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TR2/3/3A Fitting side curtains

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trglory

trglory

Jedi Trainee
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I have been watching the various treads regarding side curtains. I have an AMCO set on the car that work well and look OK, but I have a set of OEM style curtains in storage that look great but do not fit well at all. I know that the correct procedure is to bend the steel before they are built, but these are already done so I need to go to plan B. The mounting plates on the door cannot be moved enough to provide the necessary adjustment so the side curtain arms probably need to get some hammer modulation. Can anyone provide some insight on how to do a good alignment without ruining the soft parts?

TIA, Joe :sorrow:
 
Joe, what I had to do with mine was remove the plates and realign them to get a good fit on the side curtains. That meant drilling new holes for the screws that hold the plates on. You may have to shim the plates with some washers, but no metal bending is required. They fit real good now. Good luck.
 
You will definitely have to commit to one set or the other, as there is too much difference between individual screens to be able swap easily.

The key is to install the top and remove the door mounts. Mount the screen to the door mounts and then hold it in position to match the windscreen side bracket angle, spacing, and vertical position. Ensure the top and rear edge of the screen will seat properly against the top material. Then drill your holes and screw the mounts into the door panels. With a little luck, that's all there is to it.

The bending comes in to get the lower screen to match the top door edging without being either too tight or having gaps. Less hammer work...more grunt work, as they are not that strong to begin with. It's barely more than a wire that runs inside the lower screen.
 
It would be great if they would fit w/o any tweaking -- but that is seldom the case.

As noted -- first the brackets, then the 'gentle bend'.

The sweet spot is when that seam along the leading edge slips into the slot on the windscreen stanchion as you close the door. Never have been able to get that quite right on my passenger side so I have to close that door from the outside and tuck that edge in to get a tight seal.
 
On my TR3A, some PO had redrilled the holes in the door to fit the side curtains rather than making whatever alterations would be needed to the AMCO side curtains to make them fit correctly. It was a mess with the brackets sticking way up above the doors and the holes were drilled into the door frame instead of through the pre-cut pattern originally manufactured in the door. And then the top rubber seals on the side curtains were cut down much shorter than they were originally. I intend to mount the brackets in the original manufactured location and alter the AMCO side curtain. It appears that AMCO made the back down strip of 3/16 x 1-1/4 aluminum about 2 inches shorter than it should have been. I plan to either replace that back piece or add an extension to it somehow.
Regards,
Bob
 
It would be great if they would fit w/o any tweaking -- but that is seldom the case.
Click to expand...

And it's been my experience that this is not a one time and forever adjustment. At speed there is an airfoil effect which likes to pull the top of the curtain out a bit, and, over time, this, too, amounts to a "soft bend." I've been guilty, for a temporary fix, of putting a penny between the top of the front bracket and the front arm of the sidescreen, then closing the dzus fitting. The problem with this quick fix is that you eventually have to go to a nickel, then a quarter….
 
Perrymip said:
The problem with this quick fix is that you eventually have to go to a nickel, then a quarter….
Click to expand...

Hmmmm....... that could get expensive!

Because my AMCO frames are aluminum, they are notoriously susceptible to the airfoil effect. I solved the problem by putting snaps in the top rubber seal with matching parts in the inside weather flap of the top. After I close the door, I can snap myself in and be warm and cozy (sort of). I did a trial fit of the OEM curtains and found that the brackets would have to be mounted outside of the precut holes in the door panel, and that is why I was thinking that the side curtain arms needed to be bent (and that could also be why I got the curtains for such a good price). My AMCO units are not pretty but they work, so I guess I'll just lick my wounds, keep using them and let someone else figure out how to made the nice curtains fit.

Joe :blue:
58 TR3A
 
I pull the door panel off and plug the holes with small wooden dowels and glue so I can re-drill the wholes where the screw wants to go into the old hole and pull the frame off, making sure I do not drill through the door. Then I put the door panel back on. Make sure the top is on and if you have a hard top also you need to find a happy medium because the hard top sits lower and the door will not close if you have done a nice rag top fit only. Next I attached the brackets to the side-curtain and have someone help hold the side-curtain were I want it. Now trace out the bracket right on the vinyl with soap stone or chalk pull the brackets off the side curtain. Now I mount the brackets to the door by first taking a sharp punch right through the vinyl and panel and sometimes drill through both off them to mark the frame. now I take the panel back off so I can see where I drill the holes. Most brackets are slotted where the screw goes and I try and center that so I have wiggle room for fine tuning. They often still do not fit perfect and some shimming is nice and like Geo suggested the fit at the window is vital.
 
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