DIY leather arm rests

Beautiful job, that's exactly what i'm looking for

 

I am also wondering the same thing. Yesterday was my girlfriends 21st birthday so we all went out with friends and of course she was drinking alot. While on the drive home at 3 in the morning she says I should pull over cause shes not feeling good, so I do, we wait a minute or two, and then she says she is fine, so we continue driving. We get all the way to her house, pull in the driveway, and then she is sitting there and makes a mad dash for the door to open it but doesnt do it in time and THROWS UP all over the fabric arm rest. Got a little bit on the window, and the door panel, but seriously it was like she was aming for the fabric because it was covered with puke. So I wiped it off right there, poured water all over it so it would be diluted, wiped it off the best i could, then booked it home so I could clean it off properly. I used warm water and dish washing soap with a toothbrush to scrub the cloth, then a wet towel to clean it, then a dry towel to soak up as much water as i could. Then i used some foamy carpet cleaner stuff and the tooth brush again, cleaned that up with water and towel, dried it again. Then soaked it with odoban for about 5 minutes, and dried it by dabbing a towel over the cloth. It doesnt look like its stained any, but I more worried that the odor will not come out.

I was thinking about doing this mod eventually, but after last night I may end up doing it sooner then planned. I got my wet okole seat covers, and I am thinking about buying a sheet of neopren from them to do my armrests now. Should I do them in neopren or leather? What would be the costs of the two to do a double cab, and finally a bump to tacogator's question, how are those armrests holding up after all that time??

 

The neoprene is about 60 bones for a sheet of 50' by 80' or something, don't hold me to that its been a while. Just call and ask i believe they will sell it to you in two different sizes (full sheet and half sheet). only problem that i have had is the adhesive doesn't stick to it that well. I worked this thread exactly how it was instructed but the neoprene just might not hold that well. Any suggestions?

 

has anyone doen this live near nj,i am not capable of doing this on my own, so assintance would be welcomed. if nto, i may just have to mess it up myself and "customize" it.

Great job though,

 

I did the mod, used Locktite spray and soon as the Florida heat kicked in, major Fail. I took the inserts back out, clean off the spray adhesive and took to an Upholstery shop. They said first of all, the synthetic leather used was not the best choice, that you have to make sure to clean the plastic part with either Zylene of Denatured Alcohol (can't remember which exact one they recommended and/or used) to remove any existing oils, and a contact cement type glue is best. Removing the oils is key b/c when the heat picks up, the plastic will release the oils and cause the adhesive to release. I am sure others can agree or correct me on the information, but all I know is that they only charged me $18 per door including real leather (i did the removal and re-installation), and it has been 3 months - 2 of which have provide 100+ degree temps inside the cab during the day - AND they are still holding on perfect after the described method. Again, I am sure I contributed to the original FAIL, but also the extra steps outlined by the upholstery shop can not hurt. Good luck to all.

 

Thanks for the info tacogator. I ended up doing my doors today. I went to joanns and bought some black vinyl that looks like leather, it was normally 35 bucks for a yard, but they had it on sale for 50% off, and I got a can of all purpose adhesive for 50% off also. I walked out of there only paying 22 bucks which was good in my opinion. I came home and did all the doors, took me a while, but I think they turned out great, now I will just see if they hold up over time. If they dont then I will just bring them to a upholstery shop like you did and have them do mine in leather.

 

nice job looks great

 

I need to get off my ass & do this so badly! I can't stand that damn cloth on there.

 

Looks great and I hope yours do in fact hold up better than mine.

 

Sweet man! Awesome mod.

 

Where can buy the piece of leather.?

 

Your local fabric store...

 

Gorgeous! Damn good idea! Repped!

 

any body knows where I can buy close to LOS ANGELES CA

 

Look up Tandy Leather. There are several in your area I believe. You will need about two square feet. I went with some fairly heavy leather as the real thin stuff just didn't feel right, I think mine is about a 6oz.

 

what 's the silver points

 

They are conchos that you can pick up at the leather store, they just have a stud on the back that you can screw into. I wanted something different. It looked really plain so I figured I would dress it up. I also took a thick foam floor mat that my wife had and used it as cusion to add a little padding. If you are going to do this mod I suggest using rubber cement. The 3M works but the rubber cement holds better and if you screw up or change your mind it just rubs off.

 

what do U think of this? $1.49 sq ft. is this the stuff to use? http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/home/home.aspx?navlocation=top

 

Good stuff... another one I will have to try!!!

 

Thankyou, Thankyou. My arm rests on my truck look like someone rubbed their sweaty ass all over it. I had my doors off this weekend looking at how to install my speakers, and noticed the damn melted tabs on the armrest. I thought well there goes replacing the arm rests. Now Im heading to the upholstery shop Kuddos.