Plz Give Me Pointers on HowTo Install A Gripper Seat Cover!!

[TheGDog]

Ok... so now I have a Gripper Seat cover for my '96 K5.  (I gotta do somethin' ta fight-off boredom whilst I'm healing)

I remember reading on another thread that first letting the seat cover sit in the sun for a bit and get nice and hot was supposed to be very helpful.

I've already got a pnuematic 18 gauge brad nailer/stapler gun ready for the task. (Already tested it on 3/4" Birch cabinet-grade plywood, work no problem)  Approximately what PSI should I pump it up to before beginning to shoot staples into that plastic of the seat bottom?

AND WHAT I THINK IS THE MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION...

I wanna make sure I get this right and have no wrinkles in the seat cover when I'm done... so... what should the order be for which part I staple down first?, second?, third?...etc.

I'm pretty sure I'd just be able to figure it out anyway... but why re-invent the wheel... y'know!?

I appreciate any replies as I've slated tomorrow for completing this task, and also installing some nice new IMS foot pegs.  and I also gotta to the "Triple-Clamp Trick" since I haven't done anything to the bike since the crash... other than replace the front fender.

Thanks Guys.

[KX500freak]

hey Gdog, i did some seats myself over the years.
best way for me was to begin at the sides of the seat.
working my way to the rear and front,and when you arrived there.
you can pull the cover around ,while the gun spits out staples
this is very important @ the front end cause that area is bend 
by pulling hard you flatten it out a little .
and after stapling the seat comes back to its normal shape ,
and the cover sits right over the seat with no foldings or rimples .

good luck !! it generally costs me 3 hours to do this job ,
and let me tell you it ain,t fun for your fingers.

[BDI]

I start by hand fitting the cover and putting three staples in the front and rear of the seat to stretch it long ways. You do not want to stretch the cover to tight from front to back because it will pull the nose of the  seat up and it will not sit right on the gas tank. On the other hand if you do not stretch it from front to back first it makes it really hard if not impossible to get the wrinkles out of the low point of the seat. Once you have it stapled from front to back then you can stretch and staple it on the sides, start in the low point at the bottom of the nose this is where you are going to make the difference between wrinkles and no wrinkles. Once you have it stapled in four points front to back and side to side you can start stapling the cover from the middle to the back and from the middle to the front. I like to space my staples out a little and keep stretching the cover as I go until I'm happy with the fit then I go back and fill in the spaces I left with more staples to give the cover strength. A hair dryer works great for keeping the cover warm and don't be afraid to pull staples out if you are not happy with how it's going That's why you should fit the cover with a minimal amount of staples. Also don't use to long of staples I use 1/4 inch staples max.
 
       P.S. An uphostery stapler works best if you can get your hands on one. They have a snout on them that lets you get in to the tight spots.

[TheGDog]

FARVIKNUGEN!!!!!  Dang it... I've got wrinkles at the juncture point... oh well.. they're staying.... I decided at a certain point not to try harder anymore because my finger strength at his one spot was ripping the two pieces apart at this one seam that is has for the flap that goes on the underside near the knee area.

Once or twice I removed some staples in order to redo better.

I'm pissed as hell about the wrinkles being there... but you don't see it when I'm seated on the bike.  SIGH.... (DANG IT!)

NExt one I do it'll look better with the experience I learned here.  Unfortunately when I started this morning... there had not yet been any responses for me to read... oh well..... what can ya do.  I just read the instructions on the box... and also asked the dudes at the Cycle parts store and they had good advice.

I think the trick will be to bend the front of the seat slightly in a backwards direction to make it easier to pull the sides in tighter at the "bend" area.

Anyhoo.... at least I now I'll have some gription on my butt without needing the Permatex Spray Adhesive (which actually works darn good BTW)

....
...OH...
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And I found out something important today.. I scheduled today to perform the "Triple Clamp Trick" since I hadn't been able to straighten out the front end since the crash. 

Now I think I know why I was occasionally having issue with the front-end deflecting off of rocks in rocky sections.  The dang Triple-Clamp Bolts seemed WAY TOO TIGHT.

When working with them... I made sure to use a shorty socket wrench so that I don't have all that crazy leverage giving me the possibility of "Effing it up".  I've got pretty good finger strength... so limiting my mechinical advantage with shorty levers helps prevent snapped-off bolts.

But when I went to remove some of the bolts... I couldn't do it with the shorty socket wrench... I had to resort to a standard sized one and some significant force/pressure to break the bolts free initially.

There's no doubt in my mind that THIS greatly contributed to the deflection I experienced in rocky sections... there's NO DOUBT that there was more than likely a significant bit of stiction occurring from this previous ovver-tightening by previous owner or their MC shop.

Also... just to be on the safe side.. for now... I've adjust the compression one click softer (to begin with).

BTW.. compression adjust is the CENTER one.. RIGHT?  the OTHER one at top of fork.. is that REBOUND? Or is REBOUND at the bottom of the fork like they normally are?

[BDI]

That sucks don't feel bad not to many people can put a seat cover on. A lot of upholstery shops will even screw them up for you. I did my first seat cover when I was a little kid, my Mom taught me all I know about upholstery, My Mom even helped me lace my first bicycle wheel when I was twelve years old. I make my own seat covers from scratch some times if no one offers what I want. Even with all of my experience I still wined up cussing half the time. It really has a lot to do with the quality of the cover, If you were to buy a stock seat cover it will practically put itself on but your average aftermarket cover takes an act of god to make it fit. I think alot of the aftermarket companies think becouse the fabric stretches they don't even need to try and make it fit right.

[KXcam22]

Gdog,
  I went through the same thing and ended up taking it to an upholstery shop.  It took them 2 tries. First time I have not been able to put on a seat cover. Cam.

[TheGDog]

Ok.. well thanks for the replies... I guess if anything... it helps me to realize that I'm not the lame-o that I feel like for not getting it right. (Software engineer... perfectionist... go figure.. hehe!)

The IMS Pro series pegs were a little tricky to get on on the rear brake side... but once my minds eye was able to spot the sequence of event for putting it on, it wasn't that bad.

Boy these new pegs are freakin NICE! UGH... can't wait to give'em a field test. (tic-toc.. tic-toc... tic-toc)

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The area of wrinklage truthly ain't that bad... and honestly the gripper material is light-years better than the stocker as far as stiction with your legs... something you definitely need on a K5!

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Now all I need are protective thick graphics for the radiator wings + tank + side panels... and maybe new rear fender (previous owner has a bit of scratches on it) and we should be ready to lokk at fast as we ride.. (Ooooh but yes!)