To class this shit up a bit, I replaced the temporary, haggard NB2 seats with black ones from a wrecked '05 lava MSM. The leather is nice and the contrasting top stitching coordinates well with my steering wheel. I think it was a nice score and will condition them soon to soften them up.
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BRGNA8 (10-23-2016),Greasemonkey2000 (10-26-2016),NCGreasemonkey (10-22-2016),RustRat (10-22-2016),tsingson (10-23-2016)
That is an intro folks!Originally Posted by kung fu jesus
Nice KFJ!
... Rick
For the thread on Noir click below
http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....e-light-Slowly
Nice indeed! I really like NB2 seats, they look really good and are comfy, but I personally hate the lack of support.
I purchased 14" wheels and tires. This is Anthony's set. 14x7 RPF1s, +28. 195/60 Falken Azenis 615k tires. Nice price and I missed lightness the 14" combo provides in steering and weight. I forgot how loud the Falkens are, but the extra sidewall also adds more comfort in day-to-day duties. The less aggressive offset also makes for nice freeway driving. I also love NAs on 14" wheels, aesthetically.
Last edited by kung fu jesus; 10-29-2016 at 02:21 PM.
Greasemonkey2000 (10-26-2016),HarryB (10-26-2016),JamieH (10-26-2016),Martin (10-26-2016),NCGreasemonkey (10-26-2016),Rogue (10-26-2016),RustRat (10-27-2016),tsingson (10-26-2016),ueru (10-28-2016)
The yellow dot on the tire is actually near the valve stem. I can't get a tire shop around here to care about that.
Answer: not a truck tire, not a fuck given...because Arkansas?
Martin (10-26-2016)
They look good Steven! Looks better on yours than mine. I did notice that my NB doesn't have quite the "pep" when I accelerate but I will eventually grab another set.
kung fu jesus (10-26-2016)
They do look awesome indeed, happy they ended up in the right hands, was sad to see them gone.
tsingson (10-26-2016)
The quick drive on them, the car feels lighter maybe more lively? The steering effort is noticeably less/lighter, which is rather nice just running errands. Smaller road imperfections are gobbled up by the thicker profile on the tires, also nice for this purpose. The car feels more slippy going around corner aggressively, which is also why I love the smaller wheels/tires. My 15s were by no means heavy (12-13#?) but the car feels a bit more relaxed.
Last edited by kung fu jesus; 10-26-2016 at 09:43 PM.
JamieH (10-26-2016),MiataQuest (10-26-2016),tsingson (10-26-2016)
The SE seats I gave to my buddy were leather and really pleasant. The leather was soft, and I know lighter colors can tend to be that way versus dark. It's the tanning process.
I wanted to clean and preserve my new (to me) MSM seats, so I bought some chemicals.
Been around furniture and upholstery most of my career and have had luck with Colour Lock products. I bought a small bottle of heavy cleaner and a medium tin of their elephant fat (which is really just 100% synthetic).
These are a little more labor intensive, but they usually work great. Leather is skin, so the goal here is to sort of nourish it and keep it healthy, prevent it from drying out and shrinking, plus it can stop some and even hide wear damage.
The cleaner works fast and very well. Being black leather, it's difficult to see dirt, oil, or grease on the hides. I use clean microfiber towels.
Working in the fat is sort of like massaging in butter onto a piece of meat. I wear gloves because the melt point of the fat is low and I don't want to smear it all over everything I touch. Merely the friction of my hands running over the grain starts to melt it. Annnd I just keep adding a little more at a time, working it in, working seam to seam, into the seams, the sides, etc. Make it nice and even, so the seats glisten like a Tongan flag bearer.
(Yeah, you like that shit, I know.)
It looked a lot like this:
Then I went over it with a heat gun in med-high. You can see the fat melt, the leather opens and starts pulling it in. I work fast, never letting the gun heat the leather too hot in one spot. Then I massage it all again to even the coating. I go out and repeat the heat gun/massage process as needed, looking for dry or blotchy spots that may need more fat. Then, let it sit. I'll probably let mine sit through until Sunday.
This treatment is already hiding some minor wear, and I can already feel it softening the leather when I go to check on it.
On Sunday I will use another microfiber cloth to wipe off the excess and clean up the area.
I am also doing the same treatment to one of my Eames loungers, one of my prized possessions.
Greasemonkey2000 (10-29-2016),NCGreasemonkey (10-28-2016),tsingson (10-28-2016)
Damn. Looks like the first quick turn will send your ass right into the door.
Here's a comparison on my lounge chair...
Arm with the fat on it:
After wiping the excess off:
The portion in the left is uncleaned, untreated. The right side is cleaned and treated, wiped off.
NCGreasemonkey (10-28-2016),tsingson (10-28-2016)
I know that's how it looks, but the fat excess is still working into the hides. The leather on the lounge is now deeper in color, the finish is more even, the feel is more supple, and because it's moisturized, the leather is grippier. It hasn't looked this good since I first brought it home from the factory.
NCGreasemonkey (10-28-2016),tsingson (10-28-2016)
Maybe I will look into some of that for the Expedition.
I completed the leather conditioning today. I like how it turned out! It is difficult to see any wear on the bolsters, the leather feels more pliable and giving, I can feel the contours of the foam far better now. I will take pics soon. I worked some excess on one on the towels into the steering wheel an shift gaitor. Those were pretty thirsty and pulled it in immediately.
Some of the added benefits are this treatment essentially waterproofs the leather as well as conditions it. This prevents mildew. Pretty good for a roadster. The smell of the fat is neutral, so no strong odors at all.
NCGreasemonkey (10-30-2016),tsingson (10-29-2016)
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