Been meaning to get around to installing the kits I bought from LMC last summer ... and finally gave the Chalet's hood one big yank too many. Uhoh, folded. Not like in half, but the center was an inch and a half, two inches too tall when I did get it closed /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
So, folks, here's what K5NUTT my guru tells me : LUBE YOUR HOOD HINGES. Lube them well, lube them often -- hoods are expensive. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
I lubed the h&ll out of the hinges, but given the kinks I'd put in the sheetmetal, that wimpy stamped stamped thing from LMC just didn't seem up to it.
Used a coupla pieces of angle iron, 1/8" by 1", and cut to length. Drilled them up about the same as the LMC kit, and they fit nicely.
Took the hood off, remembering to mark hood alignment first, and carefully stood on the offending kink and hopped up and down a bit to flatten it. (Adjust if you're super-Bubba size, as I'm like a medium-Bubba /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif)
Put the hood back on. This is where kids are useful -- slave labour! Bolted the new braces up and screwed the sheetmetal screws in, tightened everybody up, and voila, the hood is as well aligned as ever.
Now, the LMC kits will be good for the other trucks which aren't completely bunged yet; but there's a lesson here. LUBE YOUR HOOD HINGES (Doug says do 'em at oil changes).
Note to the cheapskates like me: Two pieces angle iron, 2.5' to 3' long, and a dozen or so #14x5/8 sheet metal screws. Donno if it's worth the $15 or whatever LMC gets for it, but for the non-fabricator-minded, they are easy to install.
-- A
So, folks, here's what K5NUTT my guru tells me : LUBE YOUR HOOD HINGES. Lube them well, lube them often -- hoods are expensive. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
I lubed the h&ll out of the hinges, but given the kinks I'd put in the sheetmetal, that wimpy stamped stamped thing from LMC just didn't seem up to it.
Used a coupla pieces of angle iron, 1/8" by 1", and cut to length. Drilled them up about the same as the LMC kit, and they fit nicely.
Took the hood off, remembering to mark hood alignment first, and carefully stood on the offending kink and hopped up and down a bit to flatten it. (Adjust if you're super-Bubba size, as I'm like a medium-Bubba /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif)
Put the hood back on. This is where kids are useful -- slave labour! Bolted the new braces up and screwed the sheetmetal screws in, tightened everybody up, and voila, the hood is as well aligned as ever.
Now, the LMC kits will be good for the other trucks which aren't completely bunged yet; but there's a lesson here. LUBE YOUR HOOD HINGES (Doug says do 'em at oil changes).
Note to the cheapskates like me: Two pieces angle iron, 2.5' to 3' long, and a dozen or so #14x5/8 sheet metal screws. Donno if it's worth the $15 or whatever LMC gets for it, but for the non-fabricator-minded, they are easy to install.
-- A
