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Sun Nov 17, 2019 11:43 am

I have been thinking about making an opening hood. I have thought about doing a complete opening hood but was not sure about how it would look with lights mounted to the hood instead of the fenders. I know Old Red is that way and the Kick-Outs are that way but there are some changes that would need to be made to an original kit with lights mounted to the hood.

(ie: Fill in the original mounts, modifying the hood to hold lights and strengthening it so it would support lights as well as the area where hood was hinged. Would also need to modify body so that the hood could open without hitting the license plate bump.)

My focus changed when I saw the opening hood of one of our attendees at this year's Manx on the Banx. It was not the whole hood but only a section. It also included part of the curved areas down towards the fenders. This will help give the opening part some strength that it would not have if it only had the flat section.

I first laid out the outline with tape.

I then cut the section out.

Then I ground off the paint (not sure why PO painted the underside of the hood) so fiberglass would bond to it.

I used some welding clamps from Harbor Freight to "reattach" the area so I could see how it would look.

I used aluminum and foam tape to keep the the fiberglass from sticking.

I covered the foam with another layer of aluminum tape. This foam will make a "channel" to put weatherstripping in to keep hood from leaking and making noise.

Close up of foam covered with aluminum tape.

Panel clamped into place and proper spacing between panel and main hood.
(tape across to keep the hood in proper shape)

I waxed the tape on the panel and glassed around the clamps.

I skipped a step (no picture sorry). I filled in the areas where the clamps were, took the panel out and removed all the tape. I need to beef it up with a couple more layers of glass then trim it out.

I also need to beef up the support under the panel to allow it to keep the proper shape.

Hood together to check fit. I need to reinforce it, add hinges and a clamp. Hopefully later this week.

Vince

Sun Nov 17, 2019 12:23 pm

This is the method Bim Elliot used on his Deserter. I think it makes a lot of sense as long as the fuel filler can stay mounted on a solid section in a top corner of the hood. I have a Manx 2 with a fiberglass dash I was thinking about doing like this last night.

I'll be following this thread closely

Here is Bim's GS

Sun Nov 17, 2019 12:40 pm

Great idea and nicely executed. Regarding the fuel filler, why not shorten it and simply access is by opening the hood? This is how it works on my Manxter, and it really cleans up the hood lines and simplifies everything.

Sun Nov 17, 2019 12:53 pm

Andy, that is exactly my plan. I also moved the opening higher up the hood so I can reach wiring and put in some storage. My latch will be lockable so I can store valuables in a open buggy.

Sun Nov 17, 2019 12:53 pm

Andy, that is exactly my plan. I also moved the opening higher up the hood so I can reach wiring and put in some storage. My latch will be lockable so I can store valuables in a open buggy.

Sun Nov 17, 2019 1:36 pm

andygere wrote: Great idea and nicely executed. Regarding the fuel filler, why not shorten it and simply access is by opening the hood? This is how it works on my Manxter, and it really cleans up the hood lines and simplifies everything.

The shorter the filler neck the closer the fuel level is to the vent hole. For a primarily street buggy with a partially filled tank that might be OK. When you negotiate rough, off camber trails in hot weather, not so much.

Vent hoses actually usually make that type of situation worse. They'll get a big gulp of fuel and then the pressure in the tank will puke it out in a stream. They just change the location of the fuel spill. The best vent is in the cap on the hood, at least five or six inches above the fuel level.

Sun Nov 17, 2019 4:11 pm

Thanks Nelson, I planned on using a vented cap on shorter fill. I did it on my first 3 buggies and did not have a problem. I am running one on my current buggy and have had no issues in the dunes.

Sun Nov 17, 2019 7:25 pm

Since BL3manx brought up my old yellow Deserter GS and the opening hood, I thought I’d explain it a bit.

Actually this was the second Buggy I added a removable hood to, but this mid-engine car was entirely a sunny day only car that I used dzus quarter turn fasteners to hold the hood down. It worked fine but would have leaked a ton. I didn’t have a roof anyway so a leaky hood wasn’t a real problem.

The hood would come off easily for service or access but would have been a pain to do it just for fuel, so I kept the flip cap.

But adding hinges and a flange or gutter to the underside as Vince is doing makes it way more functional and would eliminate the need for the fuel fill cap.

If you’re really bored, here’s a link showing an earlier opening hood I did 4 decades ago on my Deserter GT. https://bimelliott.shutterfly.com/622
That car was more of a driver and did have a a flange and hidden latches.

I like what Vince is doing and can’t wait to see the final version.

And here’s a pic of the hood open on the yellow car.

Mon Nov 18, 2019 5:10 am

I am definitely needing to do something like this to gain access to the rat's nest behind the dash without pulling the whole dash and windshield off each time!

Mon Nov 18, 2019 10:27 am

nice!

Mon Nov 18, 2019 10:54 am

Vince... Nice to see your name on a thread lead. I thought we lost you to Wing Foiling bayside. Your projects are well thought out - good inspiration for others. Cheers.

Jim

Wed Nov 20, 2019 5:04 am

Just for information the Manxclub (pre the current Meyers Manx operation) used to sell an opening hood kit but I'm not sure they ever sold many. It was a great kit with a strengthening panel molded in underneath for the hinge and light mounts.

Wed Nov 20, 2019 8:27 am

I wonder if the molds survive somewhere... or was it an in-shop cut and paste?

Wed Nov 20, 2019 8:45 am

hillmotorsports wrote: I wonder if the molds survive somewhere... or was it an in-shop cut and paste?

Apparently they weren't made by Bruce but by a friend of his, Bruce was just the middle man, so who knows?

Wed Nov 20, 2019 4:57 pm

Would you happen to have a good photo of that hood? With it all fuzzy and the water marked logo it's hard to see where the separation is on the front of the hood. Thanks!

Wed Nov 20, 2019 6:57 pm

Not the best but here is the hood that Meyers Manx sold a while back.

You can see the "dimples" where the headlight buckets would be moved to. You then have to fill in the raised mounts on the fenders.

I have small molds to add "dimples" to an existing hood. The hood would have to be beefed up, cut and a lip put on the stationary section.

Thu Nov 21, 2019 5:03 am

Ok thanks!

Tue Dec 03, 2019 12:54 pm

I had some time to work on the hood.

I added 2 more layers on the underside to stiffen the perimeter of the opening.

I then used tape to mark off where I would cut the flange.

Flange is cut and I cleaned up the edges.

I added a locking latch and some marine hinges.

This will allow me to lock the hood and give a clean look. I can put a vented gas cap under it and not have a cap or tube sticking through the hood. It will also allow me to have a locked compartment that I can keep valuables in the open dune buggy when parked.

I will need to add the weather stripping to make it as water tight as possible.

Since this was actually a test and not a hood I am going to use on a buggy this is all I will do on it in this thread.

Vince

Tue Dec 03, 2019 1:17 pm

Very nice work and tutorial. This is a very practical hood solution that would work on many buggies out there. I think we’ll be seeing a few of these in the future.

Fri Dec 20, 2019 8:42 pm

Nice trick