Grinding down nutserts .. not necessary is it? (1 Viewer)

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Tomorrow at 9 AM is the Line-X appt. I know , I know .. you're think, what So soon??? :flipoff2:


Anyway, I talked to a bodyshop guy today that suggested I just buy some muffler repair tape and use small pieces to cover the nutserts before spraying. I suppose I could grind them down, but I don't want them to inadvertantly detatch and drop into the interior. Probably slim chance of that, but I also want to keep the things viable in case for some inexplicable reason I ever need them.

ANyway, any reason I really must grind them down?

I'll use as small a piece of tape as it takes to perhaps provide a smooth transition from nutsert top surface to rooftop. . . or is that too much area of Line-X which won't be directly bonding to the roof? If so I can always just cut out a square big enough to cover the nutsert only.

Please advise .. :)


TY
 
If the rivnuts are to be retained, then you might consider inserting short allen set screws in each rivnut. First coat the threads with a non hardening sealant, such as one of the thick Form-a-gasket products that comes in a tube (exact flavor escapes me). This approach will be quite a bit more durable than muffler tape.

If the whole point is to eliminate the roof rack, then I would drop the interior head liner, remove the rivnuts, and pay somebody to weld up the holes.

If it is not worth that expense, then I would just seal up the rivnuts with the same sealant, buy some of the rubber gaskets from landtank, glue the gaskets down with appropriate adhesive procured from an auto body supply shop, and reinstall the factory roof rack.

In no case would I be very happy to rely on only line x and muffler tape to prevent water intrusion.
 
Would locktite work as a sealer as well? I'm going out tonite to try and locate some potential solutions. Tomorrow AM some of the other auto places will be open that might have the allen set screws.


With the metal tape, I was under the impression that it would be a viable solution because 1) It would cover the nutsert hole, and never be exposed to wear. 2)Slope downhill over the extended nutsert providing drainage if for some odd reason the Line-X failed.

One scenario which is scary is if the Line-X breeches after a slow collision with a low hanging garage entrance, and then allows water to seep into the area surrounding a nutsert. Just a matter of time before it collected enought to rise up, and potentially into and down the nutsert and onto the headliner below :eek:

Makes the idea of the allen set screws and sealant quite wise. Better to rule out all possible risks because once the Line-X is down, thats it ...

Thanx for the ideas Rich,


TY
 
T Y L E R said:
One scenario which is scary is if the Line-X breeches after a slow collision with a low hanging garage entrance, and then allows water to seep into the area surrounding a nutsert. Just a matter of time before it collected enought to rise up, and potentially into and down the nutsert and onto the headliner below :eek:

Makes the idea of the allen set screws and sealant quite wise. Better to rule out all possible risks because once the Line-X is down, thats it ..


TY[/SIZE][/COLOR]

I was thinking the same thing as I was reading the last post, except I was thinking you should be concerned with exactly what sealant you are using as you would not want that to walk its way down to the headliner either.

Another word of caution, I would think tape of any kind is going to provide a potential breech in your line-x down the road as its not sticking right to the roof. I would seal in some screws and spray right over the top. Really, what is the likelyhood you are going to need them again? And if you do, dig'em out of the line-x at that time.

Good luck! Glad I dont even have to consider these things:D
 
Ok, I went out and bought a small can of aircraft grade form-a-gasket. I also found a fastener place that opens at 8 AM tomorrow. So I'll g down and buy some allen head set screws and do this right. Once they're in and set, I'll have the guy scuff it all up at the same time as he does the other areas.

I wonder if SS is the way to go with the hardware?


TY
 
So the plan is to line-x over the bolts?

If it were me I would grind off the nutserts and then place a tape over the holes. If a nutsert did fall into the headliner it would probably roll off to a side and get stuck eliminating any rattling... hopefully. Once you line-x over the nutserts you won't be able to use them again (the line-x will encase them) so there isn't much point in keeping them around. If you don't grind them down you might still see them a bit under the line-x especially if you put bolts in them. Hard to say.
 
You are right that you may rub some linex off and expose a nutsert lip, but as long as you know what's going on under there you should be able to remedy the situation quickly. I did lose one to the headliner while grinding. Lay on a double layer of linex around the nutserts to be safe.

David
 
I'm thinking of filling my holes with POR 15 putty as the first step. POR claims their putty (comes in a squeeze tube) is good for filling holes and voids.

Anyone tried this route?
 
Tarbe are your nutserts in place? If so I think you'd be alright. If not I'm afraid the putty would just fall through to the headliner - nothing for it to adhere to.

David
 
T,

I used marine grade sealant on mine about 10 montha ago and we have had craploads of of snow and especially rain as of late and I have had zero leaks. It took about a minute do do it too.


I missed something somewhere. How much of your 80 are you Line-Xing? It's a great product from what I've seen.
 
Well boys, shes done....I'll start a new thread in a few minutes with loads of pics of the entire 6 hr process ...


Thanx again for the good advice ..


:cheers:


TY
 

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