Yes - my Ruby has the rivets (discs) like the one(s) in Ruairidh's picture - but my wheel-arch covers (as replaced by the previous owner around 1970) are held in place only by being trapped by the panel above and the seat - so no rivets or glue. This allows them to easily removed again at any time.
(A piece of underlay has been used as padding - originally is not the car's strongest suit.)
Hugh, my Ruby had no interior at all when purchased and was firing blind so to speak. My interior wheel arches were virtually non existent once all the pop rivetted aluminium and filler were removed and there was no physical evidence of anything to which the upholstery covering attached to.
So I glued my coverings to the wheel arches but did use a scrim foam backing between the upholstery and the metal which IMO gave it a much better feel once installed. The scrim foam is a thin layer of foam attached to a thin cloth backing which makes it suitable for stitching and strengthens the foam. I used this on all my interior door cards and side panels above the wheel arches.
All my interior materials including the scrim foam I purchased from Woolies.
I attach a few pics of how I went about things which may or may not be of assistance.
Yes, the descriptions you have provided of the orginal set up were exactly as I remember it. A curved piece of ply following the wheel arch (adjacent to the side panel of the bodywork), another horizontal piece at the base of the wheel arch next to the seat base and then a further horizontal piece at floor level at the base of the wheel arch. And, indeed, these were rivitted in place with bifurcated rivits inserted from the exterior. 'Inside' the shape formed by these (perhaps 1/4" in depth) was some wadding that was what appeared to be high density horse hair or similar) The rexine cover was pinned in place to the ply strips by small tacks.
I think I will omit the ply - it seems a bit of a faff and unecessary with modern day adhesives but will use some thin polyester padding to soften the lines of the finished cover. My main problem is the interior side panels are in place (and have been for many years) and as they help hold the window in place, I am loathe (too lazy) to remove them. I may have to to do the job satisfactorily, perhaps..
Thanks once again for the input. Hopefully this will be useful to others in the future...
(07-01-2024, 05:06 PM)Hugh Barnes Wrote: My main problem is the interior side panels are in place (and have been for many years) and as they help hold the window in place, I am loathe (too lazy) to remove them.
If you tape the glass in place on the outside, you should find it stays where it is when you remove the side panels. Once the panels are out, you can use further tape on the inside of the glass and leave it taped up until it's time to refit the panels. If the glass does come out it's not that difficult to re-fit it but it is a bit of a phaff and taping it in place works and is the better option.
That's helpful, Steve. I think I have also read somewhere that putting a piece of string round the inside of the rubber section and then pulling on it once the panel is in place, is the easiest way of getting the edge of the seal to sit correctly inside the recess of the panel window opening. Though I have not tried it...
07-01-2024, 06:30 PM (This post was last modified: 07-01-2024, 06:31 PM by Denis Sweeney.)
On fitting the rear window on Ruby that too has the glass held in place by a rubber moulding and I used the string method. I really struggled to pull the rubber through the metal opening to begin with, however a very thin smear of washing up liquid on the rubber made the job sooo much easier.
