Ever want TA/B/C BrooklandsScreens without drilling holes???
Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 10:50 pm
Ever want to have Brooklands screens on your TA/B/C, but did not have the heart to drill holes?
Well, I have been through this. In fact, I bought the screens and spent HOURS trying to line them up on the compound curves of the dash scuttle. I never got them aligned well enough to confidently drill holes in my beloved TC.
After a couple beers in the garage one night, I was inspired to cut up some old angle-iron metal stock and pull out the welder in order to fashion my first attempt at a “no holes” and “no additional fasteners” Brooklands Screen mounting system.
My approach was focused on utilizing the big wing nuts that secure the stock windscreen, noting that the threaded stud upon which they attach is long enough to have another metal bracket fit between the wing-nut and the windscreen pivot mount. So this, with a couple well-placed inner-star lock washers, became my fastening point (see photo).
The unit itself is a simple bit of angle iron that runs the length of the windscreen straddling the corners of the windscreen when the screen is down. At each end of the angle iron I welded on a little arm that hooked over the windshield hex nut attach point and sleeved itself into the wing-nut fastening point. Securing the wing-nuts on each side holds the bracket in place quite firmly.
With a little measurement, I aligned the placement of the Brooklands screens on the angle iron. I then removed the compound pivot mounts from the Brooklands screens in favor of just the “stumps” on the bottom of the screens. I drilled holes (2 per screen) in the angle iron to accommodate the stumps on the bottom of the screens and then welded up collars with grub-screws under those holes. The result is that I can then insert the stumps of the Brooklands screens into the holes and secure them at my desired height with an allen wrench.
Since this was literally done over a beer, I was not too worried about quality – after all, it was just an experiment. Yet, the next morning I looked at it and thought it was decent enough to keep for a while. As such, I painted the inner section British Racing Green to match the scuttle and the edhges silver to blend to the chrome of the stock windscreen (photos shown are pre-paint… not as good as the final result).
Road test… At highway speeds I get a little bending/buffetting of the bracket even though it is angle-iron… So the next time I have a beer in the garage, I will try to re-design this to be a little more robust… or… I also have the option to put a “leg” in the middle of it to rest upon the rear view mirror support, which would also resolve that issue.
I offer this idea up to the team in case you want to design your own Brooklands Screen mounts without harm to your car. Some photos follow…
Tom
Well, I have been through this. In fact, I bought the screens and spent HOURS trying to line them up on the compound curves of the dash scuttle. I never got them aligned well enough to confidently drill holes in my beloved TC.
After a couple beers in the garage one night, I was inspired to cut up some old angle-iron metal stock and pull out the welder in order to fashion my first attempt at a “no holes” and “no additional fasteners” Brooklands Screen mounting system.
My approach was focused on utilizing the big wing nuts that secure the stock windscreen, noting that the threaded stud upon which they attach is long enough to have another metal bracket fit between the wing-nut and the windscreen pivot mount. So this, with a couple well-placed inner-star lock washers, became my fastening point (see photo).
The unit itself is a simple bit of angle iron that runs the length of the windscreen straddling the corners of the windscreen when the screen is down. At each end of the angle iron I welded on a little arm that hooked over the windshield hex nut attach point and sleeved itself into the wing-nut fastening point. Securing the wing-nuts on each side holds the bracket in place quite firmly.
With a little measurement, I aligned the placement of the Brooklands screens on the angle iron. I then removed the compound pivot mounts from the Brooklands screens in favor of just the “stumps” on the bottom of the screens. I drilled holes (2 per screen) in the angle iron to accommodate the stumps on the bottom of the screens and then welded up collars with grub-screws under those holes. The result is that I can then insert the stumps of the Brooklands screens into the holes and secure them at my desired height with an allen wrench.
Since this was literally done over a beer, I was not too worried about quality – after all, it was just an experiment. Yet, the next morning I looked at it and thought it was decent enough to keep for a while. As such, I painted the inner section British Racing Green to match the scuttle and the edhges silver to blend to the chrome of the stock windscreen (photos shown are pre-paint… not as good as the final result).
Road test… At highway speeds I get a little bending/buffetting of the bracket even though it is angle-iron… So the next time I have a beer in the garage, I will try to re-design this to be a little more robust… or… I also have the option to put a “leg” in the middle of it to rest upon the rear view mirror support, which would also resolve that issue.
I offer this idea up to the team in case you want to design your own Brooklands Screen mounts without harm to your car. Some photos follow…
Tom