Hi All,
Please look at these pictures.
Having a lot of trouble trying to stuff the A-Pillar hockey stick piece into the cap.
Any suggestions on how I can do this? I am trying to avoid using pliers and scratching the chrome.
Suggestions welcome! Thanks Bob
Bob
This may be due to the trim panel that runs up the side of the windscreen sitting too high. If you remove the small trim panel and chrome scroll at the base of this trim panel, you can pull the trim panel off and by gently moving the exposed trim clips so the panel sits slightly lower, you should be able to refit the top chrome finisher and pull it down neatly into place. Then refit the scroll and small trim piece. Use the top screw to gently tighten down and ease the finisher over the edges of the screen chrome trim rather than trying to force the finisher on.
Tony
Bob, if you are using repro parts it is certainly a struggle in particular because of the angle of the hockey stick.
You will need a lot of persuasive force to get the cap fitted. And as recommended by Tony, best is to do the job before fitting the inner trim piece.
I have used 2 rubber protected clamps to press the hockey stick as much as possible, this helped significantly the process.
Good luck!
Hi Tony, Ralph,
The caps I have are OE from this XKE. They were rechromed, so I am thinking are that they are too thick with new chrome thus making the internal diameter of the cap smaller. Less room for all of these pieces to sandwich into the cap.
I ordered new cap pieces today and will try these when they arrive. I will update the forum with the outcome.
Thanks, Bob
Bob
Before fitting the cap over everything, try fitting the hockey stick only into the cap and check that the two shapes fit one another, it could just be that during the chroming process that the hockey stick has been very slightly altered in shape. By checking first it may be that you will have to ease the shape of the top of the hockey stick to match the internal shape of the cap. It is unlikely that the new chrome will be much thicker than the old, bear in mind the old has to be removed before applying the new, so any difference will be marginal.
New rubbers can be both thicker/thinner and harder/softer than the old originals, so again if you have a combination of harder and thicker rubbers then you will have a greater struggle to bring all the components together to fit the cap. This problem with rubbers can be extended to all rubbers around the car, one typical example is the rubber fitted to the B posts, every supplier seems to have a different rubber to the extent that some owners have to resort to cutting a slice from one edge to reduce the thickness before they can achieve a reasonable fit without having to slam the door.
So it may be worth checking the shape of the new rubbers you fitted with the old if you still have them, at least then you will know if that is a contributory factor in the top cap problem.
Tony
Hi All,
I received the new caps.
Here is the difference in the chrome thickness:
Today I was able to install the right side and fit “all” into the new cap pieces.
Tomorrow I will work on the left side. I will need to start from scratch, drill out the rivets, remove the hockey stick (bottom front is sticking out from the windshield by 1/4 inch, remove the interior trim piece and start from scratch.
I will carefully work the hockey stick chrome piece, molding it into the shape of the windshield and A-Pillar using a set of “new” pliers that I purchased that have padded clamps…
Will post results tomorrow. Thanks, Bob
