Roseann's Sandstorm seat covers?

[xcmountain80]

But looking at it another way. I will need new seats in a few months which will cost around $500 for factory pre owned toyota seats. how much am I willing to spend to protect them? I have a dog who currently has a dog hammock in the back of the 4Runner, its was $150 but it protects my seats. I hate nothing more than marked up leather that could have been prevented.


Aaron

 

[UK4X4]

mmm Kenyas hourly rate must have gone up since I last visited..

As a note I had my Landcruiser prado 1 ( think 4 door 70 series)

quoted locally as follows.

Front seats complete rebuild-foam everything and fitted canvas cover
ie complete replacement of the original seat material

Thats a drivers and a 2 small person bench

Rear seats fabricate covers to match new fronts...fitted not loose

$ 150.....err no delivery as its in Oman where I am and no special leather

next door to the tailors which does 3 suits 5 shirts and a tie.....for X

mmm maybe a job for the wife exporting seat covers....

Local economy here is ....mmm china price is $ 10.....I can do $ 12 and supply custom..

Indian industry at its best....

My Pakistani mechanic is doing a head gasket job on my V8 jeep for $ 140...plus parts

Takes a while to find to sort the dodgy from the good, but you can't beat tailor made.

Not wanting to put down sandstorm, as I've seen a few tire covers running around here with the logo.

and have not even seen the product first hand

Shipping air is always expencive...usually more than the item cost

A group buy and boat shipping will make a huge diference to quoted costs

Buying from the third world always has risk..

"sorry sir we shipped your goods in good faith...somalian pirates are beyond our control and so no refund will be forthcomming"ROFSheriffHL:

 

[DesertRose]

So sorry for everyone's frustrations - I can honestly say this is an excellent company and everyone is top-notch, I've visited them several times, met the guys who cut and sew, and know Mark. Growing pains for sure - the quality of the stuff is superb, really - they get real-world use in the safari business. Every high-quality safari provider uses them pretty much. For good reason. Getting them to the states seems to be the biggest hurdle. Hopefully a solution can be found!

 

[Beowulf]

Any update on this from the people that were trying to acquire covers?

 

[Scott Brady]

We all stopped using Sand Storm and went to equipt1.com for the Escape Gear units.

 

[Beowulf]

That's good to hear. Now I'm glad I started the Escape Gear Seat Cover Gallery thread.

 

[discotdi]

We all stopped using Sand Storm and went to equipt1.com for the Escape Gear units.

Why? Because Equipt1 are compadres, Escape gear are better, EG are easier to get?
I like the idea of supporting the Local Kenyan guys. I got a quote of $645 for front and rear D110 covers with leather and canvas.
They have gone up since I bought my Disco 1 set in 2008. My mother will be in Kenya so shipping not an issue. I do wonder if the quote would be less if I was a local?
I think I am going o do it, probably just get the front set though.

 

[DesertRose]

Why? Because Equipt1 are compadres, Escape gear are better, EG are easier to get?
I like the idea of supporting the Local Kenyan guys. I got a quote of $645 for front and rear D110 covers with leather and canvas.
They have gone up since I bought my Disco 1 set in 2008. My mother will be in Kenya so shipping not an issue. I do wonder if the quote would be less if I was a local?
I think I am going o do it, probably just get the front set though.

Hi Discotdi ~ We didn't all stop using Sandstorm, I still have mine. Sandstorm is a good company, yes, and they use East-Africa-sourced canvas, leather, and skilled labor, mostly from Luo craftsmen (who traditionally are great netmakers, for fishing), it's a great combination.

The only way you might save is if the quote was local and in Kenya shillings, as the dollar is strong against the shilling now. But all costs have gone up, so my guess is you won't save a lot (shipping is what will save; your mom will just need a big duffle, and remember they will be pretty heavy so she might need help).

I now also have about 5000 miles experience with Escape Gear covers in Africa. We've also been using Defender 110s from Shaw Safaris in Arusha, Tanzania, and they outfit their vehicles in Escape Gear. From what we have seen, they are just as well-made and durable as Sandstorm, have great safari heritage, and are also made in Africa. The main thing I think Escape has over Sandstorm is their color in the fabric might be less prone to fading. Not sure, though. My Sandstorm color is dark; it faded nicely, though, not too bad even after 3 years.

Either set would be great, I'd go with whatever you like best if cost is not the main factor! And Equipt is a great company, too ~ well worth supporting.

 

[discotdi]

Thanks for the reply Roseann. I will call Equipt before I pull the trigger, especially since they are having a black Friday sale. I really like the Sandstorm with the leather side panels. They look like they would last a long time. I am going to try and get a "local" quote from a Kenyan fellow my Mom knows. I think the local Kenyan price must be less.
I also like the back story of getting them direct from Kenya, just sounds good.

 

[Scott Brady]

I like both sets for different reasons.

SandStorm:
1. Cool story, Kenyan fabrics/materials and labor.
2. Custom fit to your seats
3. Hand made and each is unique. This has good and bad results.
4. Canvas is thin compared to Escape Gear cover
5. Fading

Escape Gear:
1. Also made in Africa, but is more of a mainstream company. This has good and bad with it as well, like more consistent quality, better pattens, easier to source. But it lacks the feel-good story of the SandStorm.
2. Thicker canvas, more color-fast
3. Better pattern-making and stylized more specifically to the vehicle
4. Overall a higher quality feel and finish. Fine details in the side pockets, map pockets, etc that are absent on the SandStorm

For me, I just liked the way the Escape Gear covers looked in my Discovery (the color was a more appropriate 'camel' tan as opposed to a light tan with the SandStorm), appreciated the small details and the thicker canvas. So far, my Discovery set has worn well and is quite color-fast. The Escape Gear covers in grey that we have in one oc the Jeeps have faded more, although we also washed them once in a very mild solution of Woolite.

I have images of each set that I will find and post up.

Just my $.000002