My 1973 TVR 2500M : Renew and Restomod

In reply to TVR_Oscar :

Hello, and welcome!  We are getting a pretty good collection of TVR owners on this board.

Here's some answers for you on the fabric-roof.  Roof cut-out dimensions on my car are 30-3/8" x 17-1/2".  Short rails are 17-1/4":

Long rail is 31-1/2" (hard to see because of the angle)

Let me know if you need more/different.

Back to the roof master.  I sprayed on a guide coat the other day, and did some more leveling.  Not bad, but it needs more for sure.  I also busted out my DA sander - that thing works down the high-spots so fast, and the vacuum hook-up is awesome.

And next layer is down:

This round should be a lot closer to the finished surface.  Man, is it hot out there - I swear my first batch of filler kicked in about 4 minutes!  Second batch I added a little less hardener.  And the gallon can is officially used up.  I'll probably get a container of the Evercoat glazing putty for the final fill work - that stuff is so nice to work with.

Perfect.

Thanks a lot.

TVR_Oscar said:

Perfect.

Thanks a lot.

Would love to see pics of your car and some story behind it.

In other news, more bondo:

"But it looks the same as the last photo," You say.

Sigh.  Yes it does.

I swear it's closer.  Really.

TVR Scott said: This is all assuming the Miata clutch will bolt up to the ST flywheel.  Or that a Miata flywheel would work fine on the EcoBoost.  Again, not for the faint of heart.

I have an oem NC clutch and flywheel on hand, so now that my engine is finally coming I should have a solid answer for this. 

TVR Scott said:

dherr (Forum Supporter) said:

Yeah, that ecoboost has 270 Ft/lb at 3,000 rpm, so it would have definitely machined the bell housing.

350 lb-ft at 2500 rpm with the Ford Performace tune.  It's silly.

I agree with Joe that it's probably not a big clash.  But I've not gotten a chance to do any work on it though.

On Goodwin, there is a Clutch-Masters Miata clutch that is rated at 400 lb-ft, so that's probably a solid choice.  They have an ACT 6-puck that's rated for "340 and more".  Not sure what to make of that.  This is all assuming the Miata clutch will bolt up to the ST flywheel.  Or that a Miata flywheel would work fine on the EcoBoost.  Again, not for the faint of heart.

I have a oem NC clutch and flywheel on hand. Now that my engine is finally coming I should have a solid answer for this. 

In reply to damarble :

Sounds good.  I'll look forward to your report.

In reply to damarble :

Thinking about it a bit more, I think we're in the clear.  TheTick58 has a Miata clutch and flywheel in his EcoBoost Miata.  We should be fine.

More slow progress.  More filler:

More guide coat:

More filler:

Close:

Aaaaaaand top-coat of Rustoleum is on: (First layer - don't get too optimistic!)

I'm pretty happy with the overall shape.  Looks good both from the front and the side.  Shape is pretty uniform.  I'll need to fill a little more, but definitely getting close.

The next step is in the planning/materials procurement stages.  Burlap and plaster are involved....

TVR Scott said:

The next step is in the planning/materials procurement stages.  Burlap and plaster are involved....

Have you considered horsehair? Either way, I’m sure it’ll be a lovely ceiling. 

; )

In reply to Slow_M :

Well, I'm afraid I'm going to have to disappoint on the weird materials for mold-making.  I had intended to do a PFP tool (Plastic-faced Plaster).

This method uses an epoxy gel-coat as the mold face, and then you add plaster backing that has hemp/jute fiber mixed in.  This is an old method used for quick one-off room-temp molds.  Aircraft companies used to do this often for prototypes.

Turns out the bale of fiber - of all things - is ludicrously expensive.

I'm going to pick up some polystyrene resin and "regular" gel-coat, and just stick up the neighborhood with that.  Looking like it'll be about half the price of the PFP.

TVR Scott said:

In reply to damarble :

Thinking about it a bit more, I think we're in the clear.  TheTick58 has a Miata clutch and flywheel in his EcoBoost Miata.  We should be fine.

That's true. So far I've also learned the Miata flywheel is a smaller diameter than the EB flex plate, requiring the use of a Miata starter to engage it. 

I didn't want to give up on the idea of the PFP mold, so I went to HD yesterday and picked up supplies for a test:  Burlap from the garden section, and plaster from, um, the plaster section.

I stirred up two yogurt cups of plaster with one yogurt cup of water, wetted out my burlap, and made this test panel:

The process was pretty easy, and the plaster coats everything really well.

A couple hours later, and it was already firmed up:

This panel remained a bit flexible and soft.  Not ideal.  I read in some PFP directions somewhere to wet down the fibers, so I dipped the burlap in water and squeezed out the excess.  Might have added too much water that way.

Also the plaster directions didn't specify whether 2:1 was by volume or by weight.  I made a second test panel where I weighed out each.  That way did indeed use a bit more plaster - maybe 2-1/2 yogurt cups to 1 yogurt cup of water - so a bit of a bump.  This plaster was a little thicker and less watery.  Really got into the burlap nicely.  I also didn't soak the burlap first, and that probably contributed too.

That second panel  cured up faster and more rigid.  So I think I'm on the right track.

Does it have to be a natural fiber? The stiffness comment made me think of adding a layer of metal screen (cheap hardware store stuff), especially if you folded up some ribs before embedding it with the burlap/plaster.

You could lay some paper towel/gift wrap tubes down and cover with an extra layer to stiffen it up.  The cheap wire screen folded up around the edges may work better, though.  I haven't made a plaster mold since high school.

Yeah, I could definitely add some metal / wood / foam structure to the mold.  That's pretty common for full composite tools too.

I think the natural fibers are meant to suck up the water/plaster mixture and then harden into a more uniform structure.  Maybe I'll do a comparison using only wire screen and see if it makes a difference.

Still need to buy the epoxy tooling gel-coat.  And I'm going on a trip next week.  Snail's pace continues...

Why not make a better more permanent mold with glassfiber and resin? Maybe sell a few panels to amortize the project too.

TurnerX19 said:

Why not make a better more permanent mold with glassfiber and resin? Maybe sell a few panels to amortize the project too.

I've thought about that one real hard.  It would definitely be more expensive to go glass and resin.  Probably more like $250 instead of $75.  I know that's a bit of a drop in the bucket compared to everything else on this project - the irony isn't lost on me.

I sort of doubt there's anyone out there begging to buy a roof panel for their ridiculously rare TVR.  Maybe I'm wrong on that.  I also don't have a ton of storage space, so storing a big roof mold it's super easy.

Being that you have burlap from the garden section, your idea is growing on me.   Keep up the good work.  And in times of doubt, try not to get plastered. They're ya go, bad Dad jokes.  Carry on.

I posted a message on the TVRCCNA list asking if anyone would be interested in a sunroof filler panel.  After about an hour l already got one emphatic yes.  So I guess I'll probably be making several.

In reply to TVR Scott :

Now you need to find out how many different size holes there are in TVR roofs. I can easily believe every one is different.

TurnerX19 said:

In reply to TVR Scott :

Now you need to find out how many different size holes there are in TVR roofs. I can easily believe every one is different.

That was indeed my first thought.

   I saw your post on the TVRCCNA site, Scott.  I can get a measurement for mine, but I haven't removed the riveted frame yet.  As hot and humid as it is here in the South I can't imagine NOT having the rag top, so I'm still hoping to repair/rebuild my stock unit. I suspect that they're basically pretty uniform dimensionally, since they out-sourced the actual components (Weathershield, Webasto, whatever).  They seem to be even more into the solid roofs in England, so that might be another market to consider.

In reply to Stu Lasswell :

Thanks Stu! 

When you're making those measurements please check and see how centered the hole is in the roof too.

Are any of yall looking to add air conditioning? Or is that kinda sacrilegious in the tvr world? 

Looks like it shouldn't be too terribly difficult to do the evaporator under the dash, and plenty of room for the compressor and condenser. 

Dusterbd13-michael said:

Are any of yall looking to add air conditioning? Or is that kinda sacrilegious in the tvr world? 

Looks like it shouldn't be too terribly difficult to do the evaporator under the dash, and plenty of room for the compressor and condenser. 

 

I am definitely looking at A/C options.  I really want this to be a usable drivable car, not just a trailer queen for car shows.

I already know that space will be very tight for a compressor - like install it on a long belt ins some weird location.

I'm considering stand-alone battery-powered "camping" A/C units.  These are still a bit rare, but might work very well in this application

I'll be doing some dark tint on the back glass for sure!  Sunshade for times when it's parked outside.