Sorry folks but this post is for Chris KC, unfortunately I couldn't come up with a means of sending him these by PM.
I found these pics of Ruby's sliding rails which, if you enlarge them they show two slotted drain holes, one directly at the rear of the cross member and one a little further back.
I will try to measure the sizes and locations but this will be tomorrow.
Hope this helps
Cheers Denis S
Measurements would still be of interest though - yes please!
One thing which has surprised me was that when checking the fixing hole spacing in the original (RP) track set, I found they are all over the place - looks like the holes were just drilled by eye!
Not sure you can compare the Ruby frame with the RP, one “assumes” Austin would make changes with later models to improve on previous designs or am I being naive.
I will check my frame and its hole locations in the morning but suspect they be the same as Colin’s.
Cheers
I think the basic 'design' of the Ruby frame is the same as the RP, but some dimensions are different.
The pics I posted on the other thread suggest a closer spacing on the RP - my guess would be still 1" long but perhaps 5/16" or 3/8" apart.
So yes I'd still be interested in measurements from a Ruby, but if anyone out there has an RP and a ruler it would be great to hear from you.
18-11-2023, 02:19 PM (This post was last modified: 18-11-2023, 02:22 PM by Denis Sweeney.)
Hi Chris, as promised, I have measured the drain slots in the sliding rails on Ruby, as confirmed there are two slots on each side, each slot being 1 inch long.
The forward slot is located directly adjacent to the cross rail so that it completely drains away any water to the rear of the cross rail.
The second slot is located 1 1/2" to the rear of the forward slot.
On my Ruby from the outside you cannot see the forward slot as it is covered by the rubber seal strip. My guess is that the rear slot drains the bulk of the water and the forward slot drains anything that gets past the rubber seal strip??
I attach some pics, the first of which, with a certain amount of jiggery pokery with a torch, shows both the slots and you can just make out the cross rail thro' the forward slot and as I say it is directly adjacent to allow full drainage.
The second shows the rear slot on the offside and it's relationship, just behind the rear rubber seal strip.
The third shows the roof sealant that I used from Woolies which they say is the nearest thing to the original Dum Dum, I remember discussing this with you, the colour is deceiving in the pic, it is not as bright as it looks in reality.
As always I cannot say what I have done is as "As original" but I believe the sliding rails are original and whilst I did a lot of reworking and welding on the rails this never had any impact on the drainage slots .......... and yes I have been previously castigated for the use of cross head screws on the roof rails, it is the only place I used them, but the reason was simple, I kept slipping trying to screw normal screws and thought it safer using the cross headed screws than risk damaging the finished paintwork!!
You have said what I hoped you would say, that the f'wd hole coincides with the transverse section, such that any water running along it is scooted straight out to the side.
Also your pic seems to confirm that the full vertical 'side' of the rail is removed.
Based on the limited info available I think the RP is only different in the separation of the holes - it's noticeably less in the pics I posted (I'd still be delighted to receive a measurement from an RP though!)
On the sealant Denis, did you not find it hard to squish down? That 3M stuff seems fairly firm & clay-like.
I went halves on a pack with a chum but he has elected to use sealant from a cartridge instead - I haven't made my mind up yet as I'm still a little way off from that task.
No it squashed down quite easily when it’s all screwed down in place, but it is very tacky to use.
The blurb says it can be overpainted but I left mine as laid and it has never hardened off at all
