Out with the old in with the new Carpet!!

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I'm a complete novice when it comes to restoration. Given that, I just bought a 1985 FJ60 that badly needs new carpet in the cargo area and on the back of the rear seat.

If I'm going to pull that carpet up, does it make sense to coat the bed and throw down the sound proofing? It doesn't look like it's that much more work, and the cost is probably well worth it.

Any thoughts?

Thanks.

Luke
 
Here is my final report on the carpet install. Randy did a great job. The sound deadener made by Damplifier Pro is awesome. I can't believe how quiet it is. I am very pleased. Randy put in about $160 worth of it in there, but it would have cost 2 or 3 times that with Dynamat. http://www.secondskinaudio.com/

The people at Chester & Herod http://autockm.com/index.html are very nice. But am dissapointed in the the fit of the carpet. I would grade the carpet a B minus. Its not bad enough to send back. I am kinda tired of dealing with it anymore and Randy says it will settle in and flatten out and form to the floor after it spends a lot more time sitting in there. I think he is right. It will get better. Doesn't seam like there is much else out there. I hope it holds up. I am curious to know how the SOR or MAF molded carpet would have compared. If I had it to do over again. I would have ordered two carpet kits, compared them, then returned the one that was less satisfactory.

I love the new Tuffy. It takes a little getting used to because it is so HUGE! I can put in a LOT of stuff in there. Plus it is VERY NICE being able to drive down the hiway and lean on your right elbow. really nice.

here are some pics of the finished install:

http://mannphoto.com/lc/carpet

Thanks Randy for doing such a great job!
 
He takes better care of that truck than his bikes. I justed sealed up the body joints to make sure that pretty new carpet stays that way. Also after the carpet has some time to settle I will go back and restretch it and trim some more of the excess out. The stitching around the seat mounts is twisted and if you try to cut to much of it out it will leave the mounts exposed which I guess is a personal preferance. Thanks to Cris for letting me do it. I like taking on new projects and seeing the end results. Thanks G and how's the project idea?

Chuckardog- The hardest part is getting the seams to line up with the tunnel cover and the seat mounts. Other than that I loose laid the carpet and will clean it up after it gets some wear. That way I can see where it needs a good pull and trim.
 
Based on the pics, that carpet is the nicest non-oem 60 series carpet I have seen. The color and texture match is appears to me to be much closer to oem than competing products. Some of the lumpiness will surely go away as the carpet settles in, but some of it is probably not the carpet's fault. After installing two layers of damplifier and some foam (was called "overkill" and now called "rattle pad") under the oem carpet of my 62, there is a bit of lumpiness. I'd take the minor lumpiness over the noise any day. In any event, your install looks great.
 
I got mine the middle of last week and put in the middle section and almost finished the front. So far, I think I would pretty much echo the statements of Randy and Chris. The fit isn't perfect, but I'm not sure any kit ever is. It definitely takes some time to get it in. I may also add some additional padding over what they supplied, but that will have to be a later date.

I was very happy with the color match. The texture is similar, but the loops are a bit bigger than OEM. I am content with the quality so far, but I would not call it OEM. Judging how some of the threads pulled out during the install and trimming, I can't imagine it will hold up like the OEM carpet. There is also a lot of loose strands creating a "fuzz." Basically, where individual fibers seem to have missed being looped. Not a big deal, but not as clean as OEM. I'll post a follow up in a year or so (sooner if it sucks). But I would certainly give it an initial recommendation - subject to change if it looks like crap a year from now.

By the way - when I got my kit, they must have already fixed the problem with the middle section since it seemed to have the change and didn't have the extra material.

My truck smells a WHOLE lot better too!
 
chris777 said:
Here is my final report on the carpet install. Randy did a great job. The sound deadener made by Damplifier Pro is awesome. I can't believe how quiet it is. I am very pleased. Randy put in about $160 worth of it in there, but it would have cost 2 or 3 times that with Dynamat. http://www.secondskinaudio.com/

The people at Chester & Herod http://autockm.com/index.html are very nice. But am dissapointed in the the fit of the carpet. I would grade the carpet a B minus. Its not bad enough to send back. I am kinda tired of dealing with it anymore and Randy says it will settle in and flatten out and form to the floor after it spends a lot more time sitting in there. I think he is right. It will get better. Doesn't seam like there is much else out there. I hope it holds up. I am curious to know how the SOR or MAF molded carpet would have compared. If I had it to do over again. I would have ordered two carpet kits, compared them, then returned the one that was less satisfactory.

I love the new Tuffy. It takes a little getting used to because it is so HUGE! I can put in a LOT of stuff in there. Plus it is VERY NICE being able to drive down the hiway and lean on your right elbow. really nice.

here are some pics of the finished install:

http://mannphoto.com/lc/carpet

Thanks Randy for doing such a great job!
Click to expand...

Chris, I finally looked at those pics and that carpet looks to be WAY better quality than what I had gotten several years ago. What I'm impressed by, though, is the amazing shape your seats are in. Is that the original OEM fabric, or just a very similar design? I assume either way, the vinyl around the sides is new, as I can't see any cracks or damage to it.

That truck is amazingly clean inside. Gives mine a run for its money (though my carpet is a pretty big blight on its appearance right now).
 
O/T - Chris, your seat fabric pattern... It is the same pattern as my Aus truck. Do you know the name/colours of it?

I need to replace the seat base on my drivers' seat, which would be your passenger seat. If i knew the name/colour combo, thought I could search in USA for an old passenger seat base in that colour to replace my drivers seat. Hard to find a decent one out here as of course all would have similar wear being the drivers side.

~PHIL

PS i don't think the carpet set is too bad at all. I have spent good money and time on a decent carpet set for my custom MG and it still wasn't as good as i hoped. Similar problems to yours in bagginess in various places; so I sympathise. Most people don't notice, just because you've been staring at it day in/day out. Overall the effect has really been positive on the cabin of your ride and it looks very good. :) If Randy can cut out some of the baggy bits later on, then you're onto a winner!
 
Spook, thanks for the feedback. I agree. I am happy with it now. The carpet has settled a little bit. And I don't even notice the baggy spots. I was amazed how NASTY that carpet was that had been in there for 22 years. Did not realize this till I got it out.

All my seats are original OEM fabric. 6 years ago, or therabouts, I replaced the dirvers side bottom cover with one I bought from Toyota for $250. 4 years ago, I replaced the foam seat pad with a new firm one from Spector Off Road (which should help the new cover last longer). 2 years ago, the side vinyl was already starting to crack, so I had it replaced, which is easy for any decent upholstery shop to do.

Eventually, the fabric on the left side of the drivers bottom seat will deteriorate. When that happens, I will have the far left fabric (striped) panel of the driver's side replaced with grey vinyl. I will do this all the way up the driver's seat back and do the same on the passenger's side.

I am amazed at how long my seat covers have held up. This has been my only vehicle for 22 years! I have never installed seat covers. But I DO put a blanket over the seats if I am carrying a big dog.

Buffalo, thanks for your comments. I have especially enjoyed all the Damplifier Pro sound deadening I added. I have no idea what the color is called. It is just a dark grey and light grey stripe. Some people call it a blue-grey, because it is a pretty cold grey.
 
chris777 said:
Spook, thanks for the feedback. I agree. I am happy with it now. The carpet has settled a little bit. And I don't even notice the baggy spots. I was amazed how NASTY that carpet was that had been in there for 22 years. Did not realize this till I got it out.

All my seats are original OEM fabric. 6 years ago, or therabouts, I replaced the dirvers side bottom cover with one I bought from Toyota for $250. 4 years ago, I replaced the foam seat pad with a new firm one from Spector Off Road (which should help the new cover last longer). 2 years ago, the side vinyl was already starting to crack, so I had it replaced, which is easy for any decent upholstery shop to do.
Click to expand...

Looks like there isn't even a single stain on that fabric. My fabric hasn't started to deteriorate yet, so when I have the vinyl redone (GF's dad's neighbor does it professionally and is gonna hook me up) I'll see if there's any way he can beef up the fabric from the backside. I've learned a few other tricks from some resto guys I've talked to that I'll use when I redo my seats, so hopefully I can make my fabric last another 20 years. BTW, how do you like the replacement foam? That's another thing that's on my list when I R&R the seats. I wanna find someone who can duplicate the seatback foam for me as well...
 
Just ordered the dynamat Extreme...and was wondering how hard it is to remove the old carpet. I plan on having the old carpet cleaned since its not too bad.

Thanks

JD
 
I cleaned all the stains with a foamy fabric cleaner. I think it is called Coral Blue or something similar. You need to suck it up with a strong shop vac. Apply, vacuum, apply, vacuum, apply vacuum. I did it in the sun while the seats were out for the carpet install.

I love the the new seat foam. It gives great support. You really sit up higher with it, too. It feels great. plus, it really does help save the seat fabric.


Spook50 said:
Looks like there isn't even a single stain on that fabric. My fabric hasn't started to deteriorate yet, so when I have the vinyl redone (GF's dad's neighbor does it professionally and is gonna hook me up) I'll see if there's any way he can beef up the fabric from the backside. I've learned a few other tricks from some resto guys I've talked to that I'll use when I redo my seats, so hopefully I can make my fabric last another 20 years. BTW, how do you like the replacement foam? That's another thing that's on my list when I R&R the seats. I wanna find someone who can duplicate the seatback foam for me as well...
Click to expand...
 
Do you have a link for the new seat foam? How hard was it to install? I would hate to tear my seats. They are almost perfect except for a few stains.

JD :cheers:
 
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