Materials
listed here is what is commonly used when consumers make a decision to refresh
a paid for automobile to give it a second life. The reason Catalina Custom
does not recommend (and is not listed here) leather and Ultraleather HP
is the cost factor of the seats compared to the overall value of the automobile
concerned. These are usually automobiles that are commonly 8-15 years old
and are not classified as classics yet or collectors items, thus if one
choose to use leather or Ultraleather HP to reupholster the seats costing
$1500 and above, the investment in the seats is not in balance with the
value of the automobile. This is why listed on this page for complete seating
upholstery is vinyl's and cloths. To view the choices on leather and Ultraleather,
please visit the "Custom / Original Interior" page and click on
the materials link in the statement.
Catalina
Custom usually recommends materials for complete seating upholstery that
is called "stock items". These are materials that are continually
produced by various mills and our suppliers keep these items "in stock".
This way if an interior is built and something happens to a section of it
(seat, door panel, ect.) the material may be purchased again so an exact
match may be accomplished. (Exact match is a statement taken very seriously
at Catalina Custom and ultraviolet sun fade and wear has to be taken into
consideration in the saying "exact match".) Samples of materials
that are stock items can be viewed on a card or in a stack book. Detroit
Originals releases original automotive fabrics (with permission from the
auto manufacturers) to be sold as "specials". These samples is
usually viewed on "rings". There is good deals with good selections
of patterns to be seen here. The negative side of this is that once the
supplier has sold their yardage purchased, there are no guarantees this
material will be able to be attained in the future at the "special"
price or that it will be available period. If a consumer chooses to have
an interior built using a "special", Catalina Custom recommends
purchasing an extra 3 yds or so to store in case it is needed in the future
for repairs.
Sherpa
/ Shire - Solutions is a upholstery fabric built in a tweed pattern that
is frankly, second to none. While being a very comfortable cloth to sit
on, this material is really, really tough giving years of durability. Offered
in a wide variety of colors and combinations there of, a lot of quality
show interiors have been built using Sherpa / Shire over the years. (Examples
of interiors built with this fabric may be viewed in the Showcase Gallery.)
--- HOWERVER
--- If an automobile has leather seats in need of replacement, a viable
option is to use a polyurethane faux leather. This material has a very soft
hand, extremely durable and is not nearly as expensive as leather. More
information on this new type material may be viewed by going to the Complete
Custom / Original Interior page and clicking on the Materials link in
the Street Rod section. 
For further information on these materials, contact us.
Availability subject to change without notice