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Triumph TR3 - Side Curtain Options

So starts the flood of questions...

I've got a set of original sidecurtains for "new" TR3A, and they're in need of repair or replacement: the plastic windows are frosted, one sliding pane is missing, the fabric is ripped in a few places, and they are generally grungy.

What are the best and/or most economical options? Refurbishing these (who does it?), buying used (who has them?) or replacing with new?

It's getting nippy out there...

Thanks.

Bill Stagg
Bill Stagg

Bill - The new ones from Moss don't fit. Several have asked here how to make them fit. When they put them on, there is a 2" gap along the top. They stick out like big ears.

When I did my restoration in 1987 to 1990, I took all the old stuff off and sent the sidecurtain frames to Roadster Factory. They have their work done by Larry Learn a few miles away. He does great work. And I got my own frames back - so they fit perfectly. Last summer, I discovered that one of the plastic sliding windows was badly cracked. They had the replacement in stock.

Speak to John Swager at Roadster Factory. Mention my name and what I did and what you want. Larry took about 6 months to do mine. Ask how long it'll take. He did my top as well out of the same material and colour. Very important if you want to go into concours or just have it look right.

Buy special bags for your sidecurtains ( Ken Nachman :- kmntr6@aol.com - mention my name ) as well as for your top. Put your heavy tool box etc at the bottom of your trunk and the bags with the nice top and sidecurtains on top - to keep them nice. Mine were made in 1989 and you would think they were new. Well they are, because I rarely use them This summer I drove "TRusty" over 8,400 miles and the top was up for 5 or 6 miles - about two hours.

Don Elliott, Original Owner, 1958 TR3A
Don Elliott

Hi Bill:
The most economical way to rebuild side curtains is to do it yourself.Like Don says the original ones will fit the best.I sandblasted the old frames that came with the car.The material is available at any fabric store that has good quality outdoor vinyl.Plexiglass for the slider can be had at any shop that sells window glass and the material for the fixed window is available from shops that make windshields for yachts and motorcycles(usually anyone who deals in plastics).The fuzzy channel can be had at The Roasdster Factory or Moss.
Do them one at a time so that you can copy one while doing the other.I found it easier to do the top part separately.The stiching around the top frame and where it is stiched through the front of the fixed window can be done by your local shoemaker.The bottom section
can be made by pressing your wife into service if she has a sewing machine.
My total bill was $75.00 and they look like new. Your bill at The Roadster Factory or Moss will be $500.00 US.
It's worth a try if you flunk just send them out.
Chuck

Chuck and Don,

Thanks to both of you for the great advice and tips. I'd love to keep the cost down on this project as there will be plenty of opportunity to spend serious money on other issues. I'm a great believer in DIY, especially where my wife is involved.

I picked up the car today from the PO, got her titled and tagged by noon, and I've been having a ball ever since.

Best regards,

Bill
Bill Stagg

If I remember correctly, in an earlier message you said you had bikes and a side-car. Well forget the sidecurtains and put on your biker winter gear. I wear a leather jacket, a scarf, gloves and a tuque. Last night I drove my TR3A (top-down) to the local club meeting. It was about 36 F going and 34 F coming home. It was great. When you think about it, ski-doo guys don't have sidecurtains. When I go cross-country skiing, I don't have sidecurtains. In England, it can get down to 35 F in the winter and many of those TR owners only have aero-screens.

Don Elliott, 1958 TR3A
Don Elliott

I hear you, Don. I wear a snowmobile suit for winter motorcycling, and a full-face helmet keeps thing toasty inside. My thinking about the curtains has more to do with the wet stuff. Even on a bike, I can make myself impervious to water with a good rain suit, boots and rubber overgloves. I don't mind the wind, but I'd like to keep the water out of the cockpit of the TR.

Incidentally, I had an unqualified blast tooling around in the 3 today, despite the blustery weather. I'm starting to get the hang of the throttle/shift manuevers, and it's even more fun than I imagined.

Upon inspecting the side curtains, I did notice one of the mounting struts on the driver's side unit was bent inward to the car and twisted slightly so that it could not mount. I'm not sure if I can bang it back in shape or not. Is this a job for the Roadster crew?

One more thing: I've got to order those manuals cause my right turn signals don't function and I can't figure out how to get to the bulbs. Can you give me hint?

Thanks, as always,

Bill Stagg
Bill Stagg

Bill - To remove the parking lights, take a tiny screwdriver and remove the chrome ring from the rubber part of the lamp base in the front grille. Then pull out the glass lens. The rubber will stretch. Change the bulb. Replace in reverse order.

Don Elliott, 1958 TR3A
Don Elliott

To straighten the support strut, you need to find any good welder or body shop - ask if he has oxy-acetylene torches. If he does ask him to heat it up and take the good one so he can straighten the bent one like the good one- only in reverse for the other side.

He may need to bend the vinyl back out the way or place a heat-resistant pad in between to protect the vinyl from the flame.

Don Elliott, 1958 TR3A
Don Elliott

Don,

You are an endless source of information. Thanks for sharing.

A question on the plastic windows: One side curtain is missing the fixed window. I know I can order a replacement, but can it be installed without taking the window apart, perhaps by flexing the plastic?

Thanks.

Bill Stagg, 1961 TR3A
Bill Stagg

I looked at mine and it looks like you can flex it to get it into both the top and the bottom slots. But at the front where it is angled, they have sewn mine in. If you buy spares you will have to cut the old threads along this angled front to remove the old one, then ask your better half very politely if she will sew the new one in as before.

I was able to flex the sliding one, (about 1/8" thick)which I bought this summer from them and I got it in. It's a bit hard to do, but if you warm it up in a tub of hot water first - it may flex more readily.

I think I have to take it out again and skim about 1/16" off one edge so it slides back and forth more easily.

Ask the tech guy at Roadster Factory. They have a special number to call at certain times of the day and week. Maybe he knows. Or ask to speak directly with Larry Learn who makes them.

Don Elliott, 1958 TR3A


Don Elliott

This thread was discussed between 22/10/2002 and 24/10/2002

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