Rubber parts - again!

[trigolf]

During the handbrake refurb, I thought I'd replace the existing gaiter, that has spilt at bottom, with a new one. I ordered this from a well known Triumph parts specialist. Wish I hadn't bothered - looks like it came from an Ann Summers shop! So I'm going to try and repair the old one. I'd happily pay more for a part, if it was at least close to OEM😟

Gav

[johny]

Ha, ha yes supaglue might sort the old one out quite well and then of course ensure the lever only moves the regulation 3 clicks👍

[68vitesse]

I went for leather rather than rubber, home made with offcuts from a local upholsterers.

Regards

Paul.

 

[johny]

Cor business opportunity there😁

[Peter Truman]

I hate patent leather and the wife recently brought an expensive red patent leather handbag, to which I repeatedly say it looks like cheap plastic! She is not amused, I'm getting used to pie and chips for dinner!!

So I understand why the new handbrake cover offends

[Colin Lindsay]

9 minutes ago, Peter Truman said:

I hate patent leather and the wife recently brought an expensive red patent leather handbag, to which I repeatedly say it looks like cheap plastic!

Back around 1980 I 'inherited' a leather jacket from an older brother, very 'in' but brown very shiny leather. Everyone thought it was plastic. 

I too have a leather gaiter, from eBay. Bit of an upgrade, I suppose. 

[johny]

You were lucky Colin I had a leather jacket and it was plastic - I got so much stick its affected my whole life😭

[Josef]

The new gaiter I put on the Spitfire split in half within a year… Still need to get around to replacing it with something less naff. @trigolf what’s your mount board for the gaiter made from there? 

[trigolf]

I replaced the knackered cardboard mount with a bit cut from the side of an old 25ltr plastic drum, scrounged from work. The plastic is as thick as the cardboard and already has the required profile.

[Ian Foster]

16 hours ago, trigolf said:

- looks like it came from an Ann Summers shop!

So, have you tried it on yet?

[Colin Lindsay]

39 minutes ago, Ian Foster said:

So, have you tried it on yet?

I can't think of any body part with that upright rectangular profile...

[Mjit]

Are we sure the new one isn't actually correct and what the old one looked like 50 ro 60 years ago?

[trigolf]

1 hour ago, Mjit said:

Are we sure the new one isn't actually correct and what the old one looked like 50 ro 60 years ago?

Good point, but any press pic I've seen ,when the car was new, shows a dull semi-matt finish - not wet look PVC! It's hideous! How did it get to production???

[johny]

5 hours ago, Ian Foster said:

So, have you tried it on yet?

Whatever you do DONT post a picture🤮

[Eric Smith]

I was looking at the photograph of the replacement Handbrake cover, I think I have a potential solution - you could try nail varnish remover to remove the shine.

(Being P.C.) “People” use nail varnish remover to remove the nail varnish without removing skin so if it’s a protective lacquer or polish on the cover, nail varnish remover should take off the surface layer without damaging the rubber surface.

Do a test section with the remover on a cotton bud first - do it on one of the baseplate edges to see if it removes some or all of the shine - I think the high shine is a just a protective covering or lacquer.

To Trigolf:

Being an old fart who left school to start working in a garage 53 years and a week ago - I think I can say with some confidence that rubber trim was either very matt or had a silky shine, back then - when a car went into the garage either new or used the car cleaners would (if they bothered) give the rubbery bits a wipe over with a cleaning product which added a slight sheen not a shine. I think posh cars who still used rubber gave their products a glaze but never a gloss.

Eric