Has anyone tried using liquid "leather/vinyl liquid repair kits" to repair a seat ?

[Guest]

Hi everyone

My old '79 suzuki gs850g has a rip down the middle of the seat about 8 inches long. (not on a seam or anything)

Has anyone tried to use those leather or vinyl repair kits to patch up a seat ?

(I'm thinking my other options are 1- replace seat, 2- recover seat, 3-stitch up seat with thread or 4-go cheap and slap electrical or other black tape on it.)


Thanks

sean

[BigD_83]

Black duct tape and/or Tenacious Tape ( a McNett product) goes a long ways on a tight budget...I prefer the Tenacious Tape as it does not get gooey like duct tape. Will do the job until you can find the right deal on a new or custom cover. Stitching might work, but if it is already tearing on a non-seam, I'd expect the threads to eventually rip through the cover.

I haven't thought of that liquid vinyl stuff in decades.

[glib]

This seat is on a 1983 GS1100e. It had a common split at the seam. (I don't think I've ever seen an original that didn't have a split here).



You can see some glossy glue on either side of the seam repair. It is Performix VLP Viny./Leather Repair which I bought at TAP Plastics.


It is a a good solution while you are deciding if you want to spend more for a perfect fix.

[bwringer]

I've used the Permatex Ultra Pro repair kit on a motorcycle seat with good results. With some practice and finesse, I think you could get nearly invisible results with this kit.

Basically, you repair the tear with a strong adhesive, then use a heating tool and a thermosetting compound to color the repair so it blends in.

The "Ultra Pro" kit contains an electric heating tool for thermosetting the color layer of the repair. There's a cheaper "Pro" kit with a tool you're supposed to heat with a torch, but that one doesn't work at all.

http://www.permatex.com/component/virtuemart/permatex--ultra-series-vinyl---leather-repair-kit-detail

There are several strong brands of clear vinyl repair goo out there, but it's important to remember that these degrade in sunlight. You need the color layer over the repair to protect it from UV.

And, of course, a repair can only be as strong as the underlying vinyl. If it's hardened, cracked, or weakened with age and exposure, you're not going to do much good.

[MAC10]

I have had good results using Shoe Goo, applied to glue the tear, then taped with smooth electrical tape or something similar while it is still wet. The tape smooths the shoe goo, and leaves a less obtrusive, smooth and strong repair. A smooth finish on a seat can be very important. The tape can be left, or removed depending on preference, and whether the type of tape sticks to the shoe goo or not. It varies from brand to brand.

Shoe goo can be sculpted and smoothed before it sets, with a wet finger, in which case tape is unnecessary and you get more control over final appearrance because you can see the repair happen.