High Realism Scale Seats and Covering

By Vario Team Pilot Lee Cheesman

Vario offer a fantastic range of scale pilot and crew seats for most models. How you choose to finish them can make a huge difference to how closely they mimic the real thing. Most helicopter seats are finished in fabric, suede, vinyl or leather with painted frames and floor runners. Seating is a large focal point of the interior of a scale helicopter and is sometimes overlooked with more emphasis being placed on the cockpit binacle, instruments and controls. Pilot seats can differ from crew and passenger seats in some helicopters to allow for the positioning of controls and additional adjustments for pilot comfort.

So what can we do to make our scale helicopter seats look real?
The finish or covering will make a very big difference to the finished article, as will any additional details present on the full size that can be closely represented in your model. Some seats like the Vario BO 105 1:6 scale feature an open back design with a great amount of detail – this really adds to the realism. New technologies allow for the printing of rubber like materials, especially with an SLS (Selective Laser Sintered) process as it remains lightweight. This type of 3D print provides a texture that can look quite realistic.

Finish and material types
Most scale seats will be provided in 3D print form, requiring some preparation, assembly and painting. It is best to avoid painting the seating material/fabric area with high gloss paint as this will look unrealistic. Choose a matt paint to better repesent fabric or a satin finish to represent leather or vinyl. It is good to experiment with some finishes on scrap plastic to see how the covering of your seats will look.

The automotive industry offers various sprays including vinyl effect sprays that are used for car interiors from companies like Foliatec and Rest-Oleum. This type of spray can bring another dimension to your finished seats but can easily peel and scratch – so be sure to follow preparation instructions to get the best bond to your seats.

Some types of finish:

• Spray paint – matt and satin work best
• Vinyl effect automotive sprays
• Rubber type 3D textured print
• Vinyl fabric
• Cloth Material
• Rubber sheet

Military helicopters will most likely look more worn than civilian and commercial helicopter seats. Be sure to use some weathering techniques to achieve the desired effect. A small amount of time here can really add to the finish.
Even relatively new helicopters will have some wear on seat handles and knobs. Most seat frames, legs and runners will be finished in a black or grey paint. Using a ‘dry brush’ techique can make seat recliner handles and adjustment knobs look well used. Simply use a small amount of silver paint, wipe off most of the paint from an artist brush with a tissue or cloth and brush over small areas to create the effect of worn paintwork.

Realistic Coverings

Covering scale seats in material, fabric, velour or vinyl, when done properly will give a very realistic finish. I completed my EC135 seats using a low cost grey vinyl material which looks like leather. This process is very time consuming and requires a great deal of patience.

What you will need:

• Scale seats, Vario offer an excellent selection here
• Your chosen covering material. Amazon and ebay are good sources
• Fabric glue. Fabri-Tac works very well
• Selection of foam sheet thicknesses for realistic padding
• Scissors and scapel
• Sandpaper
• Brush for adhesive
• Cyanoacrylate
• Flexible 1-2mm piping tube to finish (see below)
• Degreaser

1. Start with sanding your seats with 240 grit to give a good key for proper adhesion.
2. Look at the full size seats to get an idea of where padding will go. Cut strips or sections of rubber or foam and glue in place using cyano. Make sure you leave plenty of space between your padded sections so that your covering material will have enough seat surface to stick down in between. Some coverings are more easily moulded to a shape than others.
3. Start with a seat section, placing your covering on top of the seat. Roughly mark out the amount of covering your will need. Ensure you have plenty of spare. Take time here to fully plan out what section you will cover and where each section will meet. Usually, it will be enough to have one section for each side, one for the seat and one for the upright of the seat. You may find your seats need more or less sections. Using coloured silicone pipe of around 2mm can hide the seam where two sections meet and at the same time provide a realistic look.
4. Degrease the first area to ensure the fabric glue sticks properly. Brush your fabric adhesive onto the first section you intend to cover, apply adhesive to any sections of padding you have added. Fabric adhesive like Fabri-Tac dries reasonably slowly but has a working time or around 10 minutes. Push your covering into place and work each part to conform around the curves of your seat and in between padding you have added.
5. Keep folding and triming your first section. Fold the covering back on itself to make a neat edge. You will find that cutting small slits in the covering will allow it to be folded underneath the seat and glued. If you need to, use cyano to quickly hold part of covering in place that are out of sight.
6. It takes time and patience – you may not get it right the first time. If a piece is cut wrong or you make a mistake, remove, scrape off the fabric adhesive and start over with a new piece of covering.
7. Keep checking and marking out new sections onto your covering, taking time to temporarily position and wrap each section to see where it will fold or meet a new section.
8. Use a scalpel to cut away excess hidden covering that has already been glued in place – underneath the seat for example.
9. Keep applying pressure to your covering while the adhesive is setting. Push the covering into the rear of the seat and between padding sections you have added.
10. It is sometimes worthwhile cutting a section of styrene sheet for the back of your seat and covering it separately. That piece can then cover the area at the back of the seat where there are cut edges.
11. The process is time consuming and takes a good element of patience and skill. The end result will be very worth while. If you have more than one seat to cover, use your sections of covering to make a template.

Remember to check plenty of photos of the full size helicopter seats. The method above works well for conventional seats. Frame type seats like those in military helicopters such as a Huey are easier as straight cuts of covering can simply be positioned over the frame and glued in place.

Have Fun!
Lee Cheesman