lead for a resonable priced and competent car upholstry firm that can take on such a job in the Phoenix Arizona area?ThanksMorten Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest palosfv3 Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Look up Lance Troupe, he is in north Phoenix. He does extremely nice work . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpage Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Morton, Contact Hampton Coach in Amesbury ,Mass. as they supply Buick interior fabrics and kits from'27-55. Ph. 1-888-388-8726(should still be current) or Hampton Coach - Antique Auto Restoration- Chevy 1916-1954, Buick 1927-1955. They have some nice products. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auburnseeker Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 The last interior I looked into from Hampton Coach was a kit to do a 48 Chevy 2 door aerosedan and the kit uninstalled was around 4500 for a complete kit plus or minus depending on options. That was for an original style interior. I imagine installation would run atleast another 1000 or more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bhigdog Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Turn your wallet upside down and shake until nothing is left would be a good ball park figure.......Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knobless Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Turn your wallet upside down and shake until nothing is left would be a good ball park figure.......BobHaHaHa, Bob, that's just about right........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Julian Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 yep..5k++ is about right.. I had some seats done in my 59 ford (in vinyl) and it cost me $650.00.. but they are VERY NICE..most comfortable seats of any of my cars..like anything else.. for "good" interior work.. you get what you pay for..thats for sure.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Restorer32 Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Just remember the old rule..."The nicer the nice the higher the price". Price will hinge on what level of perfection or lack thereof you are comfortable with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bhigdog Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Would strongly recommend looking at a shops work and talking with previous customers. Price, while a good indicator of quality it is no guarantee. I know of what I speak......Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trimacar Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 (edited) For a "from scratch" interior, labor at least $5000 for a complete 4-door sedan interior, exclusive of material costs (and don't cut corners on material, use original style, NOT something you buy at a local fabric shop).The kits aren't a bad deal, but they don't get thrown in place from across the shop. There are always adjustments and fitting that need to be done. I wouldn't install a complete kit for $1000, but maybe someone out there would. Seat springs usually need some work, door panels and quarter panels don't always fit correctly, and so forth. If I were doing it, ballpark would probably be closer to $2000-$2500 to install a kit. I'd want to be the one that took the old interior out too, lots of clues in doing that.....I'm talking East coast reputable pricing, not "Joe's Upholstery and Hot Dog Emporium" pricing. Edited February 16, 2012 by trimacar (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Restorer32 Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 We also would ball park about $2000-2500 to install a kit in a 4 door sedan but as brother Trimacar says there are usually other things that need dealt with that aren't included in the kits. Is the wiring to the dome light and switches ok to use as is? Do you want new window channel "fuzzies" installed while the doors are apart? Are there issues with broken return springs in the door handles or winders? Rear window rubber gasket? Seat adjuster? Tack strips? It's the little things that bite you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poci1957 Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Just a few thoughts:Restorer32 saying "the nicer the nice the higher the price" is very appropriate. If your opinion of having an interior redone is just some kind of new cloth then a local shop can probably do fine. If you tell the local shop you want authentic but do not want to pay too much then watch out. IMO if you do want a correct interior the thing to do is buy a Hampton Coach or Jenkins kit and pay a reputable shop to install it as trimacar suggests. Anyone who says they can buy the CORRECT materials and make the interior for less money is either inexperienced or they do not really know the correct materials. Either way you are asking for trouble. Buying a good kit essentially gives you the correct materials with the labor for sewing the seats and panels at little or no extra cost. Something else that no one ever does is before installing your new interior do a water test on the body to check for leaks and correct them first, just like the factory did. No sense putting a new interior into a car with 50 year old weatherstripping. Todd C Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Restorer32 Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 We recently paid $85/yard for the correct material to repair moth damage in a '37 Ford Standard Sedan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poci1957 Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 We recently paid $85/yard for the correct material to repair moth damage in a '37 Ford Standard SedanAny chance you could buy that material and sew seat covers for what LeBaron Bonney would charge for them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Lt Morty Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Thanks for sharing Your knowledge! This is truly a great forum. I think I must either just take the cost, or look for another car with a nicer interior... Hmmmm. Luckily I'm in no hurry. My next new thread will be in the buy/sell section:WTB 1941-1942 Buick four door touring sedan... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Restorer32 Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Any chance you could buy that material and sew seat covers for what LeBaron Bonney would charge for them?Probably not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trimacar Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 I agree with Restorer32, it would be nip and tuck trying to beat the kit price.I'll pause here, while you finish laughing.And, the point on hidden damage or work is very (and sometimes painfully) true.I have a friend here in Winchester with a '32 Pierce brougham. He'd put the top insert in himself (on a cold winter day), and it was so loose it flapped in the wind while he was driving. I offered to do the insert correctly (hot sun, stretch tight) for no charge, if he'd supply material, just because it was a Pierce and he's a nice guy.Took the material off, started installing the new, but found that there was no wood in some places as far as an inch down at the oval tack holes (remember that the car had a headliner, and I didn't remove the base material for the top). Started digging deeper, the entire top wood was black, charred, and missing in some places.Our only guess is that the dome light shorted, setting the wood on a slow burn, and instead of flashing into fire, it just turned everything to charcoal.Luckily, he does woodworking as a hobby, so I called him, he replaced all the top wood (no small job!!), and we fixed car.What do you think that would have cost in a restoration shop? I'd guess minimum a couple thousand....so you just never know with old cars... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poci1957 Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Thanks for sharing Your knowledge! This is truly a great forum. I think I must either just take the cost, or look for another car with a nicer interior... Hmmmm. Luckily I'm in no hurry. My next new thread will be in the buy/sell section:WTB 1941-1942 Buick four door touring sedan...On that note it should be pointed out that the same criteria of "nice interior" (or nice paint) holds true of buying a car too. The previous owner may have made his decision on interior repair just as we described earlier. If he chose a local shop and inauthentic material to save a buck then you are buying accordingly. Most of us have had the decision to buy an old car with an original but ratty interior (or paint) or pay a little more for something "presentable" that the wife will not object to, but find that the repairs were subpar and ultimately should have been done correctly the first time. I recall a year or two ago going to an auction and seeing a 1939 Buick with the Sunshine Turret Top (sunroof). A desireable car owned by an owner with money who should have known better, he had paid someone to make and install a horrible vinyl interior probably to save a grand or two. The result was he saved a buck and his investment in that interior was essentially worth nothing to a knowledgable buyer. Do your homework and good luck, Todd C Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rawja Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Try these guys... High quality at surprisingly low prices in my experience.BellAutoUpholstery.com - Quality And Pride Since 1959 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trimacar Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Roger, looked at site and pictures of work.Foam and vinyl are a different animal than working on a pre-war, cloth interior sedan, with cotton and horsehair. There was some molded foam starting in the late 30's, but it's fairly rare, and it's a different texture and feel than modern foam. It was dense and didn't degrade over time like modern, open or closed cell, foam.I guess I'm being nosestuckupintheairhopeyoudontdrownifitrains, but I see so many cars with nice cloth or leather interior covers, and very obviously foam underneath. It's not the right way to go for original upholstery.Look at the sewn seams in a seat (she sells seashells on the seashore), if the material comes up at a steep angle from the sewn seam, it's probably foam. If it's a nice gentle smooth transition, then the cover is, at least, stuffed with cotton. Hopefully there's horsehair or some other fibrous material under the cover (at one point, there was good use of other natural materials).It's going to get much more difficult to find trimmer work that matches original construction, as we're losing the appreciation for the trade. It's a shame, because there is a pride in doing a job correctly in the old style, and there's a good living for someone willing to duplicate old methods and supply interiors that will last another 50 or more years.OK, off my little soapbox now.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poci1957 Posted February 17, 2012 Share Posted February 17, 2012 +1 on all that. Except I haven't figured out the making a good living part or I might still be doing it . Todd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1937hd45 Posted February 17, 2012 Share Posted February 17, 2012 Upholstery is the last thing in most restorations. Just because everything else in the restoration went overbudget don't take it out on the upholstery shop guy. His skills are just as important as the body and paint work, and can make or brake a restoration. Have all the electrical and hardware problems solved and tacking strips installed, along with other things you can do to make his job trouble free and you should get a good finished product with both parties happy. I'm not an interior guy, but I do stop by a friends shop once in a while. Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mellor NJ Posted February 17, 2012 Share Posted February 17, 2012 I am active in the local MVPA where there are two 41 Buick four doors restored as Navy staff/command cars, one blck and one gray. The gray one copied a car in a period picture in Iceland. That would be another option for you as the military cars have a very spartan interior.Whatever you do it's nice to hear from an old car guy from Oslo (or Arizona). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Lt Morty Posted February 17, 2012 Share Posted February 17, 2012 (edited) Army staff car is an option and a good idea.Do You have some pictures of the staff car type interior? I had the impression they used standard cars?I would like to find a car with the original interior without too many stains, and no holes in seats and on the doorsides. But that seems hard to find...I live in Oslo, but one car I look at is located in Arizona. Edited February 17, 2012 by Lt Morty (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Lt Morty Posted February 17, 2012 Share Posted February 17, 2012 I'm also interested in having a look at some pictures of the Buicks (exterior) You mentioned, if You have some.ThanksMorty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mellor NJ Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 Sadly, very few original staff cars survived. Most of the ones you see nowadays are madeover civilian cars but I think the originals had interiors like police or taxi fleet cars, leatherette and floormats. Those two I spoke of are probably not original but I will try to get some pics next time I see them. If you leave your email address on my PM I'll keep it on file. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rawja Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 (edited) Roger, looked at site and pictures of work.Foam and vinyl are a different animal than working on a pre-war, cloth interior sedan, with cotton and horsehair.Yeah, their website looks terrible. I'd never looked at it before, I just located it to provide the link. I've been to this shop in person a number of times and have seen their work, it's not all vinyl and/or and awful customization as the site would suggest. A number of people from my local car club have used them for their cars of similar vintage as the original poster, and while I'm no expert on minutia of the cars of this era, the upholstery work looked good to me, and the owners of the vehicles (who did appear to be well versed in the finer points of their restorations) indicated their happiness with the work performed. Whether the seats were horsehair or foam I couldn't tell you... Edited February 19, 2012 by Rawja (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_Maine Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 Not a '41 Buick, but I had a customer come to me for a loan for a new interior for his '75 Corvette. The estimate was for $8K. He came back a couple of months later and increased the loan to $13K because the car needed more than orginally thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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