The rubber mats in the Volvo were looking a bit ratty after sixty years of abuse .
Yea I could order a new set from VP Autoparts , but where's the fun in that when Marden's discount has all I need for about twenty five dollars .
Got about eight square feet of nice soft black leather for twelve dollars and started tailoring.
Not bad for a first try .
Took a couple tries before I got it to fit right
A bit better the second time around
Another twelve dollars of carpet was easy enough to cut to shape but looked a bit plain
So I added some leather trim to spiff it up a bit
There that's a bit nicer
The knob was something I made out of black walnut about forty years ago for my first Beetle and somehow managed to hang on to it all these years . Changed out the nut to fit the Volvo gear stick and added the shift pattern badge I found in the spares box .
I glued the carpet to some rubber door mats to add some more body and weight to them.
Took the non functioning radio out and was lucky to find a cover plate in mint shape also in dad's junk pile .
Managed to repair the old radio but since I got used to not having one I will leave it out for now . Not much for music I care to listen to these days and no sense in ruining a nice drive listening to the sewage mainstream media passes off as news these days .
Even made a "Art Deco" tray out of an old bakers cooling rack and some varnished dowels to park the phone on .
Pearl approves .
You're Alive! I like what you accomplished in carpeting your Volvo. I have a 2000 Chevy PU that needs new vinyl flooring and Chevy wants two arms and part of a leg for a new mat... That carpeting is really snazzy! Better then the vinyl mat.
ReplyDeleteHey Kevin, yea I'm alive despite people's best efforts. Doing my best to stay out of the fray. The rubber mats are handy if its a daily driver and you are really beating on it. The Volvo is just a Sunday driver so the carpets suit it just fine. Marden's is a local institution here in Maine. A discount retailer that buys up salvaged goods from insurance companies or stores that go out of business. So you can usually find some really god deals. The leather was a great score for $12 and really took it up a notch. For your truck one option is to use those rubber backed commercial grade door mats. You know the kind with the ribbed carpeting you find at storefronts. Sometimes you can find those cheap and cut them up using your old truck mats as a pattern. handy too as they can handle the abuse and you can hose the mud and salt out of them with a garden hose in the spring.
Delete