Patterns for 28-29 CCPU upholstery panels

W

wrndln

Well-known member
Does anyone know if and where patterns for the various upholstery panels for a 28/29 closed cab pickup (82A) can be found? I believe pickup upholstery is the same as an AA 28-29 truck. The upholstery is minimal for AA and pickups, so I believe a local upholstery shop could cut and edge the upholstery hardboard used for a pickup cab.
Thanks for any help with this.

Rusty Nelson
 
wrndln said:
Does anyone know if and where patterns for the various upholstery panels for a 28/29 closed cab pickup (82A) can be found? I believe pickup upholstery is the same as an AA 28-29 truck. The upholstery is minimal for AA and pickups, so I believe a local upholstery shop could cut and edge the upholstery hardboard used for a pickup cab.
Thanks for any help with this.

Rusty Nelson
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have you found original style panel board? As far as I know that's not available. Regular panel board is used and covered to simulate original panel board.
 
Rusty, Neil is correct about the panels being cardboard. I do know the E1928 82A and the 1928-29 82A used different colors and graining for each respective year -and I am fairly sure these grain patterns are different from the patterns found on other bodystyle's Cowl panels.

With that said, if you are building for authenticity then I have experimented with wetting panelboard and pressing with a die to emboss the shape. What I used was a die intended for use on leather, but my intent was to find the correct pattern and scan it. Then, write the G code and have a CNC router or laser replicate it in reverse onto a block of aluminum. Then I would use a knee mill to press (emboss) the pattern onto the panelboard. Afterwards use a leather dye to seal & color it, and then bind the edges.

As far as patterns for the trim panels, just refer to factory pictures and layout using pattern paper.
 
Thanks Neil and Brent for your posts.
I would like to use authentic looking hardboard, but from what Brent posted it appears very involved to create something similar. Since only Classtique now makes upholstery kits after the demise of LB, I don't know what kind of upholstery board they use. I thought Classtique had "close to original" hardboard material I could buy from them. Classtique has a substantial backlog - 12 to 18 months. I just thought maybe I could make the panels myself, along with a local upholstery shop's help. Maybe not.


Neil,
I appreciate the website you created for model A AA and pickups. You have some good pictures of original upholstery panels in cabs. They will be helpful if I can find some original looking hardboard panel material.

Rusty
 
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Rusty, Mike with Classtique has raised the bar over what L/B was offering a decade ago. He is the manufacturer of the Model-A fabrics now, and he is using the best quality materials. Certain products he will never manufacture simply because the ROI is not there for him, -and in those circumstances you need to improvise if your project is going to authentic. Sturm & Marco had been doing this for years dying materials, fabricating bindings, and gluing rubber mats to make more authentic looking upholstery & trim items.

Also, the last time Mike & I talked, he was about 8 weeks out on orders. It might pay you to reach out to him.
 
They closed that down years ago.They sold out to Ecklers,then Turn 5,I haven't heard they restarted the upholstery up again.
 
Hi Rusty. I can make the panels for you. We are only booked into the beginning of February now. If you need them soon, I might be able to get them done sooner for you.

Mike Francis
Classtique Upholstery
 
Ford likely used a treated panel board that was run through embossing rollers. They didn't offer much on different colors for the plain panel type trim.

LB likely fabricated patterns for all the kits they offered. They did business back when there were more original model As around. From information about the close down and final sale of LB's remaining assets, it seems that a lot of the patterns and remaining material were poory stored and much of it was ruined.

Other model A trim shops have to fabricate their own patterns if they want to reproduce seat and door coverings. A trim shop working on the fly will use the seat spring measurements to make the covers and use cardboard or thick paper to make quick patterns for door panels. A lot of trimmers just cover the cowl kick panels with vinyl material and sew it to the panel boards.
 
i am curious on how you made out with your trim panels.

i need to make cowl kick panels for my 29 cc pick up and am wondering what you used for the panel board, thick cardboard or 1/8' Masonite?

i would love to see a picture of what you did.

thank you
 
Early trucks upholstery/trim was black. Later (29) trucks were "colonial brown."

Most of the "applied" interior trim on both years was "dipped black." Things like the dashboard, the escutcheon around the door windows, the pocket at the passenger/driver's shoulder, the rear window frame.

Most of the rest of the body was the color du jour, which was commonly black early, but widened out into three or four other colors.

My March 29 CC pickup (avatar) is (was) a "blue color" possibly Niagara Blue or Andaluslite Blue. Someone has called this "Cadet Blue" - but that's not listed in the color charts. It was brush painted green before my ownership.

Neil Wilson is THE GUIDE at https://aafords.com/aa-body-types/paint-striping/

His "body in white" is the basis on all other coloring.

Rock Moss Green is certainly the most common final color.

Joe K
 
I have the brown door and trim panels apart from the truck currently. They're in a box as received from Snyder's - but the box doesn't say who produced them for Snyders. They've been waiting - for a while.

The door panels measure about 28 x 26 with one edge "offset" a bit, apparently to pass next to the dashboard. There is a hole made for the window crank handle. The panel board is cardboard, but fairly stiff. Not exactly cardstock, but neither like particleboard.

And there are four or so "smaller" panels for areas like under the shoulder pocket. These obviously have their own specific pattern.

All of these brown panels are "bound" at the edge with a brown possibly plastic piece that matches.

The challenge in doing it yourself will be in "binding" the covering at the edges through this "sewn edge." The binding "encircles" the raw edge of the covering and is "through-sewn" through the cardboard too. (i.e. that not too thin, not too thick effect.) Upholsterers sewing machines are "robust" and made for exactly this sort of work.

Joe K
 
Automotive interiors.com in Belchertown Mass. sells waterproof panelboard,at reasonable prices.I bought some there a year ago,and a friend bought enough to do his 30 Fordor there last spring.I think he got his four door panels out of two boards.They are called waterproof,not water resistant,and are tan or natural colored,not black.They seem to be a third of the price of other supply places,with the exact same names and part numbers printed on them.
 
I have seen ABS plastic sheet with different patterns embossed on them.
Common ABS Sheet Textures. The cardboard kick panels in our coupe are warped and the glue isn't holding the material well anymore. I'm going to use ABS to make new panels and glue the old material to them.

  • Haircell (or Textured): This is the most common textured finish for ABS sheets. It resembles the texture of an orange peel and is popular because it effectively conceals scratches and minor blemishes, making it ideal for high-wear applications like automotive interior trim, instrument panels, and electronic enclosures. Haircell sheets often have the texture on one side and a smooth, unfinished surface on the back.
  • Smooth: ABS sheets with a smooth finish on one or both sides are also available. This finish is often chosen when a sleek, uniform appearance is desired, or when the sheet is intended to be painted or covered with vinyl adhesives.
  • Matte: A matte surface provides a low-sheen, non-reflective appearance.
  • Glossy: While ABS is naturally glossy due to its styrene content, a highly glossy finish
 
ModelA29 said:
I have seen ABS plastic sheet with different patterns embossed on them.
Common ABS Sheet Textures. The cardboard kick panels in our coupe are warped and the glue isn't holding the material well anymore. I'm going to use ABS to make new panels and glue the old material to them.

  • Haircell (or Textured): This is the most common textured finish for ABS sheets. It resembles the texture of an orange peel and is popular because it effectively conceals scratches and minor blemishes, making it ideal for high-wear applications like automotive interior trim, instrument panels, and electronic enclosures. Haircell sheets often have the texture on one side and a smooth, unfinished surface on the back.
  • Smooth: ABS sheets with a smooth finish on one or both sides are also available. This finish is often chosen when a sleek, uniform appearance is desired, or when the sheet is intended to be painted or covered with vinyl adhesives.
  • Matte: A matte surface provides a low-sheen, non-reflective appearance.
  • Glossy: While ABS is naturally glossy due to its styrene content, a highly glossy finish
Click to expand...

Instead of trying to fabricate something out of ABS that does not have the correct pattern, why not just buy the ABS that has the correct crowsfoot/chickentrack grain pattern??
 
BRENT in 10-uh-C said:
Instead of trying to fabricate something out of ABS that does not have the correct pattern, why not just buy the ABS that has the correct crowsfoot/chickentrack grain pattern??
Click to expand...

I can see doing something - if you have nothing.

One of my "spare" (ahem) doors for the 82A cab was sheathed on the inside with sheet metal where the upholstery panel would have been. I suspect the reason to keep pine needles from collecting or to keep the buttons on bib overalls from catching on the door inner structure.

But I certainly wouldn't put a lot of work or finish into such a cover. Perhaps that is the intent?

It is, in the minds of many, still a truck.

Joe K
 
BRENT in 10-uh-C said:
Instead of trying to fabricate something out of ABS that does not have the correct pattern, why not just buy the ABS that has the correct crowsfoot/chickentrack grain pattern??
Click to expand...
That's why I mentioned it was available in different patterns.
I am replacing the cardboard sub-straight of my current fabric covered Coupe panels with ABS so I'll use the smooth side for the best adhesive contact.
 
ModelA29 said:
That's why I mentioned it was available in different patterns.
I am replacing the cardboard sub-straight of my current fabric covered Coupe panels with ABS so I'll use the smooth side for the best adhesive contact.
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Ok, but I understand you were just using some random pattern instead of the correct pattern.

I'm not sure ABS for upholstered trim panels is the perfect replacement but give it a whirl and let us know how they hold up.

Again, for kick panels, the ABS panels that AcoustiShield manufactures is very, very close to what the original panels looked like after they are painted.

Some may not know this but there are generally two grades of Panelboard available. There is 'water-resistant' and 'water-proof'. I use water-proof panels when we are sewing upholstery for vehicles in my shop. Also, we rarely use the 3M Super 77 adhesive as it will turn loose over time. Instead, use the Weldwood Landau & Trim adhesive.
 
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