WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

[dcunn]

Having scored a new set of Cabrio carpets of t'bay recently, I decided it was time to fit them - glad I did.
I do realise the car is 19 years old, but the pics will tell the story:
Under the whole of the seat attachment area was a piece of (12mm?) Marlin ply, certainly not Marine ply, which disintegrated with very little assistance.
Under this is a sheet of (4mm?) probably Marine ply over the whole floor area, pop rivetted in from underneath and as you can see from the last pic it's pretty much rubbish anyway
Under this is a sheet of very thin steel (tin it looks like) which has not been cut very accurately and I do not yet know how good it is

At this point my vertebrae were shouting at me so that's it for now, more to follow

You might like to check your floors guys !

Edit : Pics have loaded in the wrong order, from the top they are 1, 4, 3, 2

[philcoyle]

Re: WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

Blooming heck! Going for the Fred Flintstone look. Oh well another 5 minute job going on several hours, don't you just love kitcars the thrills the surprises, the expense, the anticipation of what comes next.
We know how you will be spending your time, supposedly nice weather around the corner, my sympathies.

[dcunn]

Re: WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

Yabba dubba doo.

Removal of the ply showed that the galvanised but rusted steel was roughly cut to size and covered the whole floor area, ply and metal being
held in by single rivets through both - and the rear gearbox mount bolts, so there was a supporting job required whilst the floor came out and
the two bolts each side were retightened

Think I'll replace the floor with 12mm Marine ply, it works with Roadsters so why not a Hunter !

[angusgrooby]

Re: WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

Owch D.C. Not a nice surprise, birch ply may be angouther option as well the plys are thinner and are generally better quality. if you wanted to go belt and braces you could also apply west systems to the ply which is a resin which a lot of boat builders use but is not cheap you can get it from some boat shops or try Axminster tools.
Regards Angus

[Tony Stott]

Re: WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

^ epoxy resin, do a google search there used to be a supplier based burscough bridge near southport who supplied the stuff at approx. 50% the west price, good stuff, I used it on a seadog dinghy(the last remaining example) approx. 10 yrs ago - up to date, no probs with it or the dinghy, the only prob is that epoxy needs a covering of/with paint/varnish if to be exposed to sunlight, uv attacks it!

[philcoyle]

Re: WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

I was never a fan of the way the Roadster floor was supported, two pieces of ally as transmission tunnel and supporting the gearbox whilst the floor although marine ply was fixed to the chassis sides.
When I fitted the EFi pinto l built into the chassis three cross members, rear one to trap any wayward propshaft and two supporting the gearbox mount and engine. I felt much safer knowing the prop couldn't come through and hit me, and that the gearbox was now on crossmembers completely from side to side, instead of on two pieces of ally (with fatigue cracks) and the edges of some marine ply. Incidentally it is good ply it has been leaning against the shed for the last 15 years , still looks the same.

[dave_clutterbuck]

Re: WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

Lifted carpets with seats still in place, poked it enthusiastically with a screw driver all seems to be OK. Will check it regularly now after seeing your pictures.
Regards
Dave

[dave_kitson]

Re: WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

Hi - Bit surprised that there was any ply under there. The build manual makes no mention, and the seats in my Cabrio are bolted straight onto the galvanised steel floor, using penny washers to spread the load. With the original marlin supplied seats in the car it was impossible to adjust them, I suspect due to the floor flexing. I did thing about bolting some strips of steel across the floor to stiffen it, but when I fitted the Cappoccino seats they moved easily. At least if I get water in the car, I only have to dry the carpets, and not a sheet of ply as well - I suspect that is causing more problems than it is curing. No veneer in 'ere! Or ply! Except the dash of course! Cheers - Dave

[chris_cussen]

Re: WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

Same as Dave, When I built mine it just used galvanised sheet, that was all then manual specified to use. It was a bit springy too so I braced it with a couple of lengths of angle iron to make it more rigid.

[lizbillings]

Re: WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

Checked floor on Cabrio (23 years on the road). Galvanised steel sheet fine, bolted in not riveted. Half in thick ply fitted in seat mounting area still in perfect condition BUT some corrosion found where the steel plate is bolted on at the rear end. This only seems to be superficial but will need some attention. Doug

[dcunn]

Re: WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

Last two pics, it's been somewhat trying in this heat.
I just happened to have some green exterior gloss paint
Carpets were fun, on examination the pack had two drivers side pieces and no pass, side - good game making do with what there was
Just need to get underneath with the Tetroseal, it's about to hiss down so that's it for today

[dbazdavies]

Re: WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

Nice job dc !!!

[David]

Re: WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

That was quick, start to finish. I'm still surfing trying to decide what carpet to buy having been bitterly disappointed in the fluff Car Builder Solutions sold me.

[dave_kitson]

Re: WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

Hi - Woolies (I&C Woolstenholmes Ltd) are good for all sorts of interior trim. They stock numerous qualities and colours of carpets and are happy to send small samples for you to check. I think Type 290a is the same as originally supplied by Marlin - DC might find Suede Green matches his set, so could have bought some to match! Never mind, it looks a nice job. They also sell Storvic heel pad, and while the heel areas are protected, I have worn through the side pieces where my feet rub when operating the pedals, so worth adding protection here too. Telephone Woolies on 01778 347347 and ask for their catalogue/price list, then call again for your samples, I've always found them very obliging. They usually attend Stoneleigh too. Cheers - Dave

[David]

Re: WARNING - Hunter drivers check your floor !

Thanks Dave.