<< Date: Sat, 28 Mar 1998 12:33:10 -0500 From: Jeff Antosiak <sunbeam(at)tir.com> Subject: Re: Tonneau Stud & Nut Installation Chris (and all) I was faced with the oversized holes on my wife's SV a few years back and the solution was to use the lift-a-dot stud and nut. The way I got the nut (and lockwasher) on the inside of the panel is as follows (if memeory serves me): Insert a a couple of feet of small gauge wire down through the hole until you can fish it through into the interior of the car - so now you have a few inches of wire sticking out of the hole in the top of the fender and a few inches of wire coming out of the top frame pivot area. Form a tiny loop in the end of the wire that's inside the top frame area and tie a couple of feet of light gauge string to the end of it - remember that you are going to have to pull this through the hole in the fender, so keep it small! Next slip the lockwasher and nut onto the other end of the string (washer first, then the nut) and tie a knot or two on the end of the string so the the nut won't slide off. Now pull the wire/string/hardware combo up through the hole until the washer and nut are up against the inside of the fender. At this point squirt some thin white (Elmers, etc) glue through the hole so that the hardware is coated. Let the wire dangle down the side of the car until the glue sets up. I think that I might have put some addition weight on the end of the wire to help hold the hardware against the inside of the fender. Once the glue has dried, you can cut the string off near the fender and gently push the remainder through the hole of the fender. This is where a little luck helps! Not enough glue and the hardware is sitting in the bottom of the fender. At this point you take the lift-a-dot stud and insert it into the hole and try and get it started into the nut. Too think of a glue and you'll never start it and most likely push down into the fender. Once you've got it started, gently lift while you tighten until tight. You may find it easier without the lockwasher, but I wanted it there to keep it from backing off. I don't have any of the 'Beams here to check, so I hope that I haven't missed anything. Good luck! Jeff Antosiak >>
Alpiners,
I did the same thing Jeff describes with a slight twist. I had a couple tonneau cover snaps with sheet metal screws that you could not tighten against the body. I replaced the sheet metal screws w/ 6-32 machine screws. Once I fished the wire down the hole and pulled thru a length of string I did the following:
Drill and tap a hole matching your lift-dot-stud, machine screw,etc centered in a 1/8" thk rectangle of "small" mild steel plate. Make sure the plate is long enough that you can put a drop of epoxy on both ends.
Pass the string thru the plate and knot enough times that it just holds with light pressure.
Put a drop of epoxy on both ends of the plate.
Pull the plate up against the inside of the body, making sure the threaded hole is centered.
Hold pressure against the plate by pulling on the string. No you don't have to hold the string all nite! I attached a rubber band to the string and pulled the rubber band up thru a cardboard toilet paper tube (which I have plenty of living w/three females, wife and two kids). Pass a 16d nail thru the tensioned rubber band at the top of tube.
Next morning........give the string a good tug and the knot will come on thru the threads.
Insert your hardware with some locktite 242 I think (not permanent loctite folks) and you are off and running.
Bob Flak Series V (R SNBM)