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Triumph TR6 - '74 Headrests

Gents, I just got through rebuilding my headrests with fresh high density foam. Quite an easy job actually other than releasing the spring clip on the headrest stalk. Now what can I do to keep them in a raised position. The friction spring that remains in the passengers seat is worn out and the spring is missing from the drivers seat. Has anyone been able to find a replacement? I checked TRF, Moss and Rimmer and these parts are long out of stock. Any ideas for a replacement and/or fix would be appreciated. SC
Steve Crosby

Hi Steve

Mine are fixed. For a simple fix untill you take the seat back apart. Put a Zip tie around it at desired height.
Bill
Bill Brayford

Thanks Bill. I thought to shrinkwrap the bottom 4-5 inches of the stalk and then glue a large, snug o-ring to the top 1/4 inch of the shrinkwrap. That should leave the headrest sticking up high enough to do some good and keep the lower end of the stalk from rubbing against the inside of the seat back. The heavy shrinkwrap should also help tighten the metal to metal contact in the mount bracket and keep it from rattling around too much. SC
Steve C

That stuff will probably wear through pretty fast Steve. Never thought about the wobble. So dig around the house or at the lumber store for a small scrap of hardwood. If you have an old baseball bat there great. Cut some chunks with saw. Carve 2 wedges for each edge of the slide opening with a small top upside down L so they won't work down. And you can pry up if you want to change.

If someone ever see's them which I doubt just tell them the seats were made in the Morgan factory...:)

Bill



Bill Brayford

I tried the wedge thing over the past couple of years, using aluminum axe head wedges and horse shoe nails - they are wedge shaped too. I tried the zip tie thing but couldn't get it tight enough. It just slipped and whole shaft disappeared into the seat.
By shrink-wrap I mean the large diameter heat shrink tubing used in electronics to hold bundles of wire together. If it needs to be thicker at a wear point just shrink on another piece over that spot. This plan sounds good to me but will have to wait a few days for the shopping frenzie to quite down before I'll attempt the shops for parts.
Chinook here for the past 4-5 days +7C.
Merry Christmas to all, Steve
Steve C

Sorry thought you meant shrink wrap stuff. Nope metal to metal will not hold. Vibration. Forgot your a westerner or would have used the horseshoe nail rather than an upside down L. But the hardwood might dampen enough to hold?

We have a green Christmas Ontario.
Bill
Bill Brayford

Well I went out looking for parts and purchased the above mentioned heat shrink tubing and another piece. As it turns out the stalk with the shrunken tubing applied is just barely too large for the hole. Maybe I'll apply the Dremel and some liquid soap later.
The good news is that there is a tapered black rubber piece that fits tightly around the shaft, holds the headrest at any height and looks good enough to have been OEM. The afore mentioned part from REVY, is made by MOEN - part Number 5790 - Ballcock Shank Washer. Yes it's a toilet part. SC
Steve C

Another quick, easy fix is to raise the headrest to your desired height and then put some foam pipe insulation around the shaft. I then neatly wrapped the foam with black electric tape. It gave me a good finished look and the headrest stays at the desired height. But, I'll have to check out the "toilet part" fix in the spring since it sounds like it might look and function even better.
John Burke

Steve,
I tried the Shank Washer and it works great! Actually I think almost any "Fill Valve Shank Washer" will do because of standardization. Got one at Ace for $0.54. Thanks for the tip!

BB
Brent B

This thread was discussed between 20/12/2003 and 30/12/2003

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