DIY EG door panel recover. Cloth-Wannabe leather.
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Joined: Jan 2002
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From: Fayetteville, GA, USA
DIY EG door panel recover. Cloth-Wannabe leather.
So I installed power windows and locks from an EX in my 94 civic si hatch. I also added leather seats from an integra, so the cloth insert in the door panel didnt match the leather seats. This is my step by step way of recovering them to match my seats. There may be a better way to do this, but this was my first time with upholstery so I thought I would share.
First the before shot:
To start with I went to a fabric shop and got 2 yards of black vinyl.(looks a lot like leather). 2 yards is too much, but I wanted extra just in case. I purchased some craft spray on adhesive:
Take the door panel off and turn it over on a table or something. There are little plastic rivet like things that hold the cloth insert into the door panel. As far as I could tell, these were not able to be reused, and they were very hard to take off. I used my soldering iron and melted the plastic that held the rivet in the door:
After melting all the rivets, I was left with the insert with the stock cloth glued to it:
I then ripped the cloth off the plastic insert, and was left with a blank plastic insert.
Then lay the stock cloth insert upside down over the back of the vinyl piece and trace with a pencil the outer ourline and the openings for the door pocket and the door handle:
Then I had the piece all cut out:
Lay the new piece over the door panel and make sure everytjing lines up. Use the pocket in the door to line up the new covering.
Use the spray on adhesive to spray both the vinyl and the plastic piece very well. Let it sit for about a minute to get tackey:
Start at either the top or the bottom of the panel and smooth out the vinyl working out any bubbles. Use a lot of the spray to ensure it doesent bubble up later. Do the whole door panel in the same manner, a section at a time.
Now its time to reinstall in the door panel:
I use the soldering iron and spare plastic that I had from something else to kind of weld in the holes with plastic. Fill in the hole completely:
Then you can run a short screw through it and into the plastic piece on the door panel to hold it in.
Reinstall the door panel and this si what you get:
All in all it cost me $26 and about 3 hours time. Not bad for a first timer! Now my door panels match my seats and armrest. I had a few bubbles as you may be able to see, but barely noticable and will hopefuly go away.
First the before shot:
To start with I went to a fabric shop and got 2 yards of black vinyl.(looks a lot like leather). 2 yards is too much, but I wanted extra just in case. I purchased some craft spray on adhesive:
Take the door panel off and turn it over on a table or something. There are little plastic rivet like things that hold the cloth insert into the door panel. As far as I could tell, these were not able to be reused, and they were very hard to take off. I used my soldering iron and melted the plastic that held the rivet in the door:
After melting all the rivets, I was left with the insert with the stock cloth glued to it:
I then ripped the cloth off the plastic insert, and was left with a blank plastic insert.
Then lay the stock cloth insert upside down over the back of the vinyl piece and trace with a pencil the outer ourline and the openings for the door pocket and the door handle:
Then I had the piece all cut out:
Lay the new piece over the door panel and make sure everytjing lines up. Use the pocket in the door to line up the new covering.
Use the spray on adhesive to spray both the vinyl and the plastic piece very well. Let it sit for about a minute to get tackey:
Start at either the top or the bottom of the panel and smooth out the vinyl working out any bubbles. Use a lot of the spray to ensure it doesent bubble up later. Do the whole door panel in the same manner, a section at a time.
Now its time to reinstall in the door panel:
I use the soldering iron and spare plastic that I had from something else to kind of weld in the holes with plastic. Fill in the hole completely:
Then you can run a short screw through it and into the plastic piece on the door panel to hold it in.
Reinstall the door panel and this si what you get:
All in all it cost me $26 and about 3 hours time. Not bad for a first timer! Now my door panels match my seats and armrest. I had a few bubbles as you may be able to see, but barely noticable and will hopefuly go away.
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Joined: Sep 2002
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From: SOFLA
Re: DIY EG door panel recover. Cloth-Wannabe leather. (x743x)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by x743x »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">did only the si come with those door panels with the pockets? I want those pockets so bad.</TD></TR></TABLE>
pretty much, ex/si
Looks pretty good, I've been wanting to do this forever. THe only thing holding me back would be the rivets.
pretty much, ex/si
Looks pretty good, I've been wanting to do this forever. THe only thing holding me back would be the rivets.
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Joined: Mar 2003
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From: newport beach, ca
just want to warn you with that spray **** after like 2 weeks in the sun your material will start to sag and come off. esp in spots like the indentation in the middle.. what i use is 2 part epoxy fabric cement from like micheals or tall mouse, whatever craft store has it. then your material wont come off. i used that when i redid my panels with bride material
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Joined: Aug 2002
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From: Palmetto, GA, United States
Re: (drunknbass)
I used a drill to drill out the rivets.
My door panels will look similar if I ever get the time ti finish them up. I am recovering mine completely in Integra style vinyl and remolding the front section to fit my Teg dash.
My door panels will look similar if I ever get the time ti finish them up. I am recovering mine completely in Integra style vinyl and remolding the front section to fit my Teg dash.
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 4,446
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From: Fayetteville, Ga
Re: DIY EG door panel recover. Cloth-Wannabe leather. (DewMota)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by DewMota »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">bah, door panels are heavy.. take them off.</TD></TR></TABLE>
we have a winner... i knew some one would say something about the weight bs... not ever one is worried about 5-10 pds worth of weight...i think if he was worried about weight he would drop the si and get a cx lke Tom did. but eveyone is diff and thats cool
we have a winner... i knew some one would say something about the weight bs... not ever one is worried about 5-10 pds worth of weight...i think if he was worried about weight he would drop the si and get a cx lke Tom did. but eveyone is diff and thats cool
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Joined: May 2002
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From: Orlando, FL
Re: (drunknbass)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by drunknbass »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">just want to warn you with that spray **** after like 2 weeks in the sun your material will start to sag and come off. esp in spots like the indentation in the middle.. what i use is 2 part epoxy fabric cement from like micheals or tall mouse, whatever craft store has it. then your material wont come off. i used that when i redid my panels with bride material</TD></TR></TABLE>
drunknbass is right, that spray adhesive is crap. I would try something else.
A good and useful write up, I was thinking of going to an upholstery shop now maybe I'll try it on my own.
And I've found that Wal-mart is a great place to get fabrics.
drunknbass is right, that spray adhesive is crap. I would try something else.
A good and useful write up, I was thinking of going to an upholstery shop now maybe I'll try it on my own.
And I've found that Wal-mart is a great place to get fabrics.
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Joined: Sep 2002
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From: PA
Re: (fakemike)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by fakemike »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
drunknbass is right, that spray adhesive is crap. I would try something else.
A good and useful write up, I was thinking of going to an upholstery shop now maybe I'll try it on my own.
And I've found that Wal-mart is a great place to get fabrics. </TD></TR></TABLE>
Ditto, I used the spray **** before.. It came off, I redid it spraying the glue until it ran down the door panel.. It still came off, it just took a week longer to come off.
drunknbass is right, that spray adhesive is crap. I would try something else.
A good and useful write up, I was thinking of going to an upholstery shop now maybe I'll try it on my own.
And I've found that Wal-mart is a great place to get fabrics.
</TD></TR></TABLE>Ditto, I used the spray **** before.. It came off, I redid it spraying the glue until it ran down the door panel.. It still came off, it just took a week longer to come off.
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Joined: Nov 2002
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From: Motown
Re: (HatchAttack242)
two tricks/tips for you guys.
1- use 3M super 77 spray adhesive, coat both surfaces, let sit for a few, then re-spray and stick together. Super 77 is way more expensive, but its worth it...
2- You can use a heatgun or a hair dryer to heat the vinyl when you are applying it, this allows you to soften the vinyl to allow it to stretch around some of the more complicated curves, so that you will have less "bubbles" and "fingers"...
HTH
1- use 3M super 77 spray adhesive, coat both surfaces, let sit for a few, then re-spray and stick together. Super 77 is way more expensive, but its worth it...
2- You can use a heatgun or a hair dryer to heat the vinyl when you are applying it, this allows you to soften the vinyl to allow it to stretch around some of the more complicated curves, so that you will have less "bubbles" and "fingers"...
HTH