It's usually one of the last major restoration tasks but, on my Dodge Brothers Series 4 Commercial Car basket case, the upholstery was one of the first projects to be completed. The seat cushion is fully removable and the two individual seat backs are attached to the folding seat brackets with screws. This makes the upholstery a good indoor winter project. It was also nice to have the seat to sit on during the first start up test drives.

The Springs

I felt very fortunate to have a correct original seat spring assembly. It was stripped of material, twisted, and rusty but still beautiful to me. The upholstery store had springs and assemblies in standard sizes that I would use if I did not have the correct foundation. I began by removing the remaining tack strip and having the springs sand blasted. I took a long time to square up the foundation. I moved springs around until they were in line, evenly spaced and the same height. Dozens of paper clip shaped wire ties that hold the springs in place were made to replace those that were lost. Some springs had to be stretched to match others. Some springs were tied down with upholstery twine to get all the tops level. Once the springs were in place they were tied with upholstery string to keep them from shifting.

The upholstery store had the modern equivalent to the original pressed paper tack strip. The plastic tack strip fits unto the tack strip channel and will hold tacks or staples. I did one extra step and bound the tack strip channel with upholstery twine. This makes the frame stronger, cushions the sharp metal edge, and covers the rust holes in the metal channel.

PHOTO 1, The springs are cleaned, straightened, repaired, primed and painted. Tie the springs with upholstery twine so they can't shift, before covering the seat with burlap.

I had no pattern for the seat backs so they were dimensioned from the bracket length and locations. The core of the backs is a 12 inch by 18 inch hunk of 3/4 inch plywood rounded at the corners. Yes they did have plywood in 1926 but it had fewer layers than the modern stuff. The seat springs and backs were ready for the foundation layers of padding.

The Foundation

The foundation under the seat cover is made from foam rubber and polyester fiber fill these days. I wanted to duplicate and preserve the original construction for future generations. Some of old the materials are getting a little hard to find but my upholstery store was able to get me reasonably accurate substitutes. I used two of layers of burlap over the springs, held place with hog rings. Next I used two layers of one inch thick horsehair padding over the top making sure they overlapped the edges. This made a rough edge so I padded it with some cotton batting. A final layer of burlap and hog rings hold the horsehair in place. The cover is stretched directly over this padded foundation. The seat backs also received two inches of horsehair and a layer of batting held in place by muslin tacked around the edge of the plywood. I marked the front and rear center lines of all foundations for future cover alignment.

PHOTO 2, The foundation of burlap, horsehair, and burlap softens the rough springs. The burlap is attached with hog rings.

The Covers

The leather is purchased by the full hide at the upholstery store. One full hide is 50 to 55 square feet, priced by the square foot, and will easily cover one seat and seat back. I purchased a black hide that was 50 1/2 square feet at $4.95 per square foot ($250). Since the quality of hides varies greatly always check the hide for finish and holes. If more than one hide will be needed, buy a matched pair from the same lot. The simple pleat design that the Dodge Brothers used allows for maximum yield from a hide. The 6 inch strips can be taken offset or staggered but should be taken in the same direction (parallel).

I did not have any old torn upholstery to use as a pattern so I had to make my own. If you have an old original, carefully mend any tears and disassemble it. The old pieces can be used as a pattern for the replacement cover.

I used the dimensions of the seat springs and a photo of an original torn seat to make patterns from brown paper grocery bags. I knew there were nine pleats and they had to line up with the pleats on the seat backs. This makes the 7 seat pleats 4 inches wide with a 6 inch pleat at each end. The back pleats must also be 4 inches wide and line up with the seat pleats. I made the leather pieces 6 inches wide so when sewn to the muslin 4 inches apart the stuffed pleats will stand up nice and high. Make the leather strips narrower for a flatter pleat.

If you must make your own pattern, as I did, I recommend building a prototype from some cheap vinyl. The prototype seat cover is made of cotton batting sandwiched between muslin and the vinyl. I used the prototype to make adjustments in the patterns, I changed the line of the seams, tighten loose areas, and practiced my sewing technique. I notice the second time I build something it comes out better than the first. The prototype was measured and adjustments were made to the paper patterns.

It was time to cut the leather using the improved brown paper patterns The first tip is to cut a strip from the entire perimeter of the skin. This nice long strip is used for piping, basting and wind lace. My seat does not use piping but I needed wind lace for the doors. Trying to piece together long strips of leather from the scraps is no fun.

I used the paper patterns to mark the back of the leather and mark the center line of each piece. Mark the muslin with the finished dimensions of the entire pattern, including center lines. I lined up the center lines of the leather strip to the muslin and I always sew from the center line to the edge. Don't sew end to end or the leather stretch and wrinkle. Sew on the front and side panels together and sew them to the complete seat panel working from the front center towards a seam at the rear.

PHOTO 3, A pattern is made from brown paper bags and the genuine leather is marked, cut, and sewn on a heavy duty machine.

I found it easiest to cut a hole in the back of each complete channel and stuff them from the rear. I used a yard stick to carefully pack the cotton batting into the corners of the channels. Don't over stuff but remember the batting will compress over time. The hardest part of the stuffing is getting the firmness of all the pleats equal. I constantly compared the density of each channel while packing the batting.

PHOTO 4, These are the two small folding seat backs. The cover is stuffed with cotton batting. Try to keep the firmness of all pleats equal.

Assembly

I stretch the cover over the foundation so the center lines line up. The cover is held in place by tacks driven into the tacking strip around the bottom. There is a special strip of material called HIDE'M that gets tacked all around the bottom to cover the tack heads. This completes the seat.

A plain rectangle of leather covers the back of the seat back and is held in place with tacks around the edge of the plywood. The pleated seat back covers are made the same way as the seat. A few tacks in the edge of the plywood hold the cover in place then all the tacks are covered using HIDE'M and tacks.

A screenside Commercial Car is not the most difficult vehicle to upholster. There is only the one seat, no carpet, headliner or door panels. The screenside has a full fabric top and roll down side curtain but that is another story...

PHOTO 5, The finished seat for a 1926 Screenside.