recovering seats. what dealer?

I am getting ready to recover my seats in my 76 Midget. I hate getting anything from VB, as I have been burnt more than once, but they are quite a bit cheaper than Moss, and VB set comes with new headrest covers. Thoughts? Anyone used the VB set of covers?

Corey

I'm sure lots of folks have and they are quite a bit cheaper. I have the leather Suffolk seats from them and I love them! I'd imagine they come from the same manufacturing company as the ones from Moss but id not vinyl is vinyl. I was disappointed in their carpet kit until I got samples from other vendors that were higher in $$$ yet inferior in quality.

Cory,

It has been a whopping 14 years since my seat were recovered, and yes, back then i purchased from VB. They have held up extremely well to the point they scarcely look 2 years old! I like vinyl because it is virtually maintenance-free in comparison to leather. Although I must hasten to add the frame design in the Suffolk is, imo, more attractive & stronger. For now, I'll stick with my original seats.

I say go for it ! That was one purchase that was well worth the dough.

Corey, try and find a used set on eBay, I always see seats for sales, make an offer to buy just the covers. You may save some money, and end up with an original seat

Corey,
There are many Mo$$ re-sellers who offer parts shipped from Moss at 15-20% less than Moss catalog prices.
I think Rob't. Kirk, on this forum is one.
If he's not, Little British Car Co. in MN. is.
I prefer Moss quality over VB, but I seldom order direct from Moss.
JMHO Phil

Just received my "70's on" black vinyl seat kit from www.mirrortrim.co.uk/ $206. total vs. $400+ for the VB seat kit. You can actually get LEATHER for about $100 more then the VB kit, if that's what you want.

Having purchased a VB kit about 10 years ago, I feel the Mirrotrim kit workmanship is BETTER. Better padding, more detailing. Delivery about 4 weeks, direct from the UK.
I did not need the headrest skins, but they have 'em. They do include the chrome openings (installed) for the headrest posts.

This is a small family operation trying to make a go of it and doing a nice job.
Use the installation instructions from the VB website. Do one at a time, all the clips you already have are re-usable too.

I just finished one of the two seats, it looks GREAT. You will be pleased.

I have hit gold when it comes to seat recovering! I saw a very ratty old sign down the road from my house, hand painted and about 2 feet by two feet, with the word, "Upholstery" on it. I had been trying to decide what to do with the seats in my 76 midget, because the PO had put these horrible, fuzzy covers over the remains of the originals.

Well, I got talking to this strange, reclusive man who owns a small shop behind his house. Turns out, he subcontracted for a major import car dealer in the 60s-80s doing all of the repairs and replacements of all aspects of upholstery from everything from Fiats to MGs! This was one of the biggest dealerships in the Southeast a few decades ago. The dealer had been sending them back across the pond to have them done, until they figured out it was cheaper to send this guy over for a year to have him trained. He said he is retired now, but still takes on jobs to keep busy and for, "beer money". He had a few seats from a yacht he had completed as well as a pair of seats from an older Jaguar. They looked like they just came out of a showroom, just beautiful! I am completely non-artistic, so I really appreciate the work of a skilled craftsman. He does everything from basic seats, to intricate hand stitched pieces. I brought over my seats a day later to see if he was willing to work on them. He said he has done hundreds of those, and they would be no problem. I picked out a nice, "pleather" material that he suggested, and he said he would give them the works; strip, refresh foam where needed, metal work and recover in a couple of weeks.

I will post pics when I get them back. I am not going to say how much he charged until I get them back. Let's just say that I have seen cheap covers listed for more. I have 4 more cars I am going to have done if this works out, and he said he would even lower the price if I helped him a day or two.

Sorry, this sounds like bragging! My point is, he is going to teach me the proper way this was done originaly, all the tricks of the trade from someone who learned from the source. I am going to record as many details as possible, so this wealth of information is not lost to the ages. When I get done with my vehicles, I'll check with him if it is alright to recommend him on this board. This might turn out to be a great resource for members of the board. Since he is pretty elderly and retired, it will probably not be a good idea to drop off a couple dozen seats at a time. He doesn't advertise (except for the before mentioned sign) but he did say he had been bored lately. I'll keep everyone who is interested updated.

TJ

I really would like to hear from anyone who has purchased seat covers or trim kits from this company.

Brown and Gammons (UK)

http://www.ukmgparts.com/browse.aspx?CID=a50709b2-a969-4cce-a883-ab5908543e80&SID=df4b67cf-c9a5-4bdf-b953-3bab42115c5d