VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1933-1936 Roofkit from fillingstation

Has anyone used the roofkit that the fillingstation has in its price list? I have a 34 std coach that needs a new roofkit. Is this all i need to buy. Is everything included?

LeBaron-Bonney in new Hampshire sells a kit with instructions that gives you : top covering material, black cloth for across the wood slats, the fluffy special stuff that goes on top of the black cloth , the tacks to nail it down, the folding material to surround the top ( called HIDDEM ?? ).

It only ships FEDEX or UPS due to size.

mike lynch

EMAIL " the filling station" and ask them, they are pretty quick to answer questions.

mike

Lebaron Bonney AKA/DBA Hampton Coach is located in Amesbury Ma. www.LebaronBonney.com or www.HamptonCoach.com
Phone is 800-221-5408.

I bought the FS kit, had everything I needed except the burlap on the wood. I installed it with the Hidem provided. I had bought the aluminum strips but couldn't bring myself to bend, drill & countersink them.

Thanks Pat. Does it come with imstructions? If you didnt use the alluminium strips, what did you do then? Also, does the kit come with the black stuff you used to waterproof as well. I'm trying to establish what I need to get. Domt have a clue where to start.

It does have very good instructions. I put burlap down to support the cotton padding. In the day they also had the chicken wire that was the antenna as well. I still have the aluminum strips. Check my thread here: http://forums.aaca.org/f190/reconstruction-34-chevy-master-coupe-297983-24.html The roof insert starts in posting #591.

The original nailing strips are not available, only similarly shaped aluminum strips. They have to be bent drilled, each hole countersunk then screwed. I was simply too lazy and/or chicken.

Redoing the roof is a fairly time consuming stage.

I also have the chicken wire installed over the slats.

Back when I was doing this roof on my coupe I was over visiting my friend frank who was taking the roof off his 31 oldsmobile coupe. On the ends of the slats there was thin aluminum pieces that looked like an UPSIDE DOWN -u- that went onto the wood bow beside the slat then up and over it and then flat on the bow. It was held down with those hardened steel blue tacks. This was factory installed to STOP the screw that holds down the slat from backing off and working its way thru your top cloth.

The hardest part is the final top covering to get it nailed down in the sequence, the instructions ( from Lebaron-Bonney )say to use so that the top goes down tight & straight without puckers on the edges or the corners. Its a take your time , follow instructions and do it right operation.

I stupidly did not use their hidem on the edges. I used the aluminum vinyl top strips and bent and drilled them for screws. Not a good decision because your making all kinds of #4 holes in the cloth in order to screw it down. Each one of those holes is a potential leak.

****PAT**** used a specific sealing product under his hidem that I believe was able to seal out all potential leaks ?

Mark off the roof with masking tape and mark where every nail went exactly, because you need to put the new nail into a new hole right beside it, unless you have new wood .



mike

I found the exact same thing on my 1930 Chevy coupe when I was replacing all of the wood in the roof.

the strips were made of a real soft material almost like lead and put there to cover the nails and hold the slats down without it the nails would loosen and come up and puncture the top material and leak

Material would be called malleable iron , its pretty flexible and can be hard in various hardness

Thin aluminum would be easier to find and work with.

mike

Actually I believe that the original metal strips were zinc not lead, aluminum, steel or iron. The running board and floor board moldings on early Chevrolets were also zinc. At least they were on my 500 mile '19 FB Touring.

Is there a suitable replacement to the metal strips that hold the slats in place?

I was thinking I could get a machine shop with a break machine and have them cut off the end of a larger sheet with the proper gauge.

Roger

I suppose you could fold a 6" strip of sheet and rip it in narrow strips after.