Hey - did you know if you click on the title of a thread it will take you to the first unread post since you last visited that thread?
but were afraid to ask: 
STOP!! Never post your email address in open forums. Bots can "harvest" your email! If you must share your email use a Private Message or use the 
smilie in place of the real @
Pretty Please - add it to our Events forum(s) and add to the calendar! >> 
Getting ready to paint my TR3.. and having trouble with a rear fender. The bolts that one can see in the boot (trunk) have slotted screw heads and the nuts on the inside of the fender appear to be captured. I managed to get the passenger side rear fender loose and pulled the moulding out but the driver's side is another story. I've already twisted one half of the head off and another one seems to just sit and spin even though the nut is still fixed. Is this the normal bolt/nut? I'm ready to just cut the bolts with a chisel and replace nuts and bolts but wanted to know if anyone had any tricks to getting these things loosened. I don't want to damage the fender with the chisel /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/nonod.gif if I don't have to. (I sprayed them twice inside and out with lubricant at least 2 weeks in advance) Actually no apparent rust in the fenders or boot side but bolts are a little crunchy.
-
Hey Guest!
British Car Forum has been supporting enthusiasts for over 25 years by providing a great place to share our love for British cars. You can support our efforts by upgrading your membership for less than the dues of most car clubs. There are some perks with a member upgrade!**Upgrade Now**
(PS: Upgraded members don't see this banner, nor will you see the Google ads that appear on the site.)
Need help getting rear fender off
- Thread starter jayhawk
- Start date
Share this page
martx-5
Yoda
Offline
The ones on the inside of the fender (I count nine of those) have captured nuts in the dogleg piece. The ones inside the trunk (5 Slotted screws) have the captured nuts on the fender itself. What happens, is that the nuts get rusted to the screws and when you go to remove them, the captured nuts (which are square) turn in the little housing holding them in place. Once this happens, about the only thing to do is cut or drill the head off of the screw. The captured nuts in the fender, and the first two up by the rear valance can be easily replaced. The others inside the dogleg are more of a problem.
There are two ways (that I know of) to replace the captured nuts. One is to drill out the spot welds holding the housing on and weld in new pieces. The other way is to grind down as much of the screw sticking out as possible. Then you can pry open one side of the nut housing, pop the nut out, install a new one, and squeeze the housing shut again.
I'm going through all of this an my TR3 resto, and so far, I've found the easiest way to get the screws off is to just drill off the heads. Since they are 1/4" shank bolts, I've been using a small stubby drill to start the hole in the middle of the head, and then a drill that is slightly larger then 1/4" (say 5/16"). That size isn't critical. You just want it larger, so when you get through the head, it falls off.
There are two ways (that I know of) to replace the captured nuts. One is to drill out the spot welds holding the housing on and weld in new pieces. The other way is to grind down as much of the screw sticking out as possible. Then you can pry open one side of the nut housing, pop the nut out, install a new one, and squeeze the housing shut again.
I'm going through all of this an my TR3 resto, and so far, I've found the easiest way to get the screws off is to just drill off the heads. Since they are 1/4" shank bolts, I've been using a small stubby drill to start the hole in the middle of the head, and then a drill that is slightly larger then 1/4" (say 5/16"). That size isn't critical. You just want it larger, so when you get through the head, it falls off.
trrdster2000
Luke Skywalker
Offline
jayhawk, if you don't already have a Dremel you need to get one, as you will get a lot of use out of it in restoring or home use. Take a reinforced cut off wheel, grind the slot deeper in the screw, about 1/8 inch, one of two things will happen. You will now have a slot the screwdriver doesn't slip out of and will be able to break it loose or grind a bit deeper and the head will split with the screwdriver pressure, the other half will stay so if you can't get a whack at it then grind the half in half and proceed. Just be sure to use safty glasses in this confined space. Wayne
Re: rear fender and "fender savers:
Thanks again, gents-- Nice to know at least that it's a common problem-- I like the Dremmel idea and a great thing to put on my Christmas list /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif In the meantime, I'll try the drill thing or cut the nuts that are in the most awkward postion. About the captured nuts-- About 20 years ago, I got from a guy several "fender savers"-- they were arched pieces of metal, about 1" long and 7/16" wide with a threaded hole in the middle and two smaller holes each side of the threaded hole. You could feed these lengthwise thru a hole in the fender and hold them in place against the inside of the fender with a piece of wire thru the smaller holes. Inserting the bolt into the threaded center drew the arched metal piece against the fender. That solved the need for the captured nut because the arched "wing" would bind against the inner fender and hold it. I had a few of these but have tried to purchase them many times before-- never could find them. I used what I had for my old volkswagens which also tended to lose the captured nuts on the fender. Anyone seen anything like this? It's sort of the same concept as using those spring activiated wing nuts thru plasterboard (only better).
Thanks again, gents-- Nice to know at least that it's a common problem-- I like the Dremmel idea and a great thing to put on my Christmas list /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif In the meantime, I'll try the drill thing or cut the nuts that are in the most awkward postion. About the captured nuts-- About 20 years ago, I got from a guy several "fender savers"-- they were arched pieces of metal, about 1" long and 7/16" wide with a threaded hole in the middle and two smaller holes each side of the threaded hole. You could feed these lengthwise thru a hole in the fender and hold them in place against the inside of the fender with a piece of wire thru the smaller holes. Inserting the bolt into the threaded center drew the arched metal piece against the fender. That solved the need for the captured nut because the arched "wing" would bind against the inner fender and hold it. I had a few of these but have tried to purchase them many times before-- never could find them. I used what I had for my old volkswagens which also tended to lose the captured nuts on the fender. Anyone seen anything like this? It's sort of the same concept as using those spring activiated wing nuts thru plasterboard (only better).
MGTF1250Dave
Jedi Knight
Offline
Aloha Jayhawk
Last month my car club had a tech session to remove the fenders from my son's TR3A. The rear fenders presented the same problem you described. the rear fender would not be reused because previous damage and several layer of bondo, a sawsall was used to cut those bolts. Not a procedure for good body panels, but effective. Good luck on your TR3 and welcome to the forum.
Safety Fast,
Dave
Last month my car club had a tech session to remove the fenders from my son's TR3A. The rear fenders presented the same problem you described. the rear fender would not be reused because previous damage and several layer of bondo, a sawsall was used to cut those bolts. Not a procedure for good body panels, but effective. Good luck on your TR3 and welcome to the forum.
Safety Fast,
Dave
Ya know, 1 finger typing is a pain in the A$$. If you havnt got the fender off, email me I will give you my PH#, and explain how to get them off and still be able to save the fender, the cage nuts, and the screws. Been doing this $h*t for years, not the best by any means but have picked up some useful tips.