seat recovering fiasco.....

[tvrla]

DgM - any idea the vendor your brother got the cover from?

livingdeadhead - I've done a fair number of seats myself  and there's one thing I know for a fact - doing upholstery works the fingers!!

[livingdeadhead]

if i have to get my cash back i'll get one of those , cheers!

[steven m]

I got my seat cover from NW Classic Motorcycle Seats, who are in Canada.

Available through Ebay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/BMW-R65LS-1981-85-REPLACEMENT-SEAT-COVER-/370668426869?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&hash=item564d8f5675&vxp=mtr

Pretty straightforward installation.  I had no experience, so if I can do it, so can you.  It would have been a little easier with an assistant but I managed just fine.  

[Teo]

I bought a R65LS seat cover from this Canadian supplier a couple of years back.  It is of top qualtity and good value.  
Once you have stripped the old seat cover off and cleaned up the retaining plates and the seat pan (check for rust and paint it!), warm the seat cover up in the sun or with a hair dryer and stretch it on to the seat pan.  
You'll need  an awl to poke the holes for the rivets and a pop rivet gun to secure the plates.  
My seat cover came out as good as original. (I am a little anal about this stuff, though).
Suerte, quillo,
Teo

[steven m]

Si Teo, prep is super important.  When I recovered my seat I made certain the seat pan sides were straight which is easily done with some flat pliers.  And make certain you have the correct sized rivets.  Go to the hardware store and test fit for depth with pan, cover, and rivet plates if you have any doubts.  The front of the cover is cut to fit but mark the back side for alignment.

It is a bit of a ballet to stretch the cover with the edges covered in adhesive while keeping it away from the outside of the pan which is why I suggest an assistant.

Monte has posted a procedural with photos.  Required viewing.

Happy Holidays.

[Barry]

It's not a bad idea in preparation to mark the centre line of the pan at the front and back and the centre line of the cover so that they can be accurately aligned.

The technique I used was to fit the cover dry using up to 20 bulldog clips all the way down both sides of the pan. When the alignment looked right I unclipped and glued a small section at a time. The front and back were secured  only when both sides had been completed. Excess material was trimmed off after the securing plates had been riveted in place.

[livingdeadhead]

still waiting on the upholsterers for the seat, took it in in november i think.....

[livingdeadhead]

rang every day last week and today, answer machine ... have phoned trading standards , they say write to 'em ! they've had it nearly 3 months , any thoughts or ideas?

[steven m]

Well, you might want to consider just getting the seat back from them and start over or purchasing another seat from ebay so you can use your bike while exploring your legal options, which I'm not too clear on in England.  I'm sure they didn't intend to do a poor job, but from what you've written, that's what happened.  If they did a poor job the first time around can you expect a great job the second time?  It's a drag, and really irritating, but move forward and get your bike ready to enjoy in the spring.  

Just my two cents.

[Bob_Roller]

In the US, there is a government sponsored agency called the Better Business Bureau (BBB), if a consumer has a problem with a business, you file complaint and they look into it, contact the business with the issue ans most of the time things get taken care of .

Other route, is if your local television stations has any sort of program, usually on the evening news, a consumer complaint/help  with problem businesses .

From what I've seen, as soon as the business gets some 'bad' airtime, the issue is quickly resolved .

Good luck, I had problems with two businesses about 7 years ago, one rebuily the transmission on my '81 R65 and the other relined the clutch, they nade mistakes on both .

One letter from the BBB and the issues were resolved to my satisdfaction .

[MR.E]

rang every day last week and today, answer machine ... have phoned trading standards , they say write to 'em ! they've had it nearly 3 months , any thoughts or ideas?

Drive up and see them, i've not heard good things about him from a few people now.
Guy in York built mine, took 3 weeks, nice bit of kit too.

http://www.smartrrrs.biz/

Have a look around, i recommend him.

Elliott

[MR.E]

LivingDeadhead

Where abouts are you?
I'm in Leeds, i don't mind going in to collect if it helps.

Elliott

[livingdeadhead]

thanks for the advice and offers of help guys, i'm in sheffield mr e . i'm going to try and ring the guy this week . if i cant get him, i'll send a letter registered . wish i'd done it myself now. at least it would have been straight AND cheap! watch this space!

[livingdeadhead]

managed to get through to the upholsterer, had to ring the bmw specialist next door , went to answering machine all the time on his phone , apparently he's starting again from scratch, hope its ok this time,  :-/

[MR.E]

Well fingers crossed, any reason for the radio silence?

hope you get it sorted