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Re: [Morgans] Seat back pattern

To: "wbeech" <wbeech@flash.net>
Subject: Re: [Morgans] Seat back pattern
From: "John T. Blair" <jblair1948@cox.net>
Date: Tue, 16 Oct 2018 23:39:34 -0400
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At 02:14 PM 10/16/2018, wbeech wrote:

 >OK, I'll contribute to the list with my current challenge, a 1954 
Plus Four.  Re-
 >building a basket case without benefit of being the one that 
disassembled it.  Car
 >has no interior at all, making the seat bases is no problem but I 
am trying to re-
 >construct the seat back, have been working on making a pattern via 
the cut-n-fit-
 >n-cutsomemore method but not real sure just how the back rides on 
the side sills
 >and sits against the chassis cross member for bracing.  Somewhere 
on the web,
 >not GoMog, I found a good tutorial with pictures of the way the 
back board was
 >configured to accept the foam to give the proper contours, but now 
I cannot find
 >it.    .....

Bill,

While this probably isn't the item you were looking for, here is some 
info I received
some time back.  I want to get it up on SOL's Morgan Web page, but haven't had
the chance.

----------------------------

From: "Jeff Webster" <carfindr@tiac.net>
To: <Morgans@autox.team.net>
Subject: RE: Roadster seat backrest (rebuild).
Date: Tue, 29 Jun 1999 14:01:31 -0400

Dear All,
I thought I'd post this letter so it may end up in the archives. Here is
some valuable information regarding the bench seat back rest of an early
'high-cowl' roadster. This information may also be useful to those with the
low body style.
I have had the opportunity to remove the leather coverings from my roadster
backrest as I had intended on replacing the wooden part as mine had rotted
(not to mention the leather). The idea was to have a new wood backrest made
and ready to go when I took it to the upholsterer.
WELL, This was not to be. THE BACKREST IS A COMPLICATED AFFAIR.
It is not something that can be made out of a sheet of half inch plywood,
and I'll tell you why.
Firstly, the original is made up from four different shaped/sized pieces of
wood, it has 19 springs (9 large ones and 10 small) that are attached in
different areas of the back. Moreover some are bent in such a way to give
that great "old sofa" look to the backrest when it is in the car.
I would STRONGLY suggest that if your back rest is shot, you either replace
it with bucket seats or look for a good used back rest at a swap meet.

However, If you watch Norm Abrams regularly and you are either desperate or
brave enough to attempt to make a replica - here are the measurements and
materials you will need.
Begin with a piece of quarter inch Luan board. It should measure 44'" Wide
by 21 & 3/4" deep.
Measuring from left to right, (along the long side) move the tape in 1 &
1/2" from the left side and make a mark. Then, from that mark, measure 41"
(this accomodates the notch either side at the top of the back rest,  for
the hood frame.) This notch extends down from the top, 4 & 1/4" each side in
a slight curve.
The overall depth of the backrest is 21 & 3/4". Having marked for the notch
at the top, measure from the very top of the backrest down the right side 17
&1/2" and make a mark. (You will now begin to mark the bottom cut out, where
it bridges the leaf springs and sits on the sills). Measure in 4", down 1 &
1/2", then in 3", and down 2" to the bottom of the backrest. The total width
of this notch should be 7 & 1/2".  Now, measure in from the right side edge
(not from the notch) 19" and put a mark.
Mirror the above measurements for the two notches on the left side of the
back.
At the bottom, in the middle you should end up with two marks about 6"
apart, this is where the cut out will be for the prop shaft tunnel. It
should be about 6 & 1/2" high, but it tapers. The best thing to do is set
your prop shaft tunnel on the back rest and use it as a template, you'll get
a much more accurate cut, but remember not to make it taller than 7".
At this stage you should not have made any cuts - everything should just be
marked though on the Luan board.
The next step is to take some 1/2" x 3" stock. (you could use 1/2" ply cut
3" wide). You will need two pieces 38 1/2" long for the top rail and the
upper base rail, two pieces 22" long for the side rails, one piece 12" long
for the center rail, one piece cut 7" wide x 38 & 1/2" long for the lower
base rail.
Now, turn your Luan back rest over on the floor so that the markings you
made earlier are facing down. Next lay out your pre cut lengths of 1/2" ply
as follows:
First place your two side rails on the outside edges either side, then place
the 7" wide base rail horizontally between them at the very bottom, directly
above that place the upper base rail and then place the top rail at the top
edge. Finally figure and mark the center point of the top and upper base
rail out, mark it and place the 12" center rail vertically between these two
points. You now have your basic frame laid out. You need to attach these
frame pieces to the Luan. I would suggest (now you know how it should look)
removing them and re-laying them out on the floor in front of you, then
place the Luan board on top (with your markings facing up) and nail through
the Luan into the ply wood frame rails, a little glue wouldn't hurt.
YOU ARE ALMOST FINISHED!
Once the frame pieces have been nailed to the Luan and the glue has dried,
take a plane and knock a 45 degree bevel top frame rail, but not so deep
that you cut into the Luan. Then, with a jig saw, cut out areas we marked
earlier.
Once again lay the back rest on the floor, frame side up, as we have two
more pieces of wood to add. These strengtheners are 23 & 1/2" long, 1 & 1/2"
wide by 1" deep. They run top to bottom, on their edge, at a slight diagonal
beginning, (measuring along the top of the backrest)  4" in from the hood
bow notch on either side - to just inside the notch we cut out for the leaf
spring shackle. You will see once you lay these on your backrest that you
will have to notch out these strengtheners so they attach to the Luan in
some places and frame in others. These pieces have a 45 degree bevel on ALL
FOUR long edges that will be inside the seat back. In addition the ends are
cut at 45 degrees so that they taper to create a wedge (2 - 2 1/2" long)
towards the top and bottom of the seat. These pieces are then attached to
the back rest with screws from behind.
There are just two more things you have to do. In the square area of Luan
that you now see either side of the center rail, drill a 1" air hole in the
middle. Finally, sand all the outside edges so there is nothing that will
rip you new leather when it's applied.
THAT'S IT!!!! You now have a Morgan back rest!

You should be able to re-use the springs from your old back rest. As I
mentioned earlier, there are 19 ! The two side rails get three large ones
each as does the center rail, the top row of the larger ones are bent down.
The square Luan section on each side get five small springs each, in a
square shape with one in the middle. All protruding frame edges on the
inside of the seat are covered with horse hair. A good auto upholsterer
should be able to take it from here.

Good luck!!

Jeff Webster

------------

From: "Jeff Webster" <carfindr@tiac.net>
To:   "John T. Blair" <jblair@exis.net>
Subject: RE: Roadster seat backrest (rebuild).

Jeff,

    If you don't mind, I'd like to put your article up on the SOL's Morgan
Web page.  Also do you have any pictures or sketches to go with your
explaniation?

----------------------------

John


John T. Blair  WA4OHZ     email:  jblair1948@cox.net
Va. Beach, Va                  Phone:  (757) 495-8229

           48 TR1800    48 #4 Midget    65 Morgan 4/4 Series V (B1106)
      75 Bricklin SV1 (#0887)    77 Spitfire    71 Saab Sonett III
                        65 Rambler Classic

Morgan:    www.team.net/morgan
Bricklin:     www.bricklin.org

If you can read this             - Thank a teacher!
If you are reading it in English - Thank a Vet!!

 From Dennis Prager - The American Trilogy:
      e pluribus Unum, "from many, one."
      In God We Trust
      Liberty - the  power  of  choosing,  thinking,  and  acting  for
                   oneself; freedom  from  control  or  restriction




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<html>
<body>
<font size=3D3>At 02:14 PM 10/16/2018, wbeech wrote:<br><br>
&gt;OK, I=92ll contribute to the list with my current challenge, a 1954
Plus Four.&nbsp; Re-<br>
&gt;building a basket case without benefit of being the one that
disassembled it.&nbsp; Car <br>
&gt;has no interior at all, making the seat bases is no problem but I am
trying to re-<br>
&gt;construct the seat back, have been working on making a pattern via
the cut-n-fit-<br>
&gt;n-cutsomemore method but not real sure just how the back rides on the
side sills <br>
&gt;and sits against the chassis cross member for bracing.&nbsp;
Somewhere on the web, <br>
&gt;not GoMog, I found a good tutorial with pictures of the way the back
board was <br>
&gt;configured to accept the foam to give the proper contours, but now I
cannot find <br>
&gt;it.&nbsp; &nbsp; .....<br><br>
Bill,<br><br>
While this probably isn't the item you were looking for, here is some
info I received<br>
some time back.&nbsp; I want to get it up on SOL's Morgan Web page, but
haven't had<br>
the chance.<br><br>
----------------------------<br><br>
From: &quot;Jeff Webster&quot; &lt;carfindr@tiac.net&gt;<br>
To: &lt;Morgans@autox.team.net&gt;<br>
Subject: RE: Roadster seat backrest (rebuild).<br>
Date: Tue, 29 Jun 1999 14:01:31 -0400<br><br>
Dear All,<br>
I thought I'd post this letter so it may end up in the archives. Here
is<br>
some valuable information regarding the bench seat back rest of an
early<br>
'high-cowl' roadster. This information may also be useful to those with
the<br>
low body style.<br>
I have had the opportunity to remove the leather coverings from my
roadster<br>
backrest as I had intended on replacing the wooden part as mine had
rotted<br>
(not to mention the leather). The idea was to have a new wood backrest
made<br>
and ready to go when I took it to the upholsterer.<br>
WELL, This was not to be. THE BACKREST IS A COMPLICATED AFFAIR.<br>
It is not something that can be made out of a sheet of half inch
plywood,<br>
and I'll tell you why.<br>
Firstly, the original is made up from four different shaped/sized pieces
of<br>
wood, it has 19 springs (9 large ones and 10 small) that are attached
in<br>
different areas of the back. Moreover some are bent in such a way to
give<br>
that great &quot;old sofa&quot; look to the backrest when it is in the
car.<br>
I would STRONGLY suggest that if your back rest is shot, you either
replace<br>
it with bucket seats or look for a good used back rest at a swap
meet.<br><br>
However, If you watch Norm Abrams regularly and you are either desperate
or<br>
brave enough to attempt to make a replica - here are the measurements
and<br>
materials you will need.<br>
Begin with a piece of quarter inch Luan board. It should measure
44'&quot; Wide<br>
by 21 &amp; 3/4&quot; deep.<br>
Measuring from left to right, (along the long side) move the tape in 1
&amp;<br>
1/2&quot; from the left side and make a mark. Then, from that mark,
measure 41&quot;<br>
(this accomodates the notch either side at the top of the back
rest,&nbsp; for<br>
the hood frame.) This notch extends down from the top, 4 &amp; 1/4&quot;
each side in<br>
a slight curve.<br>
The overall depth of the backrest is 21 &amp; 3/4&quot;. Having marked
for the notch<br>
at the top, measure from the very top of the backrest down the right side
17<br>
&amp;1/2&quot; and make a mark. (You will now begin to mark the bottom
cut out, where<br>
it bridges the leaf springs and sits on the sills). Measure in 4&quot;,
down 1 &amp;<br>
1/2&quot;, then in 3&quot;, and down 2&quot; to the bottom of the
backrest. The total width<br>
of this notch should be 7 &amp; 1/2&quot;.&nbsp; Now, measure in from the
right side edge<br>
(not from the notch) 19&quot; and put a mark.<br>
Mirror the above measurements for the two notches on the left side of
the<br>
back.<br>
At the bottom, in the middle you should end up with two marks about
6&quot;<br>
apart, this is where the cut out will be for the prop shaft tunnel.
It<br>
should be about 6 &amp; 1/2&quot; high, but it tapers. The best thing to
do is set<br>
your prop shaft tunnel on the back rest and use it as a template, you'll
get<br>
a much more accurate cut, but remember not to make it taller than
7&quot;.<br>
At this stage you should not have made any cuts - everything should just
be<br>
marked though on the Luan board.<br>
The next step is to take some 1/2&quot; x 3&quot; stock. (you could use
1/2&quot; ply cut<br>
3&quot; wide). You will need two pieces 38 1/2&quot; long for the top
rail and the<br>
upper base rail, two pieces 22&quot; long for the side rails, one piece
12&quot; long<br>
for the center rail, one piece cut 7&quot; wide x 38 &amp; 1/2&quot; long
for the lower<br>
base rail.<br>
Now, turn your Luan back rest over on the floor so that the markings
you<br>
made earlier are facing down. Next lay out your pre cut lengths of
1/2&quot; ply<br>
as follows:<br>
First place your two side rails on the outside edges either side, then
place<br>
the 7&quot; wide base rail horizontally between them at the very bottom,
directly<br>
above that place the upper base rail and then place the top rail at the
top<br>
edge. Finally figure and mark the center point of the top and upper
base<br>
rail out, mark it and place the 12&quot; center rail vertically between
these two<br>
points. You now have your basic frame laid out. You need to attach
these<br>
frame pieces to the Luan. I would suggest (now you know how it should
look)<br>
removing them and re-laying them out on the floor in front of you,
then<br>
place the Luan board on top (with your markings facing up) and nail
through<br>
the Luan into the ply wood frame rails, a little glue wouldn't hurt.<br>
YOU ARE ALMOST FINISHED!<br>
Once the frame pieces have been nailed to the Luan and the glue has
dried,<br>
take a plane and knock a 45 degree bevel top frame rail, but not so
deep<br>
that you cut into the Luan. Then, with a jig saw, cut out areas we
marked<br>
earlier.<br>
Once again lay the back rest on the floor, frame side up, as we have
two<br>
more pieces of wood to add. These strengtheners are 23 &amp; 1/2&quot;
long, 1 &amp; 1/2&quot;<br>
wide by 1&quot; deep. They run top to bottom, on their edge, at a slight
diagonal<br>
beginning, (measuring along the top of the backrest)&nbsp; 4&quot; in
from the hood<br>
bow notch on either side - to just inside the notch we cut out for the
leaf<br>
spring shackle. You will see once you lay these on your backrest that
you<br>
will have to notch out these strengtheners so they attach to the Luan
in<br>
some places and frame in others. These pieces have a 45 degree bevel on
ALL<br>
FOUR long edges that will be inside the seat back. In addition the ends
are<br>
cut at 45 degrees so that they taper to create a wedge (2 - 2 1/2&quot;
long)<br>
towards the top and bottom of the seat. These pieces are then attached
to<br>
the back rest with screws from behind.<br>
There are just two more things you have to do. In the square area of
Luan<br>
that you now see either side of the center rail, drill a 1&quot; air hole
in the<br>
middle. Finally, sand all the outside edges so there is nothing that
will<br>
rip you new leather when it's applied.<br>
THAT'S IT!!!! You now have a Morgan back rest!<br><br>
You should be able to re-use the springs from your old back rest. As
I<br>
mentioned earlier, there are 19 ! The two side rails get three large
ones<br>
each as does the center rail, the top row of the larger ones are bent
down.<br>
The square Luan section on each side get five small springs each, in
a<br>
square shape with one in the middle. All protruding frame edges on
the<br>
inside of the seat are covered with horse hair. A good auto
upholsterer<br>
should be able to take it from here.<br><br>
Good luck!!<br><br>
Jeff Webster<br><br>
------------<br><br>
From: &quot;Jeff Webster&quot; &lt;carfindr@tiac.net&gt;<br>
To:&nbsp;&nbsp; &quot;John T. Blair&quot; &lt;jblair@exis.net&gt; <br>
Subject: RE: Roadster seat backrest (rebuild).<br><br>
Jeff,<br><br>
&nbsp;&nbsp; If you don't mind, I'd like to put your article up on the
SOL's Morgan <br>
Web page.&nbsp; Also do you have any pictures or sketches to go with your
<br>
explaniation?<br><br>
----------------------------<br><br>
John<br><br>
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<br>
<div>John T. Blair&nbsp; WA4OHZ&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; email:&nbsp;
jblair1948@cox.net</div>
<div>Va. Beach,
Va&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&=
nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Phone:&nbsp; (757) 495-8229</div>
<br>
<div>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 48
TR1800&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 48 #4 Midget&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 65 Morgan 4/4
Series V (B1106)</div>
<div>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 75 Bricklin SV1 (#0887)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
77 Spitfire&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 71 Saab Sonett III</div>
<div>
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nb=
sp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
65 Rambler Classic</div>
<br>
<div>Morgan:&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<a href=3D"http://www.team.net/morgan"; EUDORA=3DAUTOURL>
www.team.net/morgan</a></div>
<div>Bricklin:&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<a href=3D"http://www.bricklin.org/"; EUDORA=3DAUTOURL>www.bricklin.org</a>
</div>
<br>
<div>If you can read
this&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp=
;
- Thank a teacher!</div>
<div>If you are reading it in English - Thank a Vet!!</div>
<br>
<div> From Dennis Prager - The American Trilogy:</div>
<div>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; e pluribus Unum, &quot;from many,
one.&quot;</div>
<div>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; In God We Trust</div>
<div>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Liberty - the&nbsp; power&nbsp; of&nbsp;
choosing,&nbsp; thinking,&nbsp; and&nbsp; acting&nbsp; for&nbsp; </div>
<div>
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nb=
sp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
oneself; freedom&nbsp; from&nbsp; control&nbsp; or&nbsp;
restriction&nbsp; </div>
<br>
<br>
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