Devon Side Hinged Roof Moulding

[Ulyman]

Hi all,
My first post after becoming the proud owner of 'Petal', an '82 A/C Devon. We've been doing lots of work to get her sorted mechanically, but it's time to get the interior lining replaced and a new pop top canvas has also been ordered.
Having removed the old canvas and trim, I discovered the gas strut mounts on the lower fixed part of the roof are not as they should be. You can see from the pics that the fibreglass moulding has somehow twisted so that the strut mounts are angled down to the steel van roof.

I'm guessing that perhaps there is a steel insert in the fiberglass moulding that is rusting and has distorted the fiberglass?

Has anyone seen this before?
I was going to replace the rubber seal around the base of the moulding anyway, and am now thinking I might remove it altogether and try and straighten it out.

Any advice greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
Mike.


Front pivot point


Front pivot viewed from inside


Rear pivot

[B.A Eauty]

not an expert but have just bought a Devon pop top, it is sat in the garage in bits, where the struts fix into the moulding there should be a block of wood as a stiffener, yours may have 'gone' thus not holding the fixing bolt straight.

[Ulyman]

Hi B.A, thanks for your reply, and for confirming what I thought was a block of wood.

This morning I tried to twist the section back to the correct shape, but it all springs back again when I let go. I thought there may have been some steel reinforcing bonded into the fibreglass but I can't detect any.

So now I've removed the threaded studs that go through the wooden block, and I've drilled out all the outer peripheral rivets. Once I've drilled out the remaining inner rivets I should be able to lift the thing off and see what's what and hopefully effect some kind of repair from underneath. I presume it's an open channel apart from the block of wood.

I wonder if you might be able to provide a photo of the underside of yours?

Cheers,

[B.A Eauty]

No probs i will pop some on tomorrow.

[B.A Eauty]

Oh and yep there is just a fibreglass channel,

[Plasticman]

darren YGM
mike sorry to say this but you have a male van so maybe change its name unless.....................
mm

[Ulyman]

Hi mm, thanks for the 'sexing' advice the name was chosen by the GF.
So, in van anatomy then, what distinguishes the boys from the girls? Or are all T25's male by default?

[billybigspud]

Male? I thought A/C was female. Either that or mine is seriously confused.

[B.A Eauty]

[B.A Eauty]

[B.A Eauty]

Hers a couple of pics that i think best shows the channel and the block strengthener, hope these help, theres no steel in mine just fibreglass, good luck with yours could do with some pics of your efforts to help figure out how best to go about mine when i get round to it, Darren

[Plasticman]

as ^^^^ says, whjen redoing it use a bit of hardwood as it will be less likel;y to crush and hence keep working loose causing further probs
mm

[Ulyman]

Many thanks for the pics Darren, that's exactly what I needed. And I'll certainly be taking pictures as I go so I can help out anyone else who may have this problem. If you need any details for fitting yours, please let me know.

mm, I take the point about using hardwood for the new blocks, the area around the blocks is really twisted and I think it's unlikely to go back of its own accord, so I'm thinking of glassing in a longer piece, maybe 2ft, to get the twist out.
I'm hoping to get the moulding off the van today or tomorrow, and I'll be able to post some pics of how it looks.

Thanks again,

[Ulyman]

OK, so I got the moulding off yesterday and no apparent signs of rot anywhere, but the fiberglass is incredibly thin.
Think I'll build up the thickness a bit before replacing the wooden block.

[Ulyman]

Just to complete this, I had a good day last week playing with grp and today I got the moulding finished and back on the van.
All the rivet holes lined up nicely and am really pleased with the result.


Before - the underside


After - the underside

After removing the old wooden blocks, I added two layers of glass mat and glassed in a piece of oak that was a really snug fit. No twist and now rock solid.


After riveting


The finished item