# recumbent seat material



## stuee147 (11 Mar 2014)

hi all 
well iv just ordered the metal for my homemade recumbent trike should be hear by the weekend 

anyway that now means i have to make some final desiccations the main one being the seat i have a few designs in mind one of which is a frame with a mesh type material stretched over the subframe the question is can anyone tell me where to get this type of material i can cut and stitch it so that's no problem i just don't know what type of material it is or where to get it from so any help will be very helpful. 

the other couple of ideas i have had involve foam and im looking at motorbike seat material that should be tough enough lol 

stuee


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## Ern1e (11 Mar 2014)

Hi stuee I did once get some Hi Viz mesh stuff from a stall on our local market, and the only other thing I can tink of is have you any local fabric suppliers near you ? My other half uses a company called Ambassador Textiles in Oldham and I have a telephone number for these if you would like it they may be able to help you further,if you would like me to send this on please let me know.


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## stuee147 (12 Mar 2014)

thanks Ern1e there is a big fabric place in town ill have to go have a look up there, 
i was just wondering if there was some sort of specific type or thing to look for iv seen a lot of fabrics and mesh material but im never sure if it would be strong enough to hold a person day after day and in all weathers ect. i have heard of folk using trampoline mesh that sounds perfect to me the only problem is i dont want to spend a fortune on 3m x 3m when i only need 1m x 400mm, think ill have to sneak next door one night with my scissors im sure they wont notice if theres a bit missing from there trampoline


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## Ern1e (12 Mar 2014)

stuee147 said:


> thanks Ern1e there is a big fabric place in town ill have to go have a look up there,
> i was just wondering if there was some sort of specific type or thing to look for iv seen a lot of fabrics and mesh material but im never sure if it would be strong enough to hold a person day after day and in all weathers ect. i have heard of folk using trampoline mesh that sounds perfect to me the only problem is i dont want to spend a fortune on 3m x 3m when i only need 1m x 400mm, think ill have to sneak next door one night with my scissors im sure they wont notice if theres a bit missing from there trampoline


 Now that may not be just as daft an idea if you could find a battered example and ask for a chunk of the side netting and my other half (sorry team mate) says make sure you use some proper cotton to sew it up with ! after all your a**se will be riding on it lol.


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## stuee147 (12 Mar 2014)

yea i have some kevlar thread with a 150lb breaking strain or some 50lb breaking strain cotton thread i got last year for a couple of hammocks and camping stuff i was making as a project so im not worried about the seams as i know i can make them more than strong enough. its just the fabric or mesh that i use im not sure on. haveing said that i just got a brain wave i could use the fabric off one of my hammocks it will be strong enough to take the weight, only draw back is its waterproof material so i could end up with a bit of a soggy rear. 

iv been looking for an old trampoline on gumtree but not found any yet as i don't want to spend to much although i could probably find some use or other for the rest of the frame and material of a trampoline ill have to have a think what else i want to make lol


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## Ern1e (13 Mar 2014)

She says she would use the kevlar thread not much chance of it rotting lol.The hammock fabric also sound fine but the soggy bot don't ! I willkeep my eyes open around here just in case something comes up on this thing we have called Free Cycle ok it's nothing todo with cycling but RE cycling,you stick stuff you don't need anymore and give it away free or you can post a wanted then all you need do is collect it you will most likely have one in your area perhaps ! the main rule seems to be you do not resell anything.


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## stuee147 (13 Mar 2014)

yea iv used that free cycle site before when i lived in England but iv been in Scotland now for about 7 years and the free cycle dosent seem to have taken off that well round here there is very few people on it gumtree is the site up here lol i could say something about the Scottish being to tight to *FREE* cycle anything but i live here so best not lol 
i have plenty of strong 2" webbing i have been toying with the idea of weaving a seat out of that my only concern is it might cut in a bit around the shoulders espeshely on a hot day when im in a thin shirt or t shirt or god forbid topless  lol 
i think i will probably end up making the frame and then making 10 or 15 different covers and try them out one by one then ill end up with loads of seats for different weathers and different types of ride lol


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## Scoosh (13 Mar 2014)

Slightly OT - but Freecycle up here is known as Freegle - for various reasons.


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## Ern1e (13 Mar 2014)

Scoosh said:


> Slightly OT - but Freecycle up here is known as Freegle - for various reasons.


 Thankyou @Scoosh I do keep forgeting they changed the name to that it is still quite a good resource though !


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## stuee147 (13 Mar 2014)

Scoosh said:


> Slightly OT - but Freecycle up here is known as Freegle - for various reasons.



ill have a look at that thanks scoosh


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## Ern1e (13 Mar 2014)

stuee147 said:


> yea iv used that free cycle site before when i lived in England but iv been in Scotland now for about 7 years and the free cycle dosent seem to have taken off that well round here there is very few people on it gumtree is the site up here lol i could say something about the Scottish being to tight to *FREE* cycle anything but i live here so best not lol
> i have plenty of strong 2" webbing i have been toying with the idea of weaving a seat out of that my only concern is it might cut in a bit around the shoulders espeshely on a hot day when im in a thin shirt or t shirt or god forbid topless  lol
> i think i will probably end up making the frame and then making 10 or 15 different covers and try them out one by one then ill end up with loads of seats for different weathers and different types of ride lol


 You could always sew a piece of the hammock fabric across the shoulder area over the woven webbing I think that would work out ok and would also be extra strong.


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## stuee147 (13 Mar 2014)

Ern1e said:


> You could always sew a piece of the hammock fabric across the shoulder area over the woven webbing I think that would work out ok and would also be extra strong.



good idea give that man a cigar i could do the back part of the seat in the hammock fabric its soft even on bare skin and strong then use webbing for the seat part that should stop any annoying puddles forming in the seat hmmmmmmm i think we may be onto a winner here.....

i did see a picture on the internet that had a recumbent seat made out of what looked like wooden beads like the seat covers for a car i would think that its not just a car seat cover though lol it did look good and i bet its quite comfy my concern would be sliding off as you go round a corner i had a car once that had one of them seat covers in and it was good but if you wear the wrong type of trousers it was like sitting on a load of ball bearings you just slid side to side. could be good as an april fools joke on someone lol


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## fixedfixer (14 Mar 2014)

Try Pennine Outdoor for trampoline mesh. 1 metre will cover two seats of the recycled recumbent style. Stitch with heavy fishing line.


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## stuee147 (14 Mar 2014)

fixedfixer said:


> Try Pennine Outdoor for trampoline mesh. 1 metre will cover two seats of the recycled recumbent style. Stitch with heavy fishing line.



thanks for that iv just had a look at there site and they have everything i could need and a lot of stuff that i dont but ill probably buy just so i have it if i do need it lol

i was jjust looking at the deckchair fabric i could colour code my seat to match the frame cool


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## fixedfixer (14 Mar 2014)

Google recycled recumbents. I used his instructions. Like the idea of bright deck hair stuff. Mine is just plain old black.


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## Ern1e (14 Mar 2014)

It looks like you have not got this problem sorted @stuee147 and yes I have also taken a look at the Pennine outdoor site @fixedfixer so thats also a thanks from me.


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## stuee147 (14 Mar 2014)

iv noticed on most of the recumbent seats its just plain black whether its a mesh seat or a foam padded seat they all seem to be black, and id like to make itr stand out a bit more with some colour, the trike im building is going to be Massey Ferguson tractor paint its easy to apply and i think its a great colour i did one of my old landrovers in it, and iv found brakes and gear and brake cable to match so a nice matching seat will make it stand out a bit more


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## fixedfixer (15 Mar 2014)

Ha, whatever colour you paint it a recumbent will stand out


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## fixedfixer (15 Mar 2014)

Here you go. Pennine Outdoor fabric on home made frame. comfy and cool.


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