headlights

[davidallen]

My +2 bonnet was an horrendous fit, sitting a good 1/2 inch below the wings
in the middle above the carbs and at the front edge.

I tried bending it to shape while applying mild heat to no effect. This was
due to the large flange which resisted any re-shaping.

To reform, I cut through the flange in several positions which allowed the
bonnet to flex easily. I pot riveted ally strips under tension to the outer
edge to apply a greater curve, and when the bonnet fitted correctly, I
glassed the inside and removed the strips.

All holes were then filled in and the result was one correctly fitting
bonnet ready for repainting.

David

-----Original Message-----
From: ***@***.***lto:***@***.*** Behalf
Of William Sebestyen
Sent: 30 April 2006 02:28
To: ***@***.***
Subject: Re: [LotusElan.net] headlights

Rich,

I beg to differ with your statement fiberglass is a rock-solid medium. I've
been working with this material for a long time, mostly boat and Lotus
repairs and refinishing. Fiberglass distorts, stretches and twists. These
are all a result of creep, especially a elevated temperatures. Just take a
look a most elan doors, they distort with time do to a long term but modest
load caused by the door seals. This is what causes a lot of doors to stand
proud of the body at the rear lower corner.

We see the same thing on the hood (bonnet). On an S2 Elan, the front springs
load the bonnet with a constant but modest load in the presence of engine
heat. Over time, the front edge is pulled down and bending occurs over a
fairly large area. This is cased by material creep to which Polyester resin
appears particularly suseptable. I suspect epoxies are better in this
regard. Also the ratio of glass to resin is important. It's the resin that
creeps, not the glass.

Bill





--- In ***@***.***, "Roger Sieling" <rogsie@...> wrote: