Restoring Emeco Aluminum Chairs

These are classic chairs, characterized by their cool perforated vinyl seats. Unfortunately, you've gotta know where to look to find new upholstery and old stiff foam is tough to remove. I'll show you how.

Step 1 Set Up

You'll need:
Scissors, a sharpie, a screwdriver, pliers, a wrench, a bunch of rubber tipped clamps, a metal spackling tool, weights (dressmaker's will work),
a 2-3" paint brush, rags, some newspaper or a drop cloth (this gets messy), Barge cement, and Barge thinner and a ventilator is always a good idea when working with strong adhesives.
Purchase 24" x 24" x 1" Foam and head to your local Auto Upholstery supplier for a yard of perforated vinyl (headliner material).

Comments

[monkfinch]

Thanks for sharing. Here is another article about restoring aluminum GoodForm chairs with attractive results:

http://shipinsidebottle.com/uncategorized/aluminum-goodform-chair-restoration

[Phauxtoe]

 I am not a big fan of how the Fabric looks.
Is that the correct type of cloth?

[mariaric]

anyone know where to find missing parts for these--such as the armchair that I have that has little upholstered armrests -- of which I am missing one. Or how could I make a substitute? It would have to hold the shape fairly well and I'll cover it with foam and fabric just like on the seat . . .

[bsmif]

You might add Goodform to the title. Thats another company that made almost identical chairs that could be repaired the same way.
http://pastpresentfuture.net/archives/gf.html
I have 7 ( 3 goodform, 4 emeco) of these I have been meaning to upholster but I never could find the right fabric. These tips look excellent. Headliner upholstery...who knew?

[Prometheus]

A large piece of plywood or two and some c-clamps can make your press for the seat. If it's all metal with paint on it, take the time with a cupped wire brush on a portable drill and brush slightly excessively to remove the top few microns of steel, exposing fresh metal. Finish with a brass wire brush afterwards and the resultant finish will be so fine that you could use it as a mirror. Be sure to polish with a clean cloth to remove the oxides and excess metal before sitting in/painting/clearcoating it! This will take time, but if you want something that will actually strike conversation, give it a try. If you are unsure, try polishing an inconspicuous area and see for yourself. As a finishing touch, prior to upholstering, give it several coats of laquer clearcoat and cure it with a hair dryer or other heatgun. If you should choose to paint it, remove the old paint with heavy grit sandpaper prior to priming. Remeber several thin layers are stronger and better-looking that one heavy one.

[Jafafa Hots]

awww rats. I thought this would be about restoing the color. I have a bunch of really old ones, the kind that just has the molded butt-print in the aluminum, no padding, and they are stained and have paint etc. on them.

[karylnewman]

Have you tried wiping them down with a solvent like the Barger Thinner? That will remove the old paint.

[radiorental]

you could just put vinyl over the seat jafafa

[radiorental]

very nice, a tool you may want to consider building is a vacuum press. It will apply an even pressure over the entire surface of the parts you are glueing. I may or may not work well here with the foam but I'd guess you might find it useful for some of your other design work. Here's a version of the system I put together for board building
http://www.instructables.com/ex/i/F4051CF0BEE91028AADB001143E7E506/?ALLSTEPS

[karylnewman]

Thanks radiorental, very useful.