Need new leather interior for my 63 Lincoln

[Stuart M. Cohen]

So it's time for me to re do the interior leather on the 63. Did a search, and over 3,600 results came up. Too lazy to read through all them. So, which supplier would have the seats and door panels?

Thanks!

[mge825y]

Jim Wallace - Leather Restorations
60sLincolns@gmail.com
(727) 525-5523

[LithiumCobalt]

If you want correct replacements - Jim Wallace is the guy to go to.

[mge825y]

Jim made my carpets, trunk liner and convertible top. I had a chance to visit Jim at his shop last September. That’s Jim sewing the finishing touches on my top. That’s him on the right and me on the left

[jtheye]

I have absolutely no clue who to go too and with how I did my interior the Purists would tell you "Don't listen to him". On the other hand I am really good at jumping on the bandwagon so I will say "Call Jim Wallace". Jim is also no relation to William Wallace so when you call do NOT scream "FREEEEEEDOOOOM" in his ear when he answers.

[Mike]

Have you checked out local places? If you're not starting from scratch and theres something to match there are a lot of good upholstery people around who are capable of doing that.

[mge825y]

Since we know that Stuart has a show car, I would imagine he wants "The Right Stuff" for it. If you want The Right Stuff for your Lincoln interior, you go to Jim.

[Stuart M. Cohen]

Yeah, I have a local guy that can install it and need to figure out if I want to drive the car down and leave it with him to do the work or just buy the stuff and have it installed locally.

And yes, I want "the right stuff".

[Mike]

Since we know that Stuart has a show car, I would imagine he wants "The Right Stuff" for it. If you want The Right Stuff for your Lincoln interior, you go to Jim.

I was putting it out there as another option. If there's nothing existing to go by Jim would be my choice. But if there is some areas have local people who do show quality work.

[papawayne]

We had a professional here in Maine who I think called herself lucy lefty, who did fine work, but she had some other troubles beyond cars and I don't know what became of her. I'll ask around. She was the sort who could work magic with just the hides. Wayne

[TonyC]

One thing I learned in my my own investigations is that, where leather is concerned, most upholstery shops can't help. I mean, yes, they can install it, but they cannot get it; vinyl is the only option they have (besides all the non-leather options, which for Frankenstein are not options). That was why I had to reach out wherever I could to find somebody who would make leather skins for Frankenstein in green leather. I found one source in 2017, and one of the sample colors he showed me was an exact match to Frankenstein's green leather...but making the arrangements became nightmarish. The original owner of the upholstery business died after I submitted my order; so then I had to wait for the new owners of the business to jump through whatever legal hoops they had to in order to complete my order, which had already been paid for. It took months, but I finally got something to use. It is less than I had hoped for: The shade of green does not exactly match my original nor the green sampler the original owner showed me (which was a match to my upholstery), and the stitch detailing missed the horizontal patch just above the seatback center. When it goes in, I know it won't look exactly right...but, it is leather, not vinyl; and the cut of the skin looks to be right to slip onto the seats. After several months and about $1,700, I decided it's better than nothing; certainly better than having couch throws being the only thing between my bony ass and the seat springs. Who knows, when I finally do find a good upholsterer who can do the job, maybe they can conjure up a way to stain the leather to a slightly darker shade to match the original...? If not, well, as long as they can repair broken seat springs and replace the foam-rubber cushioning correctly, that will be an improvement to my current situation.

---Tony

[papawayne]

Didn't mean to imply that she got the hides. You had to bring them to her. I still haven't checked with my beer drinking buddies to see if she's still around. Wayne

[Mike]

It depends on the upholstery place it's a question you have to ask about the material. Some are good at sourcing it while others only go to one supplier and don't have the resources.
The shop i use recently changed hands and I think they are now out of it but they had no problem matching leather or any other material. The last thing I had done there was a vinyl roof and they did have a problem matching the vinyl pattern but got the exact match to color and that's what bothered me more. They also matched the same layout of seams which was my second concern.

[LithiumCobalt]

One thing to keep in mind is that I don't think anyone else sells the fully assembled correct metallic seat covers other than Jim Wallace. If you want spot-on correct, he's pretty much the only choice that I am aware of if you want a ready-to-install product. You could always order the correct material from SMS Auto Fabrics (I believe they have the metallic leather), wait a year to get it and then have someone sew them up and install for you. Personally, I'd rather pay Jim. He's done so many of these interiors that it's commonplace for him to produce a show quality set.

[Stuart M. Cohen]

Had a nice conversation with Jim and ordered everything. Will take 6 months, but that's OK; I'm not in a rush. My local guy is gonna start with the Packard.