You know what I did see at Home Depot -- 2'x4' ceiling tiles, about 3/8" thick, fiberglass with white plastic on one side. Flexible and lightweight -- I could glue the plastic to the roof, and do it in sections. What do you think?
Dan - I have a drop ceiling in my bedroom and the panels are 2' x 4' x 3/4". I measured the insulation pads that were in my Red 59 SF and they measured 25" x 53" x 3/4". One side was plain insulation (the side glued to the roof) and the other has a very thin lightweight cloth facing down and they are almost identicle to the original pads. I'm rethinking and inclined to use the drop ceiling panels instead of the Aluminum insulation I have. Some of those panels have a king of textured or plain surface on one side but I think either one would be OK and they are flexible enouth to work good. The panels I saw were 3/4" thick but I can't remember if I saw them at Home Depot or Lowe's. I'm sure you could get the 3/4" from a ceiling installation company
Dick..
So Dick, would you be inclined to glue the non-finished side to the roof, then? Do your think that would provide better adhesion? I don't really know -- just wondering.
Yes I would, I've replaced the hood insulation on my Desoto and Ford that way. Probably likely to have less staining of any kind that way. My inner roof had a light rusting so I osphoed it then painted it with Eastwood Encapsulator
Dick.
Here's a not-so-good pic of the ABS:
It comes in 4' x 8' sheets -- I asked them to cut both sheets down to 5', and cut the remainder into two 2' x 5' pieces.
Then I thought better: The middle headliner section is 22 3/4" wide -- I asked them to cut to that exactly, and then I'd only have to trim the one end. They did it, and I held it up -- fits perfect!
This stuff is very strong, but I bet flexible enough to form into the corners. So now I have a concern: If I don't heat mold the ABS into the corners, and glue the headliner material down while it's flattened out -- will the material bunch up when it's bent into the corners? That is, should I mold it first, and then glue down the headliner material? Molding it might be a big deal, I'd like to avoid it if possible (although, I did buy that heat gun...).
My opinion is: you are very creative, AND determined!
I once had a hardtop (dont recall what make) and it had the perforated vinyl sheet headliner. Dirty, old, ripped, I remember contemplating replacing it, vut wisely decided I lacked the knowledge, talent and patience to replace it.
The Two Amigos (Matthew Keij and Andrew Hakker) arrived from the Netherlands, the first wave of the Dutch Invasion. I snapped into action -- and immediately put them to work on Faulkner's headliner.
The first thing we did was cut down the ABS center panel to the right length. We marked it carefully, then, with Matthew and I holding and Andre manning the jigsaw, we made the cut. The blade traversed the panel, and when it got to the other side -- we realized it had welded itself back together, across the entire length! As the blade cut, it welded back together behind it. This is not going to be so easy...
We snapped the end off and cleaned it up with a file. Andre and Matthew put it in place, holding it up with the clips I made from my extra Caravan strip -- perfect. Now, to tackle the side pieces.
We laid a panel on the ABS -- the old copy from the original, now long gone -- and were puzzled by something; the panel had an arc in it, along what is a straight runner inside the car. Did they muck it up that badly when they cut it? If it should be straight -- should we set the width at the middle of the arc, or strike a line from the two endpoints? What to do, what to do... Matthew had a thought: Let's ask Ed Ober if he has an old panel we could use as a template. What a great idea! I called Ed and Ruth, and fortunately they were home. Ed said he had something kicking around in his basement, he could try to dig it up if we wanted to come over... The Three Amigos piled into Andre's rental and ran over to his house.
Ed and Ruth graciously welcomed us, as they always do -- and Ed showed me the panels. Hey, these are not bad! They need sanding in spots, and the paper cover had separated in spots from the cardboard, but it could be glued back down. Once painted, these would be just great for Faulkner. I asked Ed if, instead of borrowing them as a template, if I could buy them from him. Ed said, NO -- they were mine to keep.
I looked a bit closer, and realized -- laying flat, Ed's panels have an arc in them too! It counters the arc of the roof -- once arched to fit the rail, the arc becomes a straight line. That 'splains it.
The panels cleaned up very nicely -- here are some pix. All told, it took 4 cans of white spray paint -- one for each of Ed's panels, and two to cover the black ABS center panel. No need to cover anything with fabric -- the ABS has a nice pebbled texture, it will do just fine until a perforated panel finds its way to me. (Anyone looking for some perforated headliner fabric, let me know -- oh yeah, I got ABS too!)
What can I say about folks like Ed Ober -- generous to a fault. This hobby is more than just about cars; it's about people, and the way they care about each other. Thank you, Ed.
Dan panel one of two, after sanding but before paintingafter painting! the second came out just as niceABS panel before painting (but after using vinyl prep)ABS after paintingpebble texture of center panelDodge Caravan strips are perfect replacements for the headliner strips -- but, they're whiteafter painting silver
I went back to Home Depot and bought 4 of the 2' x 4' drop ceiling panels (it turns out, 3 is all you need) -- they are 1/2" thick, and it turns out that is just perfect for the one tight spot between the rail and the roof.
The white vinyl facing easily peels off...I used the 3M glue I was going to use for the headliner fabric to glue the tiles to the ceilingYou have to work fast, and you have to be careful -- once it touches down, it's locked in place! Here's a pic of the first piece upAnd here's the roof covered with insulation, with the rails back up
Next, to put the headliner panels back in place. But it's getting late in the day... Enough for now.
Wow! that's a lot of work Dan and the other Amigo's. but it looks like it is all coming together well, Can't wait till the last installment of Headliner Saga!
Dan - You and the two Amigos did a fantastic job, this will certainly make my headliner job a lot easier, in fact everybodys, Since the headliners are cardboard what needed sanding and what grit paper did you use. The white paint, could you share make and number also. I got to tell you one thing, Ed Ober has got to be one hell of a guy. Do you realize how lucky you are to not only live close to him but that anyone would have two outer headliner panel in any condition laying around. Ed is a great guy.
Dick.
