Posted by chriscase on Sunday, August 05, 2007 at 00:15:01 :
In Reply to: Hood support posted by Igor on Saturday, August 04, 2007 at 20:02:14 :
Mine had a bolt welded to the rolled hood hinge, in place of the original tightly rolled portion that acted as the pin.
Fortunately, after sandblasting, I could slid my hinge halves apart rearwards, so I will be able to slide them together after finish painting.
Anyways, the one side slides into the other, and the only thing that stops the one from sliding forward is the tightly rolled 'pin' section. Things tend to bind there causing squeaks and leading to fatigue of the hood. Mine was boogered up, plus the inner section was worn back and crooked. So I sawed each part off square,the wider section about 7/16" more. Then I cut a section of 3/8" rod (unthreaded section of bolt)long enough to make up that difference. Then I turned the rod to .300" for that 7/16". (you could use a drill press and file, or chuck it into a cordless drill and hold it against a grinder). Then I had to needle nose to open up the inner edge of the small part of the hinge- the inner part is tightly curled and gets in the way of driving the rod in. Then tap rod in, tighten the rolled parts to the rod, and weld into position. Also weld all the cracks in the neighborhood. OOPs, if your hood won't disassemble rearward, you'll have to assemble the two halves before welding. Anyways, I did a little bit of extra welding, to help support the rod. Seems real rigid now. And the end part on the other half that used to get jammed in the rolled 'pin' now rests on the end of my inserted pin, making a better thrust surface. It will also stay aligned better, no more having one half slip forward. The end of the outer section will be 7/16" short, but I doubt it will cause enough wind resistance to kill my gas milage- ;<)
Sorry no pics of in-progress. But I can draw a sketch, and take a finished pic once the primer dries. I'm sure Paul will post it on his Antique Alley site for us.
Or, VPW will be glad to sell you a new hinge, with rivets, about $120 plus shipping/handling.
Hey, I'm just thinking about rust. Do you think water running in to the hinge and being trapped at my insert will cause me grief? Was that a factor in the disappearance of the originals? Maybe I'll drill a limber hole?
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