Norton Jubilee 250 Restoration: Jubilee Seat Recover

Having fixed the pan, bought the new foam and returned the ill-fitting cover received from Ebay I ordered a new cover from the owners club. I had to wait a while for this but when it came it was a much better fit- in particular the inner flap was much deeper towards the rear of the seat allowing it to fit over the pan sides which are deeper at that point. Before I fitted the cover I inserted the new seat rubbers into the new mounts I had made at the front and also put two new rubber buttons into the button mount pads on the base. Silicone spray helps when fitting these parts.

Seat pan rubber components installed.

I then checked that the pan fitted the bike, Its no use fitting the cover if any more welding might be required! Luckily with minimum adjustment it fitted well. Note metal of pan doesn't contact the tank.

Well... this is how I fitted the cover- and I'm pleased with the result but bear in mind I'm not a trimmer so this might well not be the "right" way at all. Firstly I laid the cover on a soft pad to avoid scratching it, then I fitted the foam and pan on top and pulled the cover around roughly - you can see the wider side panel in the picture and how it now covers the pan sides. It is worth while spending time here to make sure that its positioned evenly around the seat.

Seat cover roughly in position

I used these clips from Woolies, sold in packs of 10 I needed about 25 to fit the cover.

I then stretched to cover to align the white beading with the bottom of the seat pan. Note that the inner flap folds over the metal seat edge, the white beading is effectively "hanging" and covers the clips. This design avoids the use of beading to edge the seat which would be difficult for this one owing to the pan design at the rear. Its hard to stretch both sides at once so I secured the left side with a clip as above but pushed on only finger tight so that I could reposition it if necessary. I could then stretch the seat cover to align the white beading on the other side.

Securing one side first with a finger tight clip, not that the inner flap only is secured, the white beading is free.

Stretching the fabric to align the beading on the other side

I then fitted the second clip by hand pressure- checked alignment both sides and then secured the clips on both sides by hammering them down. Fold the white beading flap out of the way while you do that. I then stretched the cover into place- aligning the beading with the seat edge around the back. I secured the rear of the pan first with a clip each side of the join in the fabric at the back, and then pulled it over the horizontal strengthening panels at the rear of the seat- again securing with clips.

Clips at rear of pan

I Continued to stretch the seat cover into position adding clips along the sides until I got to the front where the seat cover projects over the pan as shown. Make sure that the flap fits down well beside the rubber seat bush holders- if necessary cut it so that it fits smoothly.

Front of seat

Folding the front section

I folded the front overlap around the seat edge - it was bit bulky so I removed some of the flap (not the front section with beading which I didn't cut at all) so that the material would fold more neatly.

Once it folded nicely I secured the front of the seat using a clip on the vertical edge of the seat pan.

Clip on vertical side

I repeated the process on the other side before securing the excess flap material around the seat with adhesive.

This is the glue I used (Vitrex), you spray it on both surfaces to be stuck, allow time for it to dry and go tacky and then stretch and press the surfaces together. I peeled up the fabric below the clips and sprayed the inside of the fabric and the metal seat pan with the glue. It is essential that you wait for it to dry on both surfaces- do not be impatient. I already knew this but even so I still ended up trying to stick them too soon- so give it the time. The can says 2 min but I'd say at least 5 and maybe longer.
Also- be warned! The glue is really sticky and will reduce your hands to useless claws! Keep the white spirit handy!

Peel up fabric and spray underside and metal below

Ease the fabric down onto the glued metal and stretch it neatly into place. You will need to cut slots so that it fits around the the button supports on the pan base. Fit and stick the fabric under the strengthening sections at the rear. Glue all sections of the fold at the front- note this is a multilayered gluing process which proved a bit too much for the glue's instant grab. Its probable that a more confident fitter would have cut the front flaps more accurately and got a better fit. I didn't want to risk making any holes in the cover so I cut the very least off that I could. To help the bond form I clamped both sides and left them for 24 hours.

Clamping the front folded section into place so that the glue can bind. Note foam projecting at front of pan.

Note that having fitted the cover over most of the seat, the foam projects about an inch over the front of the metal. I'm not altogether sure whether this is a problem with the size of the new metal I welded in or if (as seems more likely) it allows the foam to fit closely against the tank without scratching it.

The final step was to glue the underside of the front flap and pull that tightly across the front of the foam and the metal base, pressing to secure it. Finally I placed the seat back on the bike (its not fitted- just resting there) for all the glue to set properly, clamps in place.