[DeTomaso] Viagra for sun visors? (An actual fix)
MikeLDrew at aol.com
MikeLDrew at aol.com
Sun Aug 5 17:35:15 EDT 2007
Hi guys,
I decided to tackle this problem this morning. As you may recall, the
visors each have a pair of brackets screwed to the inside of the car. The
brackets each have a steel pin, over which the visor slides. Tensioning screws
create friction between the visor and the pin.
The problem is that over time, the pins become loose within the plastic
brackets, and spin freely, meaning that all the tension in the world between the
visor and the pin won't do anything.
I took the system apart today, and removed the loose pins from the brackets.
This was not as easy as you'd expect--they would spin, but couldn't be
removed. I wound up chucking the pins into a drill, putting the brackets in a
padded vice, spinning and pulling on the pins until they pulled out.
Here's what they look like:
http://members.aol.com/mikeldrew/VisorBrackets.jpg
I actually have two full sets of brackets; one set is my originals (mid-'72)
and the second set from a '74. Although they look the same externally, I was
fascinated to see that the pins themselves differ slightly.
http://members.aol.com/mikeldrew/VisorPins.jpg
The one on the left is from a later bracket, I believe. Note that the other
two have a groove machined into them, with a plastic ring pressed in; I guess
the theory is that plastic-on-plastic contact would help keep them secure?
The theory is wrong. :<(
When I went to put them back together, I mixed some two-part epoxy and put
some into each cavity. In retrospect, I should have ground a longitudinal
groove in each pin to enable excess epoxy to escape from the cavity more easily.
I figured it would spooge out naturally, but when tapping one of them back
together (put a block of wood on the back side to support the plastic, and
gently tapped the end of the pin to press it into the cavity), one of them
hydro-locked and the plastic split. :<(
Fortunately, it was already filled with epoxy, so it was instantly fixing
itself. :>)
As it turns out, the other three brackets I pulled from the low-mileage '74
were all secure (no spinning) so I elected to just install those instead.
The epoxy is still drying on the fourth one, but I'm confident that they are
fixed for good. :>)
Mike
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