They Said it Couldn't be Done...

[glenrobbo]

v8s4me said:

.....in the trimmer's shop today we were talking about a similar arrangement for the back door on mine...

This wasn't his work and he says the flaps on mine will be a lot neater ........but the basic principal of inner and outer flaps .......

I don't know if this little strip of fabric is an original feature but it looks like a good idea worth copying...

.....and he this person goes on at me about one single gender-specific post I made earlier .....

Edited to maintain gender neutralityness

You don't get this trouble in France, everything is either he or she
No its

Edited by glenrobbo on Thursday 5th February 14:12

[v8s4me]

Glen - I think you need to sober up. It's far too early in the day to be drinking that heavily.

glenrobbo said:

....You don't get this trouble in France, everything is either he or she...

I am the first to bow to your knowledge of French grammar but aren't some nouns "neuter"? Or perhaps I'd fallen asleep in that lesson?

[Driller]

Nope, it's all either masculin or feminine, it gets me every bloody time even after 12 years!

[v8s4me]

Driller said:

.....Nope, it's all either masculine or feminine, ........

Must have been daydreaming about E-type Jags in that lesson then; or was it Emmanuelle?

Take me back....please.............

[TurboTony]

Joe. Your hood efforts are to be admired. I cannot wait to see the end result.

It is a good game to decide whether a car is a boy or girl. In France it is quite straightforward to determine the sex of a car.

I do know that Classic Range Rover was the only vehicle of its era to be bisexual. Either Le Range or La Range. I did have white RR 2 door when it was voted the sexiest car in France, but the only thing that I never pulled there was a five berth caravan.

So, any car sexing ideas? What is the inclination of your S? Maybe we should have a separate post so as not to mess up Joes' saga.

[v8s4me]

The hood rail is more or less finished now so I've used it to fit a bit of scrap vinyl to see what the final shape of the hood will look like....





It looks OK; certainly no ugly duckling like a Morgan or a kit car. This now also gives me an idea of how the fabric will will fold down between the hood frame and how it will sit behind the seats.

Definitely female. Look at the curves!

[v8s4me]

TurboTony said:

...but the only thing that I never pulled there was a five berth caravan. ..

Well lucky old you! Or is that a typo?

[TurboTony]

v8s4me said:

Well lucky old you! Or is that a typo?

Yes! The predictive text is optimistic!

[v8s4me]

I'm working on an idea to attach the hood bag/tonneau without resorting to studs/poppers through the hood fabric....

Loops of elastic webbing attached to the studs in the hood rail...



Corresponding "gaps" in the rear seam of the hood bag.....



Slide a thin fibreglass rod up the hood bag seam and through the webbing loops....



And the result is an almost invisible fixing....



Comments? Alternatives?

Don't bother asking how it goes around the corners, because I haven't worked that out yet

[Alan Whitaker]

Hi Joe
Just been to the workshop to clean up the wiper motor assy, to get to it I had to move the hood out of the way, so I have started to look at mine again, you are doing such a good job, it's all your fault sir for starting me off again.

Alan

[glenrobbo]

That does look like a very neat solution Joe, but as you say, you may struggle to thread a fibreglass ( carbon fibre? ) rod through the material around the corners.
Something more flexible is needed: I'm thinking nylon rod, or maybe something used in kite-making or pehaps fishing equipment or camping ?????
Or dyno-rod wire? Seriously, I'm not trying to take the pss ( for once )

Will the hood bag/ tonneau cover be a semi-permanent fixture, or do do want it easily & quickly removeable? It would be a bit of a faff every time with that arrangement.

[White S3]

Following with interest as I'm sure plenty of others are. If your fibreglass rod doesn't go round the bend try a round profile or tapered fibreglass windsurfing batten would and are designed to achieve this sort of catenary. Alternatively try an old fashioned net curtain wire. When I'm fit enough, I'll have a hunt in the shed if you want?
Mark

[v8s4me]

White S3 said:

.........an old fashioned net curtain wire....

That's a good suggestion; thanks for that I've got a feeling the curtain wire may be too flexible to push along the long edge of the back seam but could well be the answer for the corners if we can come up with a way of hooking it to the ends of the rod.

glenrobbo said:

..... I'm thinking nylon rod, or maybe something used in kite-making or perhaps fishing equipment or camping ????? .. Or dyno-rod wire?

All good suggestions. I've also looked at the rods electricians use for running cables under floor boards. I think the solution is in thee world of tents though.

glenrobbo said:

..... Will the hood bag/ tonneau cover be a semi-permanent fixture, ...

The hood bag is intended to be removable and yes, getting it on will probably be a bit of a faff but no more so than fitting the OE roof. Getting the bag off will be very quick though which is the way you'll need it to be if the rain starts.

Edited by v8s4me on Saturday 7th February 17:50

[v8s4me]

I tried the curtain wire idea today. It slid along the seam more easily than I expected but it flexes too much under tension........



.....so it looks like the rod is the solution for the straight seam. The wire might still be an answer for the corners though so I'll keep thinking about this one.

This is a photo of the hood with the vinyl folded down showing how much space it takes up; much less than I expected ................

[Barry S1]

So when are you going into full production Joe ? Looking good

[v8s4me]

Barry S1 said:

So when are you going into full production Joe ? Looking good

Thanks Barry! I won't be doing another one but I'm sure someone else might have a go once we (a) find out if it keeps the weather out and (b) doesn't blow off the first time the window is opened .

Making the header rail was the most difficult bit so if you can find a better way of making one of these then the conversion becomes a whole lot easier.

[Top Gear TVR]

If you don't like the finished article I know a man that might :-)

[v8s4me]

I’ve been doing a bit more messing about with the design of the hood around the driver’s door window area. This looks like the best option so far…



Now have a look at the oh so snug fit of the soft hood fabric to the inwardly curving window..



So how’s that done then? Magic? The Power of The Force? Glue? No! It’s Vorsprung durch Tent Technik or “Tent Technology” alluded to in an earlir post...



Well it’s actually an old car aerial but it’s still just a fibreglass rod. It is poked through the neoprene window seal which is sewn into the seam on the vertical edge of the hood fabric. A small loop holds this to the folding frame so that when the door is closed....





.... then hey presto, the rod pushes the fabric out to take up the shape of the window.



Giving a much neater fit than the flappy TR6 one above. The 'B' post flap on the TR6 is a good idea though and looks like it will help keep drafts/rain out. Clever eh?

[glenrobbo]

That is very ingenious Joe. I am very impressed.

Necessity is truly a mother!

[glenrobbo]

That is very ingenious Joe. I am very impressed.

Necessity is truly a mother!