The Upholstery Forum

So I created this topic to keep my questions in one place. I do not want to fill the forum with them.
I will have a lot as I go along for sure.

First ones would be about adhesives

I do not yet have an option to use spray gun and compressor, however I will start practicing on my on car.

Are spray glues as effective as contact cement?
The stuff John uses in the course video looks different that the one I came across.
It was impossible to apply it evenly. it was soo sticky that I was barley able to apply it with a brush.
I only used it for floor carpet installation so it was not an issues, but for leather and vinyl skins would be very difficult.

Spray easier to apply and I do not have to throw out my brushes all the time.

I have not seen all video yet, but I got another question about scrim foam installation. In one video John used a nice easy flat surface. What about the curved panels? If I stretch it it loses it form and did not look nice when I put the vinyl on it. Is there any trick for curved installation?

Or it will come with experience?

Re spray adhesives in the UK, I’d recommend Trim Fix ... it sprays nicely and holds well & seems to be favoured by campervan converters & trimmers & unlike the Evo glues you pickup in Halfords it actually holds fast even in the summer sun.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Trim-Fix-500 ... f2247d6f5c

Halfords does sell Evo impact adhesive & I used it yesterday to stick down scrim foam but i’ve Had poor experiences with it when relying on it to hold wall & floor coverings.

To add.... although I do have an air supply, I have no intention of going down the spray gun route.... the hassle of cleaning kit and dealing with clogged nozzles just isn’t worth it when just doing the odd seat once in a while!

@Yalan-UK ,

I agree with the spray cans for the odd seat once in a while. I go through a lot of glue would cost a fortune so buy 28 litres at a time.

Yalan-UK wrote: ↑Fri May 29, 2020 9:41 am Re spray adhesives in the UK, I’d recommend Trim Fix ... it sprays nicely and holds well & seems to be favoured by campervan converters & trimmers & unlike the Evo glues you pickup in Halfords it actually holds fast even in the summer sun.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Trim-Fix-500 ... f2247d6f5c

Halfords does sell Evo impact adhesive & I used it yesterday to stick down scrim foam but i’ve Had poor experiences with it when relying on it to hold wall & floor coverings.

To add.... although I do have an air supply, I have no intention of going down the spray gun route.... the hassle of cleaning kit and dealing with clogged nozzles just isn’t worth it when just doing the odd seat once in a while!

Hello Mate,

Thanks for the reply

I actually used TrimFix the blue one. I covered some lower trim panels of my caravelle with a four way stretch automotive vinyl.
I noticed few days ago that some places the vinyl already started to come off I also noticed bulges on some curved areas. I have not even used scrim on those places.
What could be go wrong then? I can take of the vinyl with little force after 15 days of installation however, the contact glue I used for a floor carpet set properly and it really hard to rip it off.

What can I do to avoid this problems?

I about to start doing side panels and roof lining and do not want to experience the same issues.

About scrim foam installation.

What would be the best practice? sew it on the leather/vinyl skin and then glue them on the panel or glue the scrim than glue the sewed skin.

Sorry - can’t answer the ‘in which order’ question.
I’ve also been recovering my T5 campervan walls where I’ve let new windows in - but that is very easy because of the unbacked and easy to stretch carpet type coverings.

What I would suggest is to minimise the stretch on vinyl as much as you can where it is an internal curve... if the vinyl is continually pulling on the adhesive it’ll come away sooner or later unless the glue is very good.i remember doing a great job with an unbacked alcantara on a concave curve and it eventually pulled away through the stretch in the fabric... in the end I injected dots of superglue through the fabric whilst still in situ with a hyperdermic syringe!

Trimfix blue? Never heard of that to be honest ..... if its not the same branding it won’t be the same stuff. ( although weirdly, I can’t see any real branding or manufacturer info on the cans I’ve got!)

I’m sure it goes without saying to follow the instructions on the can! I’ve seen people spray to one surface before and just push together.... it is the same as shaking a paint can for 10 seconds and expecting paint to come out with the right consistency!!

I dont recommend using spray can glue. Its not cost effective and its not as good as upholstery grade contact cement. If you must use a can I recommend permatex https://amzn.to/2Yjpqgr
However at 16$ a can its going to get expense.

I dont understand your Scrim foam problem. Can you please post a picture.

Also in the future If you could make a new topic for each question that will be very helpful. It keeps the forum more organized and easier for people to find answers in the search. Thanks!