Ecru leather touch up
#76
Intermediate
Thread Starter
http://theinteriorguyllc.com/fix-leather/
#78
Intermediate
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#79
Pole Position
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: New Jersey
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If I learned of nothing else from this forum this is more than enough.
After purchasing my used 03 SC430 I cleaned the seats with many of the products recommended on the detail section of the forum. The products were in fact so good that they uncovered stains on the seats from the previous owner that must have been painted over. Even more the drivers seat was starting to crack a bit and the leather on the drivers side door handle and the armrest were wearing down. Reading this and a few other posts gave me confidence to try this "repair". I bought the phantom white SEM and denatured alcohol, lightly masked areas on my interior and got to work. I must say this was very very very easy and made a huge difference in the appearance of the interior. One word of caution is that this is a spray paint- make sure you mask your car well when applying the paint.
Thanks too all who contributed to this post!!!
After purchasing my used 03 SC430 I cleaned the seats with many of the products recommended on the detail section of the forum. The products were in fact so good that they uncovered stains on the seats from the previous owner that must have been painted over. Even more the drivers seat was starting to crack a bit and the leather on the drivers side door handle and the armrest were wearing down. Reading this and a few other posts gave me confidence to try this "repair". I bought the phantom white SEM and denatured alcohol, lightly masked areas on my interior and got to work. I must say this was very very very easy and made a huge difference in the appearance of the interior. One word of caution is that this is a spray paint- make sure you mask your car well when applying the paint.
Thanks too all who contributed to this post!!!
#80
Lead Lap
iTrader: (5)
OK, This got the best of me and I got to work and ordered the SEM products and followed the above instructions which were VERY easy and this is the outcome!
Pictures before I started....
IN Process Pictures
Finished Product
Turned out Great!!! Thanks Guys For the info!!!!!!
Pictures before I started....
IN Process Pictures
Finished Product
Turned out Great!!! Thanks Guys For the info!!!!!!
#81
Looks good, farkas! Glad it worked out so well for you. It's an amazing product. In essence, if you can spray, you can do it. And if it ever needs a touch up, you just spray it some more.
I think the reason it's so successful for everyone is because the color match is so perfect. The match is so dead on, there's really no way to mess it up, at least for the Ecru.
I'd be interested in hearing from the non-Ecru crowd, especially those with the Saddle and Camel interiors.
I think the reason it's so successful for everyone is because the color match is so perfect. The match is so dead on, there's really no way to mess it up, at least for the Ecru.
I'd be interested in hearing from the non-Ecru crowd, especially those with the Saddle and Camel interiors.
#82
Driver School Candidate
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looks fantastic! i have the saddle interior. i bought the camel sem paint 'cause it looked like it matched perfectly....nope! too light =( so i'm going to try saddle and see how that goes, haha
#83
Please let us know what happens with the Saddle Tan.
Here's hoping.
I'm starting to hate you Ecru leather owners.
I have the BESTEST interior color, and the driver's seat area is in dire need of restoration after 8.5 years and lots of exposure to the Texas sun.
I have a couple of seam breaks as well, so I may need a professional.
#84
Driver School Candidate
Join Date: Feb 2007
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I just "painted" the front seats in my wifes 04 Accord Coupe. The seats are a parchment color. We ordered a color coat chip card from SEM. Based on this chart, I ordered 15823 LT. Parchment.
I first sanded with 600 Wet/Dry a little and cleaned with denatured alcohol. I then sprayed on "Viny Prep" and let dry.
I then cleaned them again with alcohol. After masking off very carefully, I painted the top portion of the bottom seat and the center portion of the seat backs(I left the side portion of the seats the original color because after spraying on a test strip, I knew I was going to have a "Two Tone" seat).
It took me almost an hour to mask off everything. I masked off at the stiching seam that attaches the sides to the seat bottom and back.
The end result was quite pleasing. It looks almost like a custom ordered two tone seat. The painted portion is quite a bit lighter than the rest but I have seen some high end sports cars with similar interiors. My wife likes it so that is really all I care about.
After painting, I realize I should have ordered 15863 LT. Neutral which is a shade or two darker and is closer to the stock seat color. I told her I could order the darker color and repaint but she said "No, I like the way they look now". Good News...
Very Easy to do this guys. As mentioned here, preparation is the key to any good dye/paint job. It blows people away when you tell them and then show them you painted your leather seats!
I have always treated leather seats with Lexol Leather Conditioner. It is one of the best leather conditioners out there. I have been told it is because it uses natural animal oils to replenish the oils that dry out in seats. I could never figure out how the "conditioner" got through the top coat of dye/paint to the actual leather.
Now, after seeing this PAINT that I used to color the seats, I am Very Skeptical that the leather conditoners doing anything at all to the actual leather under the paint. Unless the paint is porous (which it does not look like it is) anything I put on this seat is only affecting the top of the paint.
I equate this to the orange oil that is popular for fine wood furniture. It claims to help the drying out wood and "feed" it somehow. Maybe if it is unfinished this may be of some value but if it has any type of polyurethane finish on it, you are just putting oil on top of plastic. It does not penetrate the poly to get to the actual wood.
I have asked this question before but no one can give me a good answer so I just keep on using Lexol because it is what I have always used and it seems to make the seats seem somewhat better but it may just be my imagination. What do you guys think?
(Not trying to hijack this thread but it seemed like a good place to ask this question).
Blessings,
Brian
P.S. The ECRU seat guys have it made because of the near perfect seat color
match that SEM offers.
I first sanded with 600 Wet/Dry a little and cleaned with denatured alcohol. I then sprayed on "Viny Prep" and let dry.
I then cleaned them again with alcohol. After masking off very carefully, I painted the top portion of the bottom seat and the center portion of the seat backs(I left the side portion of the seats the original color because after spraying on a test strip, I knew I was going to have a "Two Tone" seat).
It took me almost an hour to mask off everything. I masked off at the stiching seam that attaches the sides to the seat bottom and back.
The end result was quite pleasing. It looks almost like a custom ordered two tone seat. The painted portion is quite a bit lighter than the rest but I have seen some high end sports cars with similar interiors. My wife likes it so that is really all I care about.
After painting, I realize I should have ordered 15863 LT. Neutral which is a shade or two darker and is closer to the stock seat color. I told her I could order the darker color and repaint but she said "No, I like the way they look now". Good News...
Very Easy to do this guys. As mentioned here, preparation is the key to any good dye/paint job. It blows people away when you tell them and then show them you painted your leather seats!
I have always treated leather seats with Lexol Leather Conditioner. It is one of the best leather conditioners out there. I have been told it is because it uses natural animal oils to replenish the oils that dry out in seats. I could never figure out how the "conditioner" got through the top coat of dye/paint to the actual leather.
Now, after seeing this PAINT that I used to color the seats, I am Very Skeptical that the leather conditoners doing anything at all to the actual leather under the paint. Unless the paint is porous (which it does not look like it is) anything I put on this seat is only affecting the top of the paint.
I equate this to the orange oil that is popular for fine wood furniture. It claims to help the drying out wood and "feed" it somehow. Maybe if it is unfinished this may be of some value but if it has any type of polyurethane finish on it, you are just putting oil on top of plastic. It does not penetrate the poly to get to the actual wood.
I have asked this question before but no one can give me a good answer so I just keep on using Lexol because it is what I have always used and it seems to make the seats seem somewhat better but it may just be my imagination. What do you guys think?
(Not trying to hijack this thread but it seemed like a good place to ask this question).
Blessings,
Brian
P.S. The ECRU seat guys have it made because of the near perfect seat color
match that SEM offers.
#85
SO I have the ecru leather, used the SEM spray paint to touch up. It looks perfect.... for a few weeks, then inevitably it begins to flake off, especially the armrest. So then i'm stuck respraying it again. Anyone use any kind of sealant or top coat to make sure it doesnt flake off?
#89
Sanding?
Just to see what would happen,I tried vinylex, a lexol product on my ecru leather.I didn't spray on but applied a small amount to my cleaning cloth and rubbed the cracks in the seat.To my surprise, not only did it clean the leather but the cracks have all but vanished.I think before painting or sanding,I would give that a try,good luck.