Bonnet prop rod/former 'belt/suspenders"


Pins on either side of shock eye are slightly staggered, coated with shrink tube. Will need a 3/8 " clevis pin to clean up unit. Brass tube is ‘nested’ with second tube. Used brass for easy fabrication as used solder.

Looks nice but why was it necessary? Are the springs not holding it up? If I’m not mistaken, loosening the spring arm brackets and shoving them downward increases spring tension. Mine are down as far as the slotted holes allow and it’s very well counterbalanced that way.

One alternative I haven’t seen mentioned is to just remove the whole mess and install a hydraulic strut. I did that and it holds the bonnet fully open on a very steep drive.

Yes, but our particular car has 2 issues. Even with the springs adjusted for maximum lift, the bonnet still drops (but almost stays up). Unfortunately the links hit the air ducts in this configuration. The bonnet is just plain too heavy.
The bonnet is pieced together from several cars (including a series II, which I welded a Series I front section onto.) I chose to lead the lower rear sections of the fenders and there is lead on the ‘bulge’ also. Add in the filler to smooth the lead work and you’ve got a lot of weight. In addition I won’t run bumpers, my headlamp covers are lexan and even the heavy early horns are replaced with plastic units. These parts are all forward of the balance point.
As you might imagine, the fit isn’t all that great either!
I very well may try a later model strut in the future. Just need to sort out the usual bonnet issues first - but I did need something other than a patient wife to hold things up!
I also wanted the stops to hit evenly on both sides, this required both sides to have different adjustments.

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What are the dimensions of the stock springs? I have a REAL hard time believing one could not EASILY find suitable replacements, or supplemental springs, to achieve a bit higher rate. McMaster-Carr alone has thousands of springs in stock, and even having springs custom made is not generally all that expensive, as the process is so simple.

Regards,
Ray L.

you’re gonna get a ticket driving around with the bonnet open no matter how steep the hill is.

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I can see through the louvers. :rofl:

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I forgot you were 7’ 2".

Besides, with the bonnet open like that, the front license will be cranked under and you will get a ticket for “display of plate”

Front plates? We don’t need no stinking front plates. :grin:

Not in these parts anyway.