Forum - RE: Motor mover protection

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Repairs, maintenance and accessories � Improving your pride and joy and how to fix things �

Motor Mover Protective Covers

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#31

RE: Motor mover protection

in Improving your pride and joy and how to fix things Wed Oct 08, 2014 12:31 pm
by Aaron Calder •

| 3.834 Posts

Quote: Pop540 wrote in post #30
please can we have a picture, just really to see what is being discussed
and to fore warn you of any eggs

Pictures as requested:

1. This one is of the under surface of the roller shroud taken with the aid of a mirror. You can see the end of the stainless steel Allen bolt recessed in the innermost hole. The rubber bung that I removed to gain access to it can be seen on the surface of the mirror to the right.

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2. From the side you can see how tight the clearances are for getting a spanner of some description into the top of the shroud in order to hold the Nylok nut while unscrewing the bolt

P1010425.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

3. From this angle you can see the top of the shroud in which there is another rubber bung that I've yet to remove. I'm hoping that when the wheel is removed there will be enough room to get a box spanner or miniature socket onto the Nylok nut without having to drop the mover assembly from the chassis to gain access. If need be, I'll cut a box spanner down with an angle grinder and hold it with Mole grips. If you look in the slot below the roller, you will see the stones and general crap that has got into the shroud and is proving so difficult to remove. The mudflap behind the roller shroud is also covered in crud picked up from French roads and this gives an idea of what must be entering the roller shrouds while towing on dirty roads.

P1010426.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

If I do have a Eureka moment, I'll post details followed by a "How to" guide on making suitable weather covers for the shrouds - assuming of course that a) I decide to proceed with the project and b) that it stops raining.

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#32

RE: Motor mover protection

in Improving your pride and joy and how to fix things Wed Oct 08, 2014 2:31 pm
by Pop540 (deleted)

would taking the wheel arch spat off help? with the wheel removed to remove the covers for cleaning..

my first thought was to create a strip of water proof material and wrap round the outer securing with perhaps 4 press stubs (added to the cover shrouds while removed) and Velcro straps with a buckle on the fabric
you could add a side just to ensure crud doesn't re enter, again you would need to draw round the top cover/shroud while off for the side.. this would give the curve. folding the material place the flat edge (middle) on the fold use a rotary cutter follow the pattern
sew one to the other and you have created a lovely cover, spray with 303

another thought was to add some bent metal possibly riveted to the part of the cover( you have just made), that's closest to the tyre, this would ensure stones and the like didn't damage newly made cover, but ill let you risk assess this idea

material could be vinyl or the stuff trailers have as a cover
if you feel this post is incorrect to the problem please remove..

thanks for posting the photos

Eriba troll 540 likes constant hugs, and buffs and the odd cuppa.

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Last edited Wed Oct 08, 2014 2:35 pm | Scroll up

#33

RE: Motor mover protection

in Improving your pride and joy and how to fix things Wed Oct 08, 2014 3:07 pm
by hob (deleted)

Would it not be possible to steer those stones out of the slot with something like a screwdriver .........or large tweezers? after all they must have gone in that way...............

Vauxhall Insignia Sri towing 2006 Triton 430 import

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#34

RE: Motor mover protection

in Improving your pride and joy and how to fix things Wed Oct 08, 2014 3:34 pm
by Pop540 (deleted)

the crud could be building and seizing something further in, removing covers and de crudding looks to be the best route from the photos.

Eriba troll 540 likes constant hugs, and buffs and the odd cuppa.

#35

RE: Motor mover protection

in Improving your pride and joy and how to fix things Wed Oct 08, 2014 3:40 pm
by Aaron Calder •

| 3.834 Posts

It's Eureka moment time but before all is revealed thank you to Amanda and Hob for your suggestions. There are ideas there, Amanda, that I wouldn't have thought of but my eventual solution should be easy and effective (I hope!). I'd tried poking the stones out, Neville, but there is very limited access and I soon gave up the attempt.

1. Pete was right, a socket will fit provided it is a small one. A 1/2" drive socket would be far too large but a 1/4" drive one was perfect. My largest metric 1/4" socket was 12mm but from prior experience I knew that a 1/2" AF socket would fit a 13mm bolt so luckily I was able to use the one from my 1/4" drive set.

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2. The bottom half of the right-hand side cover came off easily but the top one resisted all my attempts to remove it so it remained in place. This is what I found. The contents weighed 9oz.. Also shown is the stainless steel bolt with its two washers and Nylok nut.

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3. With the housing cleaned and ready to be re fitted, I drilled two small holes in the rear edge to take my proposed fixings.

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4. All went back together very easily and as I now knew how to do it, the cover on the left-hand side was off in no time. This one had more crud in it, this time mainly mud.

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5. This is what came out of the second cover appropriately tipped onto Tracey Emin's so called 'drawings'. (OK, so I'm a philistine.) It weighed 14 oz.

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So at today's close of play, both roller covers have been thoroughly cleaned, drilled for the fixings and replaced. When I have a bit more time on my hands, I'll start thinking about the protective covers and their attachments.

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#36

RE: Motor mover protection

in Improving your pride and joy and how to fix things Wed Oct 08, 2014 5:33 pm
by Agger (deleted)

To me it looks like a piece of old plastic bottle would stop muck getting in there could be taped or cable tied on. Just a thought, looks simple enough, the hard part is done getting rid of the road debris

Likes to wax and have a smooth finish!

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#37

RE: Motor mover protection

in Improving your pride and joy and how to fix things Wed Oct 08, 2014 6:15 pm
by Steamdrivenandy (deleted)

Congrats on actually getting in there Mr T&M. I've been pondering your efforts and wondering if anybody's Reichmover has ever ground to a halt due to muck in the workings. The reason I ask is that in my experience the motors used are v v powerful and would quite happily grind up stones of the size found in your detritus.

Amber a Lunar Quasar 464 Sussex Amberley Sussex Caravans dealer special pushing a '59 reg. Kia Cee'd 3 SW 1.6 CRDi Automatic, a rough towing ratio of 86%.

#38

RE: Motor mover protection

in Improving your pride and joy and how to fix things Wed Oct 08, 2014 7:29 pm
by Pepé Le Pew •

| 2.752 Posts

Quote: Aaron Calder wrote in post #35

So at today's close of play, both roller covers have been thoroughly cleaned, drilled for the fixings and replaced. When I have a bit more time on my hands, I'll start thinking about the protective covers and their attachments.

A result and no mistake.

Nice work, Mr Cauldron

And as far as Tracey Emin and her 'art' is concerned, I couldn't agree more. There is no craft in what she does, and in my book that means you can't properly describe it as art.

A talentless pseudo-celebrity socialite with a face like a bag of spanners.

One other thing. It was a great relief to see that you avoided getting an inadvertent photograph either up your nose or up the leg of your shorts in Mrs Cauldron's best make up mirror.

.

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Last edited Wed Oct 08, 2014 7:36 pm | Scroll up

#39

RE: Motor mover protection

in Improving your pride and joy and how to fix things Wed Oct 08, 2014 8:44 pm
by Aaron Calder •

| 3.834 Posts

Quote: Pep� Le Pew wrote in post #38
One other thing. It was a great relief to see that you avoided getting an inadvertent photograph either up your nose or up the leg of your shorts in Mrs Cauldron's best make up mirror.

Sheer fluke that, mate. Thanks for the kind comments.

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2003 Triton 420 and Audi A4 2.0Tfsi S-line SE Cabriolet

#40

RE: Motor Mover Protection?

in Improving your pride and joy and how to fix things Wed Oct 08, 2014 9:02 pm
by Old Rocker •

| 537 Posts

Brian I'll be having a word this weekend with "my man to find out the wherewithall, he didn't say anything about any problems when he dismantled the covers on my Reich Mover to do a minor repair. As Arnie says I'll be back

OK just gone on to read the 3rd page and see you have resolved the situation forget this post it is a Norwegian Blue

Now all he believes are his eyes, and his eyes they just tell him lies

Last edited Wed Oct 08, 2014 9:04 pm | Scroll up

#41

RE: Motor Mover Protection?

in Improving your pride and joy and how to fix things Thu Oct 09, 2014 11:46 am
by Aaron Calder •

| 3.834 Posts

I've taken advantage of a spell of fine but windy weather to do some more development work on the covers and now have a prototype in place on one side.

1. I'm a great believer in a) using stuff that I already have lying around and b) keeping things simple. Yesterday I was toying with making the covers out of very thin alloy sheet left over from a Velux 'Sun Tunnel' installation. I then considered using 9" wide plastic damp proof course (I'd have had to buy 20 metres minimum though). I also thought about using canvas similar to that used in the pop-top (where to get some?) and then Mrs C, in her typical fashion said, "Why don't you use some of that caravan cover material? Didn't they send you a large piece for repairs?" The woman is a genius! It's thin, strong, waterproof and easy to work with and I had more than enough to make the covers and still have plenty for future repairs..

2. The next step was to make a pattern and once again the good old 72 pack of Weetabix came to the rescue. Here's the template prior to cutting of the fabric. It's a bit of a complicated shape because the roller doesn't lie parallel to the tyre tread so the cover needs to be wider at the inside edge.

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3. Here's the underside of the fabric waiting for the glue to go tacky before folding over the ends so as to strengthen the attachment points.

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4. Next I punched the attachment holes through the double thicknesses of material using a spent .17HMR cartridge that I'd picked up at the range. They make excellent punches for belt holes etc. but you could use one of those rotary headed punches to do the job.

P1010436.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

5. I then made up four S hooks from old wire tent pegs but these were a failure as the holes I'd drilled in the lower covers to take them are blocked by a transverse shaft. Doh! Back to the drawing board. I had considered using metal springs to tension and secure the fabric but as I didn't have any I thought of using a couple of those thick rubber bands that you find on tents and awnings. Then I remembered that when I'd replaced the shockcord on the pop top I'd ordered too much. That would be ideal as being nylon covered it wouldn't rot as quickly as a rubber band. I then decided to attach the shockcord to the cover with a couple of cable ties to give a bit of tension adjustment but on reflection this isn't really necessary and the shockcord could just as easily be tied in a single loop through both holes. I was careful to melt the ends of the cord to stop it fraying after knotting it.

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6. Here's the cover in place. It fits quite snugly and I don't think that any additional means of attachment will be necessary - but time will tell. The cover slides on and off quite easily once the tension on the shockcord is released.

P1010438.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte) P1010439.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

7. I'm quite pleased with the fit of the cover and I'm reasonably confident that it will satisfy the design brief and keep most of the mud and stones out of the roller housings so, overall, I think it has been a successful project. I now have to make one for the other side at which point I will decide whether or not to use the cable ties.

The only thing left is to decide on a name for them. How about 'Motor Mover Gaiters?"

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#42

RE: Motor Mover Protection?

in Improving your pride and joy and how to fix things Thu Oct 09, 2014 12:17 pm
by Randa france •

| 13.287 Posts

Nice job. Perhaps for your first trip out with them, you could temporarily attach them to something just in case they do blow off?
Randa

1999 Eriba Troll 530 pushing a VW Touran 2L TDi Match

#43

RE: Motor Mover Protection?

in Improving your pride and joy and how to fix things Thu Oct 09, 2014 12:45 pm
by Aaron Calder •

| 3.834 Posts

Quote: Randa france wrote in post #42
Nice job. Perhaps for your first trip out with them, you could temporarily attach them to something just in case they do blow off?
Randa

Belt and braces, eh? Not a bad idea.

The gaiter for the other side took 20 minutes to cut out, glue, punch, fit the shockcord, seal the ends and fit onto the mover. Dead easy when you know how. (I didn't use the cable ties on either of the final versions of the gaiters.)

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2003 Triton 420 and Audi A4 2.0Tfsi S-line SE Cabriolet

Last edited Thu Oct 09, 2014 12:47 pm | Scroll up