headlining options?

[lard]

Hi All,

So this weekend decided to paint my westy birch headliner - I've got some nice pin lights to fit and thought I'd freshen it up whilst interior is out - anyway, turns out the laminate is coming apart so need to replace it,

I've looked at options such as using templates to fit new birch, however my carpentry skills suck so would likely struggle to cut properly, had a look at kits and found they are around the £150 mark :|

Any options for a westy please? If I'm spending significant cash then may as well look at alternatives - I like the fabric headlining's but will these fit a westy as thought they were for microbuses - perhaps one for a sunroof microbus would fit?

Also anyone done anything alternative with theirs?

 

[lard]

hmm - so TMI interior headliners are around the £250 mark :shock: - and appears that I don't have the correct tabs e.t.c. so this may be best to drop as an idea!

did see this site for some tips on fitting:

http://my1969vwmicrobus.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/fitting-my-birch-ply-headlining.html

But was also thinking about taking mine out, removing the laminate layer that is peeling and then covering in faux suede....

Something like:

 

[Grazy]

If you still have the old wood headliner , I wood ( ha ) order 2 sheets of baltic birch ply 5' X 5' and use the old headliner to template a new one from , make sure grain of wood is running the length of the bus and start cutting !

I cut mine with a Stanley knife with a concave blade , ! the wood you need is only 3mm thick , i got mine from lathams timber , then supply ipswich plastics so i got it there , hopefully they have someone near you that they supply

two sheets should cost £15 ish

Once cut , i sanded wood then used clear yacht varnish , I done 3 coats on both sides sanding in between each coat Varnish is about £10

Any more info needed pm me as i have ply'd my whole van out

I Hope this helps

http://www.lathamtimber.co.uk/where-to-buy" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

There is one in Hampshire

 

[lard]

cheers Grazy - a Stanley knife is more my style! - I was expecting jigsaws e.t.c. but if a stanley can do it then that's less challenging

 

[Supertramp]

Did it myself. Got some 5x5 Birch ply from a local timber merchant at £10 a sheet (three sheets), cut it with a fine blade jigsaw (I've never used a jigsaw before, or cut wood) using my original headliner as the template. It was exceptionally easy to cut with a decent blade, barely had to do any sanding or trimming to the edges.
Covered it in off white perforated vinyl and wacked it in. Total cost about £50 including the vinyl, wood, blades and glue. Fits like a glove and very happy with it, makes the entire van feel much nicer than the bare ply.
Also, far happier doing that than spending £180 on a headliner from the suppliers, it's plywood afterall.

 

[lard]

Thanks all for the inspiration!

I firstly thought i'd paint the headliner and see how that looked... which was pants as the first layer of ply was cracked in a few places

I removed it all and used a blade to then peel one layer of ply off all the wood - sprayed up with adhesive and then put down some faux suede:

really please with it

I've also fitted small led's into the rear locker, put a remote control in and covered it to match - will post some more piccies

 

[Hodgins]

Looks Good!

 

[cunning plan]

Did it myself. Got some 5x5 Birch ply from a local timber merchant at £10 a sheet (three sheets), cut it with a fine blade jigsaw (I've never used a jigsaw before, or cut wood) using my original headliner as the template. It was exceptionally easy to cut with a decent blade, barely had to do any sanding or trimming to the edges.
Covered it in off white perforated vinyl and wacked it in. Total cost about £50 including the vinyl, wood, blades and glue. Fits like a glove and very happy with it, makes the entire van feel much nicer than the bare ply.
Also, far happier doing that than spending £180 on a headliner from the suppliers, it's plywood afterall.

What a great idea! I have seen headlining used, I have seen Plywood used, but not both together! arty0021:

It looks great, it is inexpensive and easy to install.

The biggest benefit though is if a section gets damaged / ripped etc, you can just take that piece down and recover it. Probably much faster than my custom headlining install which took a long, long time and will now mean I have to be real careful not to stain or damage it as it is made of very large pieces.

 

[Clem]

Depends on how yours is delaminated/damaged, but my mate Wally took his out, peeled off the damaged laminate layer, then re-stained it and refitted it. Looks mint. I need to do my cab area at some point and this will be my initial plan of attack.

Cutting new thin ply though is easy, I did a sliding door card with kitchen scissors! :lol: