Vintage Unsolicited Testimony -- five stars

Awesome, how do they fit? Pictures please

Would love to see BEFORE and AFTER Shots!  A new posted picture of Merlot is overdue (it's not Rocket Science).

 

 

Smart move Kelly.  I had the same problem with my VS windows and got soaked the first time I drove in a rainstorm.  The windows just didn't go into the slots where the window edges are supposed to fit.  At the rear of the windown I could almost put my fist through the gaping hole , the fit was so poor.  I ordered some stayfast fabric from Kirk---same stuff as the canvas like stuff the windows are made of.  Then I had a local upholstry guy sew additional fabric around the windows to make them large enough to get up into the slots.  Now the car is almost water proof even in the heaviest rain.

 

The attached picture shows the extra strip that was added and the rulers show the amount of additional fabric that was added.  I used a cardboard template attached to the windows to show the upholstry guy the new window dimensions I wanted.

 

Kelly's windows are going to be neater because they were made the right size while mine had to have the added pieces---but you don't see them because the sewed on pieces are up into the channel.  Cheap, easy fix.  There are many things that can be done to the VS type cars to make them roadworthy in any weather.

 

John must have been having a bad day as he is usually very helpful and 4 Carlisles ago he spent a lot of time pointing out to me what can be done to block any and all water intrusion in a pan based Speedster.

 

Kelly and I don't need any stinking roll up windows.

At times Kirk has gone way above the board for me, example was I called Monday afternoon, I  asked Cathy if they had a black quarter boot in stock ( I needed for pics this weekend) and it arrived here 2 days later. Cathy is your go to person for parts ordering at VS

Cathy is the best.  Never rushed and always helpful--a real sweetheart and a huge asset for Kirk.

Yup, she promptly replied to my email order the other day.

I purchased additional material from Kirk and had my local canvas boat guy sew on extensions. The top and doors now seal nicely and with the heat mod I got from Kirk (n/c) I have to turn my heat DOWN in cold weather. 38F here this AM. Winter is coming this year. 

Kirk can be a real gem at times for sure.

If all Vintage Speedsters leak because of side curtains that are too short(mine did too).  Why don't they just make them with the adjustment needed to make them more snug? Or at least make it an option for wetter climates. 

 

FYI if the side curtains are a bit short at the top you can slide a short ( 1/4 - 3/8") piece of fuel hose over each side curtain posts, this will raise the SC a bit higher while still having them make contact with the top of the door...being sure the safety strap will still fasten to the door panel.

Alan--I had to add over 3" to my windows!

 

Marty---good question---surely they should be made to fit.  What a concept---right?

Congrats on your car being in the US of A.  Won't be long now.  I'd be to excited to sleep.

Will send pictures directly.  Also, I mentioned only Kirk in my testimony, and that is really not fair, as my dealings were with him initially, but more directly with Cathy.  So my kudos (?) go to her as well.

 

The pic enclosed here is of the pattern I developed for the new side curtains, and the dotted line on this pattern shows the profile of the original.  I really do not know why they can't make these things so they fit first off.  Maybe way back when, the tops that were made were smaller/lower, and the side curtain pattern they used worked.  Then the tops were improved or changed some how and the side curtains kept the same as they always were.  I really do not know.  But the situation here as Jack has pointed out, is really silly.

What's the process for opening/closing the doors?

 

Doesn't the top interfere with the side window movement as the door is moved?

You tuck the Windows into the top
Seals pretty good

Gordon, you do have to "help" the windows a little.  When I get into the car and close the door the window tops are on the outside of the car then you tuck them into the slots by hand.  Works well.  When you open the door you don't have to do anything they just pull out of the slots neatly as the door when opening pulls the tops out of the slot.  Really easy peasy.

 

Daang, Kelly--I still say you win the shiney paint award!  John's painter is just sensational.

Yes, I have watched with interest as Jack has used his new, larger side curtains, and the fold-it-in-by-hand maneuver seems to work without much issue.  I saw the same sort of thing on Dusty Johnson's car, and came to believe that I needed a different size/shape curtain. The fabric is flexible enough that opening should not be a big deal.  If it still might be a little windy at speed, or leaky, I'd consider a little patch of Velcro here or there to offer more security.  Might not actually need that.

That's all well and good, El Frazoo, but how is your motor situation?

 

And for that matter, what is up with Todd's as well? Anybody know?

My motor situation is: not much changed.  I have procured a new coil and anew Pertronix, and await installation, of same, perhaps tomorrow.  Will post up as that goes along.  Other items needing checking: valve clearances (did I bend a push rod??) spark plugs (how do they look??), plus the usual yearly: oil and filt change.  I have been a slug this summer wrt the car.  Also thoroughly discombobulated about my headlight electrical problems, still unresolved.  Will post about this too.          

Bump:

 

I have posted elsewhere about  my "engine situation", which seems to be fixed with new ignition parts.

 

So this is about closing the loop on the side curtain issue, which is where this started.  I got my new side curtains from Vintage, as promised, and they were made well enough.  Copied the overall pattern I sent, and the stitchery is top notch.  And as mentioned, this was an even swap for my old curtains, no additional cost to me.  Pretty cool.  But all was not perfect, I am duty bound to report.  In the construction of the new curtains, aside from being taller to properly engage the top, they were to be longer to sit well with the top at the aft of the door.  In order for all to come out right, and use the existing door sockets for the pins, the pins needed to be placed just so.  This little detail was missed, and so the pins were placed in the pattern too far aft, as it turns out. A communication problem, I guess.  The fix was for me to drill new holes in the door trim piece so the curtains would align as intended.  This was tricky.  I now have four receptacles in each door trim piece, which is not what I wanted, but it works.  Also, ,the strap that snaps to the inner door surface was likewise not put in the right place, ,and so does not line up w/ the snap on the door.  I'm thinking this will end up being superfluous, and I can get along without the strap snapped.  So we ended up not getting all the details just right.  But the pics attached show the end result, and a road test confirms that the curtains seal the opening very much better than the originals.  So I'll say good enough.  No exposure to rain yet, but I am sure things will be better, which is to say I'll still need my towel.

 

This is the before situation, very sloppy fit, pattern much too small

 

 

 

And after:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the after arrangement, side curtains all tucked into the top pocket all the way around.

 

I bought a yard of material and 6 feet of piping from Kirk. I took the curtains to my boat canvas guy. He cut a cardboard pattern of the enlarged curtains and added the material to my existing windows. You have to push the edges into the pocket but it fits very tight. Comping that with Kirk's heater mod and adding a thermostat, flaps, and a thermostatically controlled oil cooler and I have enough heat for 15F. 

 

Kahuna, what is "Kirk's heater mod"?

 

Thanks, Will

I'll wait until the weather gets to 15 F, and then give you a report.  

 

Wonder if it will start at that temp??  Anyhow,

 

I have heater boxes, and they do "work", sort of.  Takes a while to be putting out heat, but there is a strong flow of air, and I have been out in rainy weather in the lower 40s, and have managed OK.  I'd expect a bit of improvement here, as the leak rate of heated air out of the car should be lowered with this improvement.  I think the JPS approach to weather tightness runs something like this: Hey, it never rains in So CA, nor gets too cold, so who needs side curtains?

Kirks heater mod is very simple.... you connect the heater boxes directly to the vent pipes running under the doors. This way you bypass the distribution box in the frame. The way it is set up you are compressing the air floor into smaller spaces that are cold and slowing the air flow. With the direct connection the air and heat flow is amazing. The only downside is the engine noise is increased significantly. If you live in a very cold climate you need to add the flaps and a Tstat. Likewise the oil flow flow valve with a Tstat for your oil cooler. It still take about 10 minutes for my engine to reach normal operating temp. Prior to the mods my engine would never get hot enough to put out any heat to speak of. I  have a very high power custom stereo that drowns  out the engine noise anyway. Plus I was a musician in the 60's and cannot hear worth a crap anyway.