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MG TD TF 1500 - Fitting Windscreen Stancions to the Body

A number of times in the past I have painted a rebuilt car only to find that afterwards I have had to do further "sorting out" work and have scratched the nice shiny paintwork. I propose to build up my TF completely but leave it in primer and use it for a couple of months until I know everything is OK. I will then partially dismantle it for final painting. However, I don't want to take out the dash to remove the windscreen stanchion bolts and am considering fitting a tapped plate, under the scuttle, to act as captive nuts. Has anyone done this?


Jan T
J Targosz

Can you not do it by removing the glove box liners?
Sandy
ss sanders

The kick panels will be in the way Sandy. And it's not to easy to get the glove boxes off any way. I've thought the same thing.
MG LaVerne

The captive nut idea is not a bad idea, but how would you secure it to the scuttle so it stays in a perfect position? Those holes leave no room for error. PJ
Paul S Jennings

I don't know but I'll get a chance to ponder that in the near future.
MG LaVerne

LaVerne, If you figure something out, please let us know how you did it. I agree it would be quite a chore to replace one of those stanchions, but with capture nuts it would be a breeze. PJ
Paul S Jennings

Well I doubt the captive nuts will work. This is because the windshield stanchion bolts are almost always bent and as you turn them the tips would move about in a larger arc than the captive nut you are trying to get them into.

In fact I have to label mine F C R to make sure they go back in the same holes. I also just put them in and turn them until they bottom out smoothly on the outside, and then tighten the nuts inside (as you should do with nuts when possible).
Christopher Couper

Hi Chris

Why not fix the plate to the inside of the scuttle with a single screw into the body frame and simply drill through the stanchions and body into the plate. This will ensure the bolt holes are straight.


Jan T
J Targosz

Jan: You will have to make sure the three holes are absolutely perpendicular to the centers of the stanchions and that the plate you put in is equidistant from the scuttle outside. If not, and this was not done originally, the machine screws will have to bend and torque when they are secured. You will undoubtedly have to drill the holes out to a larger diameter unless your car was one of the 'freak ones' where these all lined up from the factory.

Its not impossible, you will just have to 'improve' the quality of your car a bit. These were hand built cars and the tolerances in all sorts of places were not exact. If you think this area is bad, wait until you go put the bolts that hold the running boards onto the body in. They really get twisted. I had a hard time getting mine out. They are often at a severe angle and when you torque the nuts done it stresses and twists the bolts.
Christopher Couper

Perhaps if the nuts were floating, ala the boxed ones used for securing the fenders. How much float would you need? Bud
Bud Krueger

I guess it depends on how he gets his holes lined up. I would think a good 1/8 would be needed. But don't forget that on bolts with captive nuts you usually put the lock washer under the bolt and not the nut. There will be no lock washer here so he might also have to consider using captive nylock nuts.

This just sounds like a problem waiting to happen to me.

Getting back to original statement of not wanting to damage the paint because of 'after restoration' work. 99% of that will probably be engine/trans related. Why not run with the side panels off for a period of time? Find a way to hold down the hood top panels and then after you shake everything out put the side panels on. Just paint them and put them away. You might have to deal with the front fenders a bit but I would not think you would even have to take them off. Can you do that with a TF?
Christopher Couper

This thread was discussed between 28/06/2014 and 30/06/2014

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