1931 190 A Victoria Leatherback

[Leonard]

I am in the process of restoring A 1931 Victoria Leatherback and I do not have the front seat frames. Where can I find info on what the proper seats should be for this car and where could I possibly find them?

[Bob Bidonde]

Hi Leonard,
I can help you if you send me your email address. Are you a member of the International Victoria Association?

[Leonard]

Hi Bob
I have the application form for membership to the International Victoria Association and I will be mailing it tomorrow.

[Leonard]

Sorry
My email address is [email protected]
Thanks
Leonard Lane

[modelamodela]

A few years ago, there was a detailed article regarding the front seats. Contact the A400 group to see if you can obtain a copy of that article. It will enlighten you about the resources and parts you need.
Contact: [email protected]

[Mike V. Florida]

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Originally Posted by Leonard

Hi Bob
I have the application form for membership to the International Victoria Association and I will be mailing it tomorrow.

I recommend the purchase of the entire set of back issues of the news letter.

[cartrader01]

the 2 door delux is the same seats

[Mike V. Florida]

The Victoria has two different styles of front seats depending on when it was built. There are early and late seats.

[Brian SATX]

The Tudor seats are not the same.

[Bob Bidonde]

The Leather-Back and early Steel-Back 190A's have front seats that mount onto rods. These seats are not the same as those in the 400A and the Deluxe Tudor.

Steel-Back 190A's built from about mid 1931 to the end of production have a driver's side front seat that adjusts via a ratchet mechanism like the 400A and Deluxe Tudor. However, this type of seat is not appropriate for Leonard's Leather-Back.

[Leonard]

Hi Bob
You are absolutely correct, the seats that I am looking for mount with rods. The drivers (left) seat has two 3 hole brackets that the rod goes through for adjustment and the passenger (RIGHT) seat has two 1 hole brackets that the rod goes through and is not adjustable.
Leonard

[kressej]

Leonard-
I have the rod mounted seats in my Vicky. Be sure to check when yours was assembled, there is some variation. They aren't the most comfortable seats for long drives, I use a pillow between the top and bottom cushion so my tailbone doesn't fall off... Also, I made two "extenders" to put the drivers seat back about 1-1/2" and bolted them to the rod mount. I'll send you a pix if you like. Otherwise I was a bit cramped in there!
Good luck and send some pics!

[Leonard]

Thanks for the advice, now if I could find some seats, brackets , rods and legs that would be great. I do not know exactly when mine was assembled as there are no identification numbers anywhere, but I did get the drivers side brackets with the three holes in them with the car.
Leonard

[Bill Cilker]

Leonard
The seats for a leather back/ early steal back Victoria are unusual in that the drivers seat is 1" wider than the passenger seat. The seats are not the same as a tudor seat. If you are restoring your car to be a driver ans not for show, then you could use seats from other body styles. Here is a picture of the drivers seat from my original Victoria (early steal bask)

[Bob Bidonde]

Leonard,

Actually there is some adjustment that can be done with the one-hole brackets at the passenger's seat. Note the the hole is offset to one side of the upstanding flange. If you flip both brackets around so the mounting hole is biased front or rear, you can adjust the passenger's seat.

By the way, Bill Cilker's Steel-Back is in original condition as Murray and Ford built it. There members in the Victoria Association that have original Leather-Backs. Did you send Vern your membership application yet? It will be the most valuable $10 you spend on your Victoria!

[Marco Tahtaras]

The early seats (190-A only) had a plywood base. Until about mid April the frames were painted maroon and black thereafter. These had a backrest frame which was straight across the bottom about level with the bottom of the spring leaving a large gap between the the bottom and backrest cushions like the typical Tudor seats. As with the Tudor, they installed a flap between the bottom and backrest as shown in Bill's photo.

The later seats (shared with the 400-A and Deluxe Tudor) had a panel installed at the bottom of the backrest frame which essentially filled the gap between the backrest and lower cushion. This eliminated the need for the flap.

In both cases the drivers side seat was wider and when installed was cocked or twisted outward toward the rear. The second photo shows a comparison between a drivers side and passenger side backrest spring. It's important to note that at the time I took these photos (25 and 30 years ago), reproduction springs made by Snyder's were incorrect most notably in the backrest spring being too thick and the bottom spring too firm. This would make it impossible to achieve the correct appearance and make the seats less comfortable. Fortunately I was generally provided good originals to work with. Anyone with unusable originals should always make sure replacements match up.






After 30 years I don't recall the story with this early Victoria seat. The flap SHOULD have been tacked on prior to the the wire-on trim being installed. I don't know now whether the flaps were omitted on this car of if they were tacked over the wire-on. It would be interesting to know how Bill's is done. It would require a mirror to view the bottom with the flap in place.


These last two photos are from a 400-A but provides a good look at the later design seats.

[Leonard]

Hi Bob
Yes I mailed my app. for membership, he should have it this week, and thank you for all your help.
Leonard

[Kenwood]

Hi Leonard
I have some Vicki front seats that need to be reworked. I will sell them. Not sure what year, early or late. Someone told me that they were Vicki seats and possibly late Get ahold of me and maybe we can figure it out.
Ken

[Leonard]

Hi Ken
It would be great if they were the early seats. Do you also have the brackets, rods and rear legs, if so send me some pics and I should be able to tell if they are what I need.
Leonard Lane
[email protected]

[G Baese]

Hello all,

I am bringing this thread back up to parallel the present inquiry started by Jerry Kzoo about early, pre May/June Victoria Seats. Especially pertinent to the present discussion are post #14 and #16.

It has also come to my attention that the shape of the fabricated seat bottom in the pdf I posted on the other thread is not accurate regarding the Victoria. The Vicky drivers seat is not at all symmetrical on either the early or later version.

The first photo in post #16 of this thread, shows the asymmetry. Further, the seats should be oriented so the front edge of the seat, towards the dash, is parallel to the straight edge at the top of the photo This angles the rear of the drivers seat outward (clockwise) at the widest part of the body. Yes, it sounds odd, but by doing so, the drivers seat can be made wider and the hinge lines of both seats can operate on essentially the same parallel axis, allowing them both to be folded forward at the same time. The original placement of the early tubular hinges on the seat frames and pivots on the floor pan confirms this orientation.

Thank you to all that have contributed to understanding these valuable and interesting nuances.

Geary