Cadillac Nut Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 Where can I get the correct seat material for the 1942 I am restoring? It is the common beige colored broadcloth. With Lebaron Bonny gone who else is doing prewar seat cloth? I don't know if SMS goes this far back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JFranklin Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 Ask them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadillac Nut Posted September 11, 2023 Author Share Posted September 11, 2023 Obviously. I'm asking if there is anyone else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil morse Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 (edited) I was able to get SMS to match the tan Bedford Cord in my '41. It was $149 a yard. Edited September 11, 2023 by neil morse (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil morse Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 Click on arrow in upper right hand corner to get the post about the fabric. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drhach Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 The sample that SMS sent me (that they claim is correct) is not a perfect match for my 1942. It is what Buick calls "Tan and Grey Bedford cord". If you find a better resource, please let me know. I tried Bill Hirsch but he was ever further off the mark than SMS. I've wondered if there may be some sort of "small run" artisan fabric company in the U.S. who would be able to reproduce this. I know that Bedford cord is commonly made in England. That's where Bill Hirsch sources it. But I haven't been able to locate a specific resource. All of the samples that I've seen have laser straight lines in them, my pattern is somewhat wavy in appearance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Shaw Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 Your material may have been wet at some time and dried in that wavy pattern? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil morse Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 39 minutes ago, Mark Shaw said: Your material may have been wet at some time and dried in that wavy pattern? I actually don't think that's the case. Dan ( @drhach ) and I had a DM conversation about this topic recently, and we concluded that the "wavy" pattern is, in fact, what the "tan and gray" Bedford Cord (Code 900) looked like from the factory. We based this conclusion on two things: (1) a photo posted by @Grant Z of the original fabric on his '41 coupe, and (2) a photo that Dan had of a sample from an original '41 upholstery sample book. The samples looked identical, and in both cases had the wavy lines. However, I think it is only the "tan and gray" Bedford Cord that had this characteristic. I believe that both the "tan Bedford Cord (2-tone)" (Code 903) and the "gray Bedford Cord (2-tone)" (Code 905) had straight lines like the fabric on my seats, as shown in the photo above. Here's a further kicker. Cadillac Nut mentions that his car has the "common beige colored broadcloth," not Bedford Cord. I see in Anderson's "Restoration Facts" book that another fabric choice, called "Tan Canada Cloth," is listed as Code 902. Would this be the "beige colored broadcloth?" If someone out there has one of those upholstery sample books, it would be a huge help to us! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drhach Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 (edited) Anyone can correct me if I'm off base here. I think if you use the SMS stuff, nobody at an AACA function will say you're wrong. But you may be wrong This is what Neil is referring to. I found a picture of a 1942 Buick Interior fabric book (Faxon Literature). It happened to be opened to the page for my interior. I wish I could have bought it, but it was already sold. The picture is still posted on their website (faxonautoliterature.com/1942-Buick-Color-Upholstery-Dealer-Album-Original) Edited September 11, 2023 by drhach (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadillac Nut Posted September 12, 2023 Author Share Posted September 12, 2023 Thanks everyone very helpful. I will take photos of what is there, cut a sample from a clean area (if I can find one), that should help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drhach Posted September 18, 2023 Share Posted September 18, 2023 I've been doing some searching and I may have a line on a person who does small run fabric weaving. They have a setup fee, but after that, their prices are not too far off from SMS. We'll see what comes of it. Regards, Dan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drhach Posted April 8 Share Posted April 8 It's been a while but it looks like I may have found someone who can make the correct Buick Bedford cord fabric. Does anyone know approximately how many yards would be needed for seats and rear armrests? I'm thinking 3-4. This is for Special Regards, Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILIKECARS53 Posted April 8 Share Posted April 8 (edited) Make sure you know the width of the fabric before you estimate how much you will need. Depending on the weaving machinery that will be used the width could vary between 36" to 58". Edited April 8 by ILIKECARS53 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil morse Posted April 8 Share Posted April 8 Yes, what ILIKECARS says is absolutely essential. I ended up with a really bad situation with SMS because I ordered several "yards" of fabric without nailing down the width. My upholstery shop had told me they would need two yards so I ordered two yards from SMS, mistakenly thinking that a "yard" of fabric in the upholstery world was some kind of standard measure. It turned out that the upholsterer was assuming a 58" width, and the stuff that SMS made up for me was only 40-something inches. Lesson learned. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drhach Posted April 9 Share Posted April 9 Thanks for the feedback. She's telling me that the fabric will likely be 36" wide. She's constrained by the width of her loom. This is not an industrial type operation. Should I be concerned, or should I order more fabric based on this width? I measured from the top seam on the seat to the bottom to get this width. Obviously, the run length can be infinite. Regards, Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted April 9 Share Posted April 9 It would be best to give the upholsterer the fabric bolt information (i.e., 36") or whatever the usable width turns out to be. The only downside might be additional seams in the cover if the piece requires additional width. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil morse Posted April 9 Share Posted April 9 EmTee is exactly right. For example, in order to do the front seat in my '41 in the correct factory pattern, it was necessary to have the full 58" of width in order to cover the lower seat cushion with a single piece of fabric. I assume your '42 is the same. With the narrower fabric, you will have a seam down the middle of the lower cushion. I'm sure it will look fine, but it won't be strictly "correct." So it's really a matter of whether that makes a difference to you. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILIKECARS53 Posted April 10 Share Posted April 10 Besides the width of the fabric also confirm which way the pattern runs. It is possible that the raised pattern can run in the length of the fabric or run from edge to edge. Just double check. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted April 10 Share Posted April 10 FWIW, as others have said (e.g., Neil) I believe SMS stocks the appropriate Bedford Cord material; it is pretty widely used in this era of cars. That said, SMS isn't known for their customer service and it will still be relatively expensive. If your source is less expensive, more readily available and looks as you expect, then you certainly free to go that route. As I said earlier, though, I would talk to your upholsterer and have him/her measure your interior and give you their material estimate given the bolt size of the material that you select. Otherwise, any material shortage is on you... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil morse Posted April 10 Share Posted April 10 I agree with EmTee except for the part about SMS stocking the appropriate Bedford Cord. They sent me several samples of what they had in stock, but none of them was close to correct for my car. Of course, I was trying to find something that matched what was already there, since I wanted to do only the front seat. One of their standard offerings would have worked to do the whole interior, although it would not have been "correct." I opted to have them make up a custom fabric at $149 a yard, which was not cheap. The result was very nice, as noted in my previous post, however it turned out not to be enough fabric because of the problem with the width. So I ended up having to source fabric from elsewhere, and I now have 3 yards of nice fabric that cost me $500 that I can't use! As I said earlier, lesson learned. Wherever you're getting your fabric, make absolutely certain that you get your upholsterer to specify exactly the number of yards and the width of the fabric they will need, and make sure that's what you are getting from your supplier. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drhach Posted April 10 Share Posted April 10 (edited) I've seen the same thing from SMS. It is not the correct fabric. Here's my sample laid over the sample that I had made. I took a black and white picture because she hasn't matched the color yet and it was throwing me off. But the weave is closer than anything I've been able to find. The pattern is quite wavy and everything I've seen is arrow straight. As far as SMS is concerned, it took them two years to send me a set of door panels for another car. They told me it would be one year. I waited patiently for a year and....crickets. For the next 12 months all I heard was "you're next in line". Sorry, but unless they absolutely have something that I can't live without or get somewhere else, I won't spend a penny there. It wasn't so much that it took so long it was more that they didn't seem to care or have the decency to tell me the truth about what they were doing. Bill Hirsch auto has Bedford Cord and others do as well. If it comes down to it, I will go there or maybe just not do the seats at all. But I won't go to SMS. This is the sample that I had someone make. She did a great job of replicating the pattern. The piece on top is my original sample. The one underneath is what she made for me. I took a black and white picture just to highlight the pattern, the colors are not matched yet. But I think that will be pretty trivial. Edited April 22 by drhach (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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