def take a look under headlining and you might be able to prop it up from insde while silkaflex goes off ?? pends whats going on under their really
i always prop mine when im using it anyway its nice n firm then and wont knock you out when you least expect it .
Daft question coming up right up....... but are grub screws functional.....I.e when the roof is up are they supposed to be turned to pin the bars in place?
heres a pic of mine I believe my cross supports are embedded in the fibre glass I remember the outer frame being a bit flimsy though. as others have said, it would be best to remove the headliner to have a look at what is going on, I'd try to sika flex the supports in place and then secure them with fibre glass for a stronger bond. If you try to flex your roof so it doesn't sag in the middle, you might be able to keep it that way when you fix the strengtheners back in place. ...mine sags and collects water BTW the grub screws keep the springs in place and under some tension
That looks different to how mine feels...... the metal cross bars are very easy to feel as individual free moving components under the head lining...... The headlining will be coming off in the next day or so..... how is it attached?
head lining is held on by small D clips (you can see some removed in my pic) they are a push on fit, but may be hidden by your bellows. If it is fixed like mine, you will need to remove the outer trim (not the seal), remove D clips holding the bellows on, then you should be able to see the clips holding the head liner The devon 'strength' bars do seem very flimsy, sounds like the force of the roof slamming shut has broken them loose. They are only thin galvanise metal (or possibly aluminium) so possible they have ripped away from pop rivets Once you get to them it should be a straight forward enough fix
One way or the other it's all got to come off...... I don't want to risk 1500 miles of driving and two weeks of holiday..... so some work needs to be done to stabalise the situation. In the Autum or next spring then the roof can come off and be properly rebuilt to match the condition of the rest of the van.......I'm just out of time and brass now...
Fitted a new "j" seal to the roof cap this afternoon...... Hence I got a better look at the bow in the top panel. 40+ years had done it no favours If you look closely between the layers you can see the fossilised remains of hippies that never escaped the 70's The new seal looks a little more functional...... fiddly job getting all of the old seal out, and fitting the new one was like threading a 9meter snake ....
Hey there, I've posted in the Restos section about doing the inner Seal on the top. Seeing your work, I'm probably also going to do the "J seal" round the side as thats what mine looks like as well. Do you have any intentions of replacing that inner seal on yours? My question is if it's possible to pull it out and fit a new seal without having access to the bottom of the top.. eg: while it's still on the bus.. Mine's not leaking, however it is breaking down and leaving the black streaks when wet. I need to put in a new one, but not sure on the difficulty or if it's doable while up on the bus. regards Alan
I will be completely rebuilding the roof at some point in the Autum / Spring..... All the guides I have read suggest that the two piece main seal is somewhat of a pig and virtually impossible to get in while the roof is fitted. Best of luck. P.s the "j" seal isn't fun either took me 2hrs to dig out the decomposed flange from its seat all around the edge of the top. Used a small flat blade screw driver....
Hi CC, is there any chance you have some of that J profile rubber left over? I'm trying to source it from my local Rubber Suppliers and need an idea of the dimensions please/ eg: the width across the back that you wedge into the roof top, and then the length of the blade please? (These dimensions please.) thanks pal. Alan
Found an offcut from when i did mine. 7.4mm across the back and 16mm front to back.The length of the blade is actually more like 19 but sits at an angle.Didn't have any trouble fitting it but did use plenty of ptfe spray
So emergency repairs made today to the internal roof frame....... it's now very solid and bows the correct way.... First noticed the roof spars had come adrift and we're hanging on the headlining. Took the headlining down to find.... The aluminium spars attached to the outer frame by a single rivet at each end and 40+ years of flexing had fatigued and snapped the metal and losened the rivets. So I cut some triangles of sheet steel and riveted in some strengthening plates while pushing the roof into its correct bow. Once the strengthening plates were riveted in place there was still a dip in the roof between the spars, a piece of 1"x2" popped that back out once screwed to the newly re-bowed spars. Job done! New roof lining in manufacture to match the interior colours!
I see you have already been given the dimensions. It's worth noting the seal isn't eaqual at the top of the "J" one side has more protruding than the other.....
Thanks. Unfortunately the local suppliers here don't have the same size extrusion as this, although it's similar.. I'll give it a try anyway and see how it works. I fIt doesn't function as required I'll have to import a roll from the UK. Cheers.
