pseudo restoration

[Ted928]

I have become motivated to improve the Red Rodent. I do not want to restore it, just fix it up.

Any advice or links on:

Carpet - cutting your own instead of a kit? What type of carpet .... How to "finish" the cut edges .....

Door panels - make it from ..., cover it with ..., attach them with ...

Door gasket/weather stripping - there has to be some generic shape that fits well enough????

Shim door hinges with ....

Patch quarter-size tear in console storage lid with black ....

Thanks

[spl310]

Carpet - cutting your own instead of a kit? What type of carpet .... How to "finish" the cut edges .....

You can cheap out by buying carpet in bulk from the local auto parts or boat supply and spend a weekend cutting and fitting. You will save a few bucks, but you may be happier buying a cheap carpet kit from JC Whitney and getting it done in a couple of hours.

Door panels - make it from ..., cover it with ..., attach them with ...

Take the old ones for patterns. Cut out thin masonite (the shower board for mobile homes that has the water resistant face is a good idea - put the water resistant face to the door and it won't warp as bad). You can buy cheap 1/8 thick foam from Jo Ann and take some black vinyl to cover the whole shebang with - cheap and not too bad looking. If you want a pocket, you could do that too.

Door gasket/weather stripping - there has to be some generic shape that fits well enough????

Check Restoration Specialties out of Windber Pennsylvania. They have some cheap that works well.

Shim door hinges with ....

Just get a cheap used set off of a used car and put them in. The pins are shot and shimming it is urinating into a fan...

Patch quarter-size tear in console storage lid with black ....

Duct tape? Don't patch it - buy extra black vinyl and recover the lid. If you can't strip the old vinyl, glue in a patch piece and then cover the whole mess.

Thanks

Happy to help!

[datsunrides]

Carpet- A kit really give you the best bang for the buck. If you did want to do it yourself, the carpeting they sell at parts houses will work. While not especially durable or that nice looking, it will get the job done, is cheap, and will look better than nothing. It is also thin, which will help form it around curves. Best way to finish roll carpet edges is to double them over and glue it down, IMO

Door panels- Made from thin pressboard as found in home improvement stores. Cover with fabric/vinyl of choice. Remnant places are a good place to look for small pieces for cheap. You should be able to find universal type clips from either a autobody supply store or a local upholstry shop. Bring a sample and they should be able to get you one that will work.

Door weatherstrip- There is a generic push on weatherstrip that will work. Basically it goes on over the pinchweld and has a bubble on one side. I got some stuff for a different car off eBay real cheap and verified it would work on the roadster (went with new Nissan). JC Whitney has it also.

Shim door hinges with- Whatever you can find! Check an autobody supply store. You should be able to buy universal shim packs pretty cheap. There are a lot of adjustment in the stock hinges. If you can't get the doors aligned with the hinges, quite possibly you have other issues.

Console lid- Recover it yourself. Remnant from fabric store, can of spray adhesive and your done. It's really not too bad. You could try one of those repair kits they sell in parts houses, but I don't think they work too well. Couldn't hurt to try?

Mark

[waggleboy]

Or......you can take several Roadsters and pick the best parts. Patch em together and off you go. But be forwarned......adjustments will be needed.

[Ted928]

Thanks for all the suggestions.

All the carpet kits seem expensive (over $200). My drive train tunnel carpet is fine so I will probably cut a couple of pieces for the floor.

I did not even think to simply recover the console lid - thanks.

I have one original door panel that I can use as a templete to make two new ones. It is not completely flat. Is it supposed to be flat or should it have some soft bends in it? If bends, how do you fab that???

Thanks

[datsunrides]

There is some bend to it. Just make sure your base is somewhat flexable and the clips will hold it in place.

Mark

[Linda]

I think thin pegboard works pretty well. It is flexible enough to have some "bend", you can cover it with the thin foam and then wrap the vinyl around it a glue to the back. The foam softens the edges nicely. Also with all those holes you can put those clips about anywhere. Some people use velcro to hold the pieces to make them easier to remove.
Auto upholstery supply has tons of vinyl, foam etc but also a fabric store will have some vinyl. A little thicker, firmer foam on the arm console worked for me.
I believe a auto upholstery supply shop may be able to finish the edges of your carpet pieces for you, if not try a carpet store.
Have fun.

Linda

[Ted928]

Thanks for all the great suggestions - my confidence is increasing.

How should I run the carpet - should the seat bolt through the carpet or should the carpet go around the seat tracks? One piece per side or two?

Thanks

[spl310]

I have seen all of the carpet variations you mentioned. I like the seat bolting through the carpet myself. Two pieces makes sense so you can yank the front if it gets soaked.

[dbrick]

Console lid, get one from a Volvo 850 or S40. It fits with a little work, is about 3 inches thick and you get nice cup holders. You can recover it, but getting the vinyl over the corners is tough.
PM sent on the rest

[Ted928]

I bought some vinyl (Jo Ann) and carpet (home depot). The carpet install looks fine. I did not replace the carpet over the drive train tunnel. I started on the console. Original vinyl came off OK. Recovering is HARD. The front corners are impossible?!?!?!
I am trying to build a template using paper (since it is thin) and I am still failing. The original vinyl was formed over the elliptical/rounded edge.

Any suggestions?

If I can ever get the corners close enough, I plan to apply a little black silicone to fill the gap.

Any cover material that can heat shrink???

[Linda]

The fabric store can actually help you out with how to put the material around corners etc.
I have cut the material on the back side where it glues, sometimes you have to cut a notch. Hard to explain unless you are doing it.

Linda

[Ted928]

I finally finished covering the center console. I tried to figure out how to make a nice rounded corners but gave up. Instead I cut the material close to final shape, glued it everywhere, trimmed the corners off a little at a time while the glue was still setting, filled in the slight mismatch at the corners with a touch of black RTV when I was done. Looks good.

[notoptoy]

Now you have to post pictures!!

[dbrick]

I ended up peeling the cloth off the back of the vinyl, and it was much more flexible.