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Triumph TR3 - Windscreen Stanchion Mounting

The thought of installing a freshly rechromed windscreen frame and stanchions is driving me onward as I attempt to decipher the mysteries of the mount. Clues are needed for the following:

1. My post-60000 TR3A did not have side plates between the bolt-mounted (non-Dzus) stanchions and the body. Instead, there was a 1/16" thick cork gasket between the lower end of each stanchion and everywhere it touches the body. I've seen no listing for a cork gasket, so was this a PO's way of compensating for the lack of side plates? Are the side plates supposed to be mounted directly against the body?

2. There is an angled groove machined into the inside edge of each stanchion, but it's not clear what this channel is for. It's approx. 1/4" wide by 3/8" deep by 2" long, and it runs roughly parallel to the length of the stanchion. Mine were empty and serving no visible purpose. What gives?

3. There were no corner finishers installed on my windshield stanchions. How should the lower sealing rubber be fitted to the corner finishers? Should it be stretched taut, screwed down and then trimmed?

That should do it for now. More questions will undoubtedly follow. Thanks for all your help with this pane in the glass job.

Bill Stagg
1960 TR3A
Bill

Hi Bill:
Your w/s should have side mounting plates.The channels in your stanchions fit to the plates.The difference between your plates and Dzus plates is that the Dzus plates have a wire across the hole to accomodate the Dzus fastener and yours has a clear hole to accomodate a bolt.
Chuck

Chuck,

Thanks for the confirmation. Is there a difference between how the two side plates mount to the body? Look at the ones on ebay at this URL: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&category=34204&item=2455653023&sspagename=STRK%3AMEBWA%3AIT

Notice how they only have two holes, presumably it acts as a spacer rather than the plate bolting first to the body, then having the stanchion bolt through it to the body. if this is the case, the stanchions don't slide onto the plate (as they do with the Dzus mounts, but rather the plates slip first onto the bolts through the stanchions and then the whole unit is fit to the car. Does that make sense, or are there other guide plates the bolt separately to the body and then allow the stanchions to be bolted through them?

I have exactly one specimen to examine, and it's my own car. :-)

Thanks for the help!

Bill
Bill Stagg

Bill - The ones on E-Bay are right for your later TR3A. On my early TR3A, I have the older type with the dzus spiral spring cross-wires attached behind the two larger holes. The smaller screws hold it to the scuttle. On mine the tonque and groove mating parts premit me to detach the 4 dzus fasteners (2 per side) and then slide the whole assembly forward on the slides till, with the help of a friend, we can lift the windscreen up and off.

I saw some plates at VTR at TRF last July in the auto-jumble (flea-market) stalls at $35.00 per pair. They had the older type as well as the ones you want. If you find some and you think the older ones like better, you gan grind off the dzus springs from the rear. And you could screw them on as well. If you want to.

I believe the cork you mentioned was used as a spacer because one owas missing. You can still do this if you want. I doubt that anyone would notice. At least till you get one.

You may still need cork as a spacer if you find you have a gap between the parts and the scuttle. You don't want cold air blowing into the car if there is a gap.

Don Elliott, 1958 TR3A
Don Elliott

I'm amazed at how poorly machined the surfaces are on my stanchions that hold the two large chrome bolt heads that attach the stanchions to the body. If someone would like to take a look, I can e-mail some pix and would appreciate your advice on how to correct before sending the stanchions out for rechroming.

Thanks!

Bill
Bill Stagg

I believe that they are cast from heavy brass. The first step any chrome plater will do is strip off the chrome and under-lying nickel and copper plating. At that point, you could have the poor workmanship fixed by brazing, machining and buffing. The first step the plater will do is buff, then copper plate, buff again, then nickel plate, then final very thin chrome plate.

This is called 3-step chrome plating. This is what you want to determine before giving out the contract. Biker guys do the best chrome (you surely know that already).

It's possible that during copper plating, he can build up the copper where it's poorly machined, high enough to machine it instead of brazing metal there.

If you have trouble getting this done or finding good stantions, I have a few old ones here.

Don Elliott, 1958 TR3A
Don Elliott

Alrighty, then, we're just about back in business. I just picked up the rechromed windscreen frame and stanchions, installed the rubber top and bottom, screwed together the frame, and added new cut-down lift-the-dot pegs along the top.

Couple of questions:

1. I'm trying to figure out how to attach the finisher plates under the stanchions to hold down the ends of the lower sealing rubber. From what I can tell, the plates have to be bent into position, then screwed down trapping the trimmed ends of the rubber. Sound good?

2. It appears there are many ways to finish off the ends of the upper sealing rubber. I have collected photos showing that some folks trap the ends (possibly trimmed down a bit) under the top edges of the tenon plate and windscreen frame, and some cut them off straight just above the top of the tenon plate and stanchion. From a purely aesthetic point of view, trapping a portion of the rubber between the tenon and windscreen frame looks a bit neater, but I'm wondering if there are also functional considerations, possibly affecting weather sealing? Any recommendations either way?

By the way, I'm still searching for a set of guide plates, so if you have any laying around, now is the time to give them a good home. I only need the non-Dzus kind, but as Don says, I can make do with either style.

Many thanks, all!

Bill Stagg
Bill Stagg

1. Yes. The plate can be made of thin brass (0.012 - .015" thick approx) or a piece of a tin can. Mine were somewaht triangular with 3 radiused corners but the ones on TS 81551 L that I'm doing now are brass cut in an oval shape about 1.25" wide amd 1.5" on the long axis. The two holes for the screws are on one goal line of an elliptical football field.

2. Yes again. There is no problem with the weather effect. The rain will get in so many other places, you don't have to worry about this. If you want to later, you could squeeze in a bit of transparent silicone sealant.

Don
Don Elliott

If I remember right when I took off Frank's stanchion mount plates, the were glued onto the paintwork.

To buy some, try British Miles at 1 (800) we-fix-mg (215) 736-9300 or :-

www.britishmiles.com

I think that's the one at TRF / VTR last July that had both kinds for $35.00 each.

Or ask them who might have some.

Don Elliott
Don Elliott

This thread was discussed between 24/01/2004 and 26/02/2004

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