Dave Wellings Perspex Wind Stop for Traditional Morgans

Dave Wellings Perspex Wind Stop for Traditional Morgans

This task began after my recent trip to Curborough with MrsW, who felt that it was a bit draughty on the A38.

It got me wondering about a conventional mesh Wind stop.

I'd seen one on a Mog at Curborough and it was mounted low, just above the head restraints.

Once home, I looked on "a Mog website" and was surprised to see that they come in at well over £200, spend and the picture showed it installed quite high.

This also requires drilling the inner wing wood to fix.
For a while in Miscellany, there used to be a perspex windstop which fastened to the head restraints with elasticated cords, but I believe this is no longer made.

I must admit that I'm not keen on the elasticated solution, but it got me thinking about a perspex shield and a no-drill solution.

First I sourced the Perspex, and in doing so also produced the spare wheel filler which turned out to be a really simple fix.

http://www.theplasticman.co.uk/

I had to take a view on the measurements of the windstop, since I was starting from scratch, and this is how the perspex looked when it arrived, complete with protective film both sides.

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My first thoughts were to fasten around the head restraint stalks, so I obtained some U bolts which I covered in plastic sleeving.

The main disadvantage to this method is that both seats need to be kept level.

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Had this worked, it would have been so simple to mass produce. But the U bolts were not long enough.

I tried extending but the method of location was too floppy, and the windstop flopped rearwards at 45degrees.

So 'Plan A' failed.

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Time for a rethink. 

 
I needed a bracket that would locate around the head restraint stalk but that would be non-damaging.

I eventually hit on the idea of a perspex bracket.

For this I made use of an old number plate by stripping off the backing and cleaning up the plastic.

It's a bit rough & ready, but this is a prototype after all.............

This is how the brackets looked after I'd been at them with the Dremel .........  

I would have liked to avoid working with stainless steel once again, but anything less would not have looked right.

My first pair of angle brackets were scrap. You live & learn. I took a lot more time with the second pair.

These are not 100% but are good enough for me..........

Next I added a thin U channel of neoprene - the same profile as used on various other projects.

This gives a snug fit around the stalks.....

This is one fitted to the wind stop - using stainless dome bolts.

This is how it fits.

Note that the fasteners are clear of the leather.

At the end of this process I had to add a 1/4 inch strip of neoprene as a spacer between the stalk and the bracket to add a small amount of 'lift'.

More to follow..............................

So after a bit of tweaking to get the angle of the brackets right, this is how it looks from the rear:

Close up:

You'll see that I've slotted two lengths of clear tube where the seatbelts pass under the wind stop.

I don't think they will rub, it's just a precaution..........

It's almost invisible when fitted........

So all I need to do now is road test it, but not today.

I'll report back if it makes any difference.

More to follow >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

I've just finished knocking up a sort of Half-Half Tonneau Cover.

I was idly gazing at an offcut of Mohair and it dawned on me that I could use it to fill the hole between the hood cover and back of the seats.

I didn't have the camera with me but I'll take a photo tomorrow.

I think it will reduce draughts in winter. It fixes on the two catches on the rear rail, and two mohair 'straps' onto the hood frame.

All will become clear.

If it's too floppy I can line it underneath with neoprene........

Here's the 'Mohair' offcut:

Very little science to this.

A simple rectangle with the rear corners sliced so they don't protrude.

It's single thickness, so a bit flimsy, but I'll look into that again when I get some more aerosol glue.

The front corners are held up by short straps onto the hood side rails, using one of the studs each side normally used by the hood when it's up.

I keep a small stock of hood fasteners (for emergency use), so this has cost nothing.........well, today, anyway.

Compare the next two photos with those above without the half-half Tonneau Cover.

Well, the prototype wind stop has needed further development.

The original 4mm Perspex was a tad too flimsy so I've upgraded to 5mm.

I've also developed some improved brackets.

This is how the prototype (4mm) ended up, after trimming with IRS0826 courtesy of COH Baines Ltd.

I couldn't get used to the raw edge, even though it was polished..........

These were the final Mk1 brackets.

Note the neoprene buffers......

This arrangement worked well, but not quite well enough.

If anyone would like to try this prototype, and we can meet up next year, you're welcome to give it a try.

It works with big rectangular head restraints - but I'm not sure how well it would cope with the latest elegant restraints....

More to follow.....

These are the Mk2 brackets.

Still perspex, although I've concluded that 1/4" aluminium would be more durable, and I just happen to have some in the offcuts box, so maybe when I have more time.

If these were made from alloy plate, and the stainless angle brackets were productionised, it would make a viable product, maybe with a tinted film.

Here we have the slightly larger bracket, slightly smaller locating hole, and bigger stainless angle bracket.

You can also see the full with neoprene buffer - topside at the front, and underneath at the rear.

This also pinches the head restraint stalk and provides a firm location.

This neoprene is standard density kneeling mat from 'outdoor/hiking' shops.

The horizontal fasteners have wider spacers and bigger diameter washers to spread the load.

(Compare with earlier photos).

You can see here that the IRS0826 neoprene edging, which is round, really adds to the 'product'.........

And on the final photo, you can also see my 'half-half' Tonneau Cover which fills the gap between hood cover and wind stop.

I'll be getting some edging fitted to this as a final touch.

I decided to edge the half-half Tonneau Cover with Twillfast fixed with aerosol adhesive (sourced at Maplins).

This is how it looks - (those white specks of dust are annoying......) 

And I extended the fasteners to make sure it won't 'pop off' on the road.

Here's one relaxing on the hood cover: 

This is how it looks fitted (offside).

The loop under the hood frame puts the load sideways to the fasteners making it less likely to pop off, and the low location allows the hood cover to fit easily over the top.

This is an improvement over the original solution.

I've taken the other piece of Twillfast to the trimmer today to have it stitched-edged.

Hopefully he'll get it done for next Saturday. Fingers Crossed..........

More to follow >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Since my PC crashed I haven't had my favourite utility - Canon Zoombrowser, so I'm using the Panasonic equivalent, which isn't quite as user friendly.

Anyway, I got to thinking about upgrading my windstop on two levels.

1) to optimise the size;

2) to professionalise the brackets. Easy enough in theory.

First job was to measure twice and order the plastic from the Plastic Man.


So the first photo shows the relative sizes. On the left my original wind stop.

This is a new spare.

On the right my version 3, which looks much bigger, even though the dimensions are only slightly bigger.

Next job was to cut some brackets from Aluminium.

I've used 1.2mm.

This might not be strong enough.

We'll see after some road testing.

I have some 2mm, but it's harder to work.

Brackets now cut out and awaiting finishing.

Cut out and shaped. It's very hard to get the bend in the same place on each bracket.

Trimmed with leather offcuts. Quite impressive eh?

Dome nuts and washers added.

Test fit.

More to follow.......................................

And so to the next stage..........

Edging added and brackets trial fitted.

New on the left, original on the right.........

The new brackets are much simpler, but the hard part is spacing the wind stop for a decent fit.

There has to be enough clearance to fit the head restraints, and the right angle to hold the wind stop hard against the back of the restraints.

I don't know if this would work with the current smaller restraints. The spacing with washers takes quite a bit of trial & error.

So for comparison: first the second (original size) version.

And now the latest series 3 version..........

Fitting detail.......

Spacer washers......

It needs a road test to make sure the brackets are strong enough.

If not, more faffing with thicker ones.

Apart from a struggle at the end with the right spacing, this turned out to be a couple of part days, so time well spent.

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Some Comments:

I'm hoping that the 'forward draft' holds it in place against the head restraints, but you're right that too much turbulence might make it flutter.

Then again, the perspex stopper sold through Miscellany was in the same location but held by elasticated straps, so I'm hoping that mine will sit there 'steady as a rock'.

I could use an elasticated add-on if necessary for motorway trips - because when I bought my camping mats (garage door insulation) from Blacks, they each came with two black elastic fasteners which are exactly the right size.

I just need to find where I stored them in the garage.

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Well, I'm just back from the test flight. 

All is well. It definitely reduces draft between the seats.

There's a bit of shaking, but then the whole car shakes, so it's not obtrusive.

It stayed in place and didn't try to drop back.

There were two unexpected outcomes.

First, with a low winter sun, there is a lot of reflection, and it was flickering on the car in front and probably dazzling oncoming cars.

Maybe I should look at tinting.

The other thing is that the top of the Perspex appears as a horizontal line across the middle of the rear view mirror, so the bottom half is partially obscured by reflections.

If I could get a satisfactory finish on the bracketry, it would be 'marketable'.

But not as it is.......
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We cruise at 70 for hours on long journeys where motorways are unavoidable.

In fact MrsW sleeps most of the time so it can't be that bad.

It does depend on the prevailing weather.

Windy weather probably has more effect than speed.

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