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RV8 windstop for
the taller driver
Angus Munro wanted a windstop but as he is quite tall had to
think of ways of adapting the standard windstop. Here he describes
the project and in a copy of this note, illustrated with photos,
available on the V8 Website he provides a detailed guide to
fitting a windstop plus provides a drawing of the new rail too.
(Jul 09)
Being
of the 6ft frame, I found that the standard windstop solution
did not allow the driving position I require for comfort in
the small RV8 cockpit. A standard windstop, as supplied by Newton
Commercial, fits between the seat back and the hood in the lowered
position. This solution spans the hood, above the hood cover,
thus allowing the seat to be as far back as possible.
Now all credit to Ian Cranston for his RV8NOTE127 which sets
out his very clever idea. I got the idea from Ian and with the
aid of a CAD programme, simply made a model and the subsequent
drawing along with certain design changes. The drawing makes
fabrication easier. The main problem that I found with Ian's
method was that the tongues of the tonneau rail were too short
to reach down to the brackets because the hood takes up too
much space. I also wondered how stiff the rather thin tubing
of the tonneau rail provided as original equipment might be.
|
Neat
windstop installation with professionally trimmed openings in
the half tonneau for the fixing blocks. (Photo: Angus Munro)
That
said, I think the idea is Ian's and I
thank him for the inspiration.
I chose to make my "rails" in stainless steel. Mild
steel, painted, would do just as well and is a lot easier to
work with. I also had a local trimming company make the holes
for the MGF brackets to penetrate. A trimming company was utilised
because I felt the cosmetics were important. As you may see
from the photographs the result was worth the expense. Incidentally
I was able to obtain a secondhand windstop for £50 which
seems to be the going rate for them. |
