The Craftmans Shop > New from Old
JCB 803 Saga
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awemawson:
This revealed two VERY USEFUL bits of information.

Firstly - the missing lever was a fairly simple bent bit of 10 mm heavy wall tube that spring locates onto four odd shaped pegs (It's similar to but slightly narrower than the yellow one for the lower slider in the picture) I reckoned I could make one of those  :ddb:

Secondly - there was a label on the previously invisible side of the seat frame revealing the it is a KAB T1 seat  - KAB seats are still around so I put some feelers out
awemawson:
Looking at what materials I had to hand I found some 9.5 mm heavy walled steel tube - close enough I reckoned - so I rolled out the oxy-acetylene cylinders, drew some chalk lines on the welding bench and bent up an operating lever.

It got zinc primer and satin black paint as the JCB Yellow pot was sealed and it wasn't worth mucking up the spray gun (it doesn't brush very well)
awemawson:
So now that the seat slides back and forth, getting it in and out is a (relative) doddle.

Then the phone rang . . . YES seat squab and back covers, complete with foam inserts and fixing clips should be delivered later this week, and cost less than half what I'd been quoted for re-upholstering them  : :clap:

Only bit I need to sort out now is the raising and lowering mechanism. It's currently stuck solid, but when I dismantle the seat to fit the new upholstery and thus have a bare frame, I'm sure that can be sorted out.


(google is suggesting that this seat was fitted as the drivers seat in some FX4 London Taxi's)
awemawson:
I spent today wrestling with the new upholstery covers for the seat. (They arrived yesterday but we had house guests so had to wait)

So I pulled the seat out (easy now  :clap:) and started removing the raising and lowering mechanism. Although not visibly rusty it was stuck absolutely solid. It has a pair of pantograph arms that allow either the back, front, or both to rise up if you take your weight off the seat. They can then be locked in your chosen position.

(I've taken lots of pictures to help me get it back together !)
awemawson:
The pivots are all riveted joints, so not practical to dismantle. I must have spent a good hour thumping it, heating it, spraying it with Plus Gas. Eventually I got it to move but very stiffly. It's not a major issue as I didn't use it previously, but it would be nice to get it working properly.

Then to stripping off the old upholstery. The back and squab had ties running through slots in the foam to stop them 'bagging out'. The back is basically a cloth tube with a pair of steel rods in the hems that pull tightly around the foam and are secured with 'hog rings' The sqab it pulled around the foam then clipped to the frame.
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