obsolete part reproduction interest (1 Viewer)

[FJ73Texas]

Nothing a dremmel can’t fix. I removed the clam shell and shaved just a little bit off on the left side opening. Couldn’t even tell it was grinded down at all and still looked oem.

Since I had ordered two pairs. I used the second pair and bam….perfect fit on both sides. Just need to clean up the rubber some and I am good to go.

 

[bhicks]

The first few orders with a "Driver" and "Passenger" side shipped out this morning. A few of you ordered at the end of last week and I held off on shipping those until today. The new more narrow version should fit the passenger side hole a lot better. Once I get feedback from the folks receiving this batch and am confident fitment is perfect then I will make the passenger side version available on our seller platforms for folks who want to buy that version separately. If you want to return the original one and don't want a spare then you need to message me so we can arrange that or contact me through the seller platform you originally ordered from.

 

[FJ73Texas]

Happy with the originals that I got. All it really took was some shaving on the left side.

I think you have gone above and beyond this time around to make all of us happy with your product. I am happy with mine for sure once I got it into place.

Thank you again for making another wonderful 70 series product.

 

[Guyute]

Happy with the originals that I got. All it really took was some shaving on the left side.

I think you have gone above and beyond this time around to make all of us happy with your product. I am happy with mine for sure once I got it into place.

Thank you again for making another wonderful 70 series product.

Same-Same. My wiper side wasn't as bunched as some and was able to open it up a bit easily enough. But thanks for going the extra kilometers on this project. Appreciate yous.

 

[bhicks]

So the version with the "passenger side" text on bottom did not make me happy. Fitment and function should be good and once installed it looks great but I was not happy with how poorly the text turned out. This is the first one and I got it better but not good enough. I decided to move on to version 3.0 and relocate the text for the next batch. It turned out a LOT better. Sorry about my dirty hands. I was in the middle of doing our weekly machine clean out when my assembly line guy brought me over the latest version. I just grabbed my phone a snapped a pic for you guys.
Version 2.0

Version 3.0

 

[bottombracket]

@bhicks you are a champion for the ages.

Perfection.

I’ll dremel the clamshell ever so slightly if needed.

 

[bhicks]

@bhicks you are a champion for the ages.

Perfection.

I’ll dremel the clamshell ever so slightly if needed. View attachment 3442562View attachment 3442563View attachment 3442564

That's the more narrow new design? It should not be pinched in like that. Are you sure the more narrow one is fully seated onto the lip? You should not need to do any grinding/sanding on the OEM clamshell plastic. If this one doesn't fit then I'm at a loss. The dimensions provided were extremely accurate and we made sure the fitment based on those dimensions would not create any pinching.

 

[FJ73Texas]

That's the more narrow new design? It should not be pinched in like that. Are you sure the more narrow one is fully seated onto the lip? You should not need to do any grinding/sanding on the OEM clamshell plastic. If this one doesn't fit then I'm at a loss. The dimensions provided were extremely accurate and we made sure the fitment based on those dimensions would not create any pinching.

Mine pinched like that on the left side but as I said before, the dremmel fixed that problem easily. I took the upper and lower clam shell off, taped the clam shell back together temporarily, shaved a bit off, test fit, shaved a bit more off, test fit and so on until the original part fit in beautifully.

It didn't affect the operation of the stalk at all.

In the future, taking the clam shell off carefully as the very first step is going give you less risk in tearing up those rubber parts if for any reason you have to get inside the clam shell. I would not recommend trying to remove the rubber parts first before removing the clam shell. Then when you reassemble, just slide those rubber parts into the top half of the shell first and then slide the bottom on, screw it down.

I bet you this is the OEM way of dealing with disassembly if you were dealing with a factory original stalk assembly that has those rubber parts from the factory.

 

[cruiserdan]

I bet you this is the OEM way of dealing with disassembly if you were dealing with a factory original stalk assembly that has those rubber parts from the factory.

On the originals the boots come as part of the switch and are not intended to be removed.

 

[FJ73Texas]

On the originals the boots come as part of the switch and are not intended to be removed.

I found out the hard way. I destroyed my first set of the two sets I got.

 

[bj70bc]

just got mine
im gonna hit it with the heat gun briefly before install to help mush them in there and not damage them...
warm em up a bit

 

[bhicks]

I have been getting asked when I will release the more narrow passenger side rubber boot as an individual item. I do plan to do that but I'm still waiting on more feedback from the 1/2 dozen I shipped out. One guy said it was still pinching a bit and another told me it was a perfect fit with zero pinching. They are all made on the same machine with the same settings so there should be zero variation between the parts. I measured the first batch and all were identical. I'm wondering if temp is playing a role here and the colder temps are making it a bit more rigid and not allowing it to properly seat all the way around the lip. I have to figure this out before I release this next batch. For such a small insignificant part, this has been one of my largest challenges. For those of you on here that got the "Passenger" side version, please send me a message on fitment.

 

[cruiserdan]

Mine arrived yesterday afternoon, courtesy of @bottombracket . I have a narrow one. It's raining so I'm waiting for a break in the clouds. I plan to split the covers to do the install.

 

[cruiserdan]

Fitted this evening. Getting the wide one over the light switch knob is challenging. I was extra careful but still manged to tear it. I flipped it around to face the tear toward the steering wheel and it is not visible. The narrow Wiper switch side is just a bit wide but not enough to justify trimming my column covers. In my case I would need to plull the steering wheel to be able to completely remove the covers. I didn't feel like it

My little buddy that lives down the street stopped by to help.

 

[bj70bc]

they need a bit of heat to ease them on without fuukin em up

 

[Omrib]

Fitted this evening. Getting the wide one over the light switch knob is challenging. I was extra careful but still manged to tear it. I flipped it around to face the tear toward the steering wheel and it is not visible. The narrow Wiper switch side is just a bit wide but not enough to justify trimming my column covers. In my case I would need to plull the steering wheel to be able to completely remove the covers. I didn't feel like it

My little buddy that lives down the street stopped by to help.
View attachment 3448476

View attachment 3448474

View attachment 3448475

Did you need to cut the inner portion of the boot? What is that light tan color in the near circumstance of the handle?
Intrigued...

 

[cruiserdan]

Did you need to cut the inner portion of the boot? What is that light tan color in the near circumstance of the handle?
Intrigued...

I did not do any cutting. The tan you see around the stalks is the turn signal switch housing.

 

[Omrib]

I the not do any cutting. The tan you see around the stalks is the turn signal switch housing.

My mistake, I thought that the boot was smaller on the inner diameter....which raised more questions like how does it stretch enough to clear the handle etc.
Looking really good.
I'd be in for a pair if the shipping wouldn't be 4 times the parts price, I look again on ebay.
Thanks

 

[cruiserdan]

My mistake, I thought that the boot was smaller on the inner diameter....which raised more questions like how does it stretch enough to clear the handle etc.
Looking really good.
I'd be in for a pair if the shipping wouldn't be 4 times the parts price, I look again on ebay.
Thanks

It's important to clarify that these covers do not exactly duplicate the originals. If they did the combination switch assembly would have to be removed from the vehicle and completely disassembled in order to fit the covers around the stalks.

In addition only factory soft tops were originally fitted with these covers, in order to keep water out of the combination switch when the top was removed.

 

[bhicks]

Thanks for all the feedback and messages. Folks mentioned heat being a factor during install. I never got into that aspect but after messing around with the parts we have here I did realize that the parts do stretch a bit better when heated up a bit. I also learned that if they are cold the ability to stretch goes down. I put a couple in the fridge (not freezer) over night and then tried to stretch them over the steering arm and they quickly tore. I little heat and that issue went away. Too much heat and they can deform so don't go crazy with the heat. A blow-dryer for 20-30 seconds seemed to make it soft enough to easily stretch over the column arms. I also went back in and made the passenger side boot a bit more narrow to perfectly seat into the hole with no pinching. I also thickened up the driver side bottom since a few folks mentioned it tearing there. At this point I am calling this project done. I have to move on to other projects I committed to. I did my best to make these as dialed in as possible. Hopefully folks will be happy with the final version.