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Life of seat foam?

dcflyer84

Active Member
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Any anecdotal stories on how long the seat cushion foam lasts? My -10 is pushing 13 years old and I'm planning new covers for the seats. Wondering if new cushions should be part of that, or use what I've got since they still feel ok?
 
Any anecdotal stories on how long the seat cushion foam lasts? My -10 is pushing 13 years old and I'm planning new covers for the seats. Wondering if new cushions should be part of that, or use what I've got since they still feel ok?

A lot will depend on who you talk to. They say good seat foam will last 12-18 years.

I am driving a 19-year old truck. To me, my opinion is the seat foam is as good as new.

My airplane is going to be 24-years old. I wore out the original cloth on the seats. When I replaced the seat cloth with sheepskin, I also replaced the foam with new. I do not remember the cost but my butt was getting sore on long flights. The new seats with new foam fixed that.
 
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Mileage / lifetime may vary

Some folks report around 4 years, mine, approaching 10. This is from major supplier…..
 
It also depends on what kind of foam you're talking about.

We had Temperfoam in the -6 and noticed after about 8 or 9 years, that we could no longer see well over the panel. It had settled almost 2". 2nd set of seats lasted about the same. And we are NOT large people.
 
Thanks for those comments. I'm also pondering that life expectancy is proportional to not only age but 'time in the seat' usage. Previous owner of my -10 (and builder) flew it 1,000 over a period of 9 years. I've flow it around 150 in the last 3. The biggest thing I notice with my cushions is that when it's cold outside, they're rock hard. A little body heat and they soften back up pretty soon. Long flights haven't seemed to bother me; they still feel supportive.
 
Thanks for those comments. I'm also pondering that life expectancy is proportional to not only age but 'time in the seat' usage. Previous owner of my -10 (and builder) flew it 1,000 over a period of 9 years. I've flow it around 150 in the last 3. The biggest thing I notice with my cushions is that when it's cold outside, they're rock hard. A little body heat and they soften back up pretty soon. Long flights haven't seemed to bother me; they still feel supportive.

That's a common characteristic of Temperfoam and Comfortfoam.
 
Is there an alternate source for front seat foams besides Van's? I don't want to pay $7G+ for new seats just to get the foam.
 
Couple sources

Seatfoam.com is where you will find Hi-Tec foams, they offer packages for some planes


Sunmatecushions.com is Dynamic Systems, inc. and you will find sunmate foams, including overstock and end of ?,….. ( hint - I found anything beyond med was getting too firm, but weight and what you want to do will impact)
 
I pulled one of my front seat back covers off to examine the condition of the foam and have pulled out the seat bottom cushions and checked their resiliency. I've decided not to buy new foam for the front seats. I'm going to use South Florida Sport Aviation's deal for new rear 60/40 seats that include new foam, and seat covers for my front seats. High marks to Eliane there! Super helpful! She's sending me some sample leather swatches so I can get a better match for my existing leather side panels and headliner.

I'll install myself. 4-6 mos lead time, if anyone else is contemplating. SFSA did the AOPA -10 and from what I can tell, does exceptional work.
 
Replace 12+ year old Oregon Aero seats?

I’m thinking about getting new seats. The seats I have now are Oregon Aero foam with cloth covers by Flight Line Interiors. I’d like to get something a bit more “cushy”. I’m pretty thin and don’t have a lot of natural padding!

I’ve been thinking about making a switch to Classic Aero seats. Has anybody had experience with both Classic & Oregon seats? I’d love to hear your opinion on which you think is more comfortable.

I will probably switch to synthetic leather covers. It looks like long lead times for new seat orders, are there any aftermarket products to put on seats as a temporary fix?
 
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