On Tuesday, February 24, 2004, at 10:20 AM, doug@dougbraun.com wrote:
> At 10:06 AM 2/24/2004 -0500, Ken Strayhorn wrote:
>
>> I used 3/4" closed cell foam, of the type normally used to insulate
>> HVAC ducting.
>
> This sounds like a really good idea. But make sure you use
> closed-cell foam!
> Open cell foam would soak up water like a sponge.
Yep - and whatever was in those plastic bags that Triumph originally
used
for insulation on the tunnel cover. Several of mine had holes in them
and
the filling had soaked up water like big hairy sponges.
>
> Also examine which parts of the tranny are close to the tunnel cover.
> There
> are a few places there the foam would have to be quite thin, and other
> places
> where it could be quite thick. If the tranny is jammed against the
> foam,
> it could transmit a lot of vibration to the cover.
After I installed the foam, I placed the cover over the trans, held it
in place,
and then quickly yanked it off - the foam has a bit of "memory" so I
looked
for places where it was poking into the foam. Simply plucked those out
with my fingers.
>
>> One last thing if finances are tight and that cardboard cover is more
>> cracks
>> and holes than cover - a friend of mine and I covered his busted-up
>> trans
>> cover with cheap fiberglas.
> Be careful here- Once I tried to put a little fiberglass reinforcing
> on the rear surface of
> the panel between the gas tank and the trunk. But the stuff refused
> to set up (and
> I know I added the right amount of catalyst). I suspect that
> something in the fiberboard
> "poisoned" the chemical reaction that makes the polyester resin set
> up. It
> would be wise to first apply a small amount of resin to the tunnel and
> make sure
> it sets properly.
Yeah, I had that problem when I originally tried to fiberglas the top
front of the
cover, which had folded back. The resin cured, but didn't stick. I
think they sprayed
the cardboard at the factory with some sort of water repellent - it
seemed to be
very oily. Anyway, I scrubbed that off with Ajax cleanser and a stiff
brush and had
better luck the second time around. Only a temp fix, though. Save those
pennies
for a proper trans cover.
Ken Strayhorn
Hillsborough NC
72 MkIV
|