Eric Pennal
Well-Known Member
The problem and the solution:
I wanted a material that had the right thickness, stiffness, and pliability. I looked for something I could round the edges of with sandpaper, and would accept paint. I decided on 12" squares of un-textured linoleum floor tile. They are very inexpensive, so I bought several squares because I wasn't sure how many I was going to use.
<P>
This is a list of tools and materials you will need:
<P>
<LI>12" square linoleum tile
<LI>Heavy duty scissors or Tin Snips
<LI>Drill press (not pictured)
<LI>Router bit (3/4" straight cut)
<LI>Router bit (1/2" dovetail cut)
<LI>Pencil
<LI>Bondo Glazing & Spot Putty
<LI>Silicone sealant
<LI>Assorted & 400 grit sandpaper
<LI>Heat gun
<LI>Cotton gloves
<LI>Masking tape
<LI>Sharp scissors or razor blade
<LI>Color coded Ford Touch-up paint
<LI>3M Automotive Accessory, double-sided tape (7/8" wide)
Option 2 begins with the assumption that you have already removed the roof rails, as described in Option 1, so the first thing to do is create some templates. I made mine from the same material I planned to fabricate the roof caps from. I wanted to get a feel for how the linoleum would be to work with.
<P>
Using one of the roof rails as a guide, trace an outline for each cap onto the floor tile. Be sure to mark the holes, as well. If you plan to make caps for all six roof anchor locations (three per side), you only need to make three templates. The pattern will swap over to either side. If you only plan to cover the rear areas, one template will suffice.
After tracing the outlines, but before you start cutting, it’s a good idea to warm the linoleum tile in the sun, or with a heat gun. It’s much easier to cut this material when it is soft and pliable – also, the edges are less likely to tear. Bone-cutting scissors from the kitchen work very well, but I imagine Tin Snips would work, too. I think a heavy knife would be more difficult for this task, but you may use any tool you think will work. Use a drill press with the ¾†router bit to cut the holes in the templates, and some medium grit sandpaper to clean the edges up a bit. It’s not necessary to get the edges perfect – these are just your templates. The templates should end up looking something like this:
Use the templates to trace the outline of your caps on a new piece of floor tile. Load the ¾†router bit into your drill press and set the travel on the control arm so the bit will only cut halfway into the tile when it stops. You’re using the router bit to cut a recess into the tile that will allow for the raised portion of the roof inserts that the caps will cover. This recess, combined with the thickness of the 3M tape, will provide enough clearance when you apply the caps. I cut the recesses before I cut the patterns out of the tile, for safety reasons. I didn’t want my hands too close to the spinning drill during this process. The extra material gave me good control, also. Once this part is finished, use the ½†dovetail router bit to clean out the raised section that remains from the ¾†bit.
Now you’re ready to cut out the patterns. Don’t forget to warm them first. Use a Course or Medium grit sandpaper to smooth the edges of the newly created roof caps. Work your way up to a 400 grit paper, until they’re nice and smooth. Afterwards, if you hold the new pieces up to the light, at just the right angle, you’ll probably notice some small pits along the edges. These will require the Bondo putty to fill. Smear the Bondo along the edges with your finger, using thin coats. If you decide to add a second coat, let it dry at least an hour before you do. Let the Bondo harden overnight before sanding. The picture below shows one set of caps after sanding, and one set before sanding (bottom side up & top side up).
Use masking tape to hold the cap in place, then get it good and soft with a heat gun. Don’t be afraid to get it hot. You want the material to bend easily without breaking or cracking. You’re going to need gloves to press the cap down flat against the contour of the roof because, it’s going to be hot. Hold the piece firmly in place, with both hands, until it cools. It should hold its shape after that.
Here’s a view of the left front and center caps taped in place.
You’re ready for paint! Contact a local shop that specializes in doing custom automotive paint work – or anyone you trust to do a quality paint job. Be sure they understand that the pieces need to be flexible after they’ve been painted. My painters used an epoxy base for this, under the paint, and the pieces turned out very well. Don’t be alarmed if your roof caps come back from the paint shop with less curvature than they had before. If the painter did his job well, they should bend back into place with no problem at all.
<P>
After your pieces return from the painter, you’ll need to apply the 3M double-sided tape to the bottom sides. The edge of the tape will show, so different vehicle body colors may require a different color of tape for the roof caps to look good. I think the darker colored vehicles look better with black tape, but the lighter colored vehicles may look better with a lighter shade (black tape still tends to have a gray edge, though). I used Black 3M tape, 7/8†wide. The red you see in this picture is just the peel-away backing. Remember, since the edges of the tape will show, be careful to trim the tape as cleanly as possible with a sharp pair of scissors, or razor blade.
When you’re ready to apply the caps to the roof, squeeze a dab of silicone sealant into each threaded insert first. You don’t want water working its way into these holes later. Remove the peel-away backing from the 3M tape, and carefully align the cap before pressing it firmly into place (it’s a good idea to do a couple of dry runs before actually sticking the “live†tape to your truck, just to develop the right technique). When the tape first touches the vehicle, don’t press down yet. You will be able to make fine adjustments to the alignment of the cap if the tape is barely making contact. Once you’re happy with the alignment, press down and hold it in place with one hand while you warm it with the heat gun with the other. When the piece feels soft enough to bend easily, press firmly with both hands until the cap cools in place.<P>Here’s a BEFORE and AFTER picture:
Post Script:
<P>
Sometime after I installed the rear caps, I decided I just didn’t like their design. They were too long (extending past the roof seam at the front end), and the back corner was too square, in my opinion. I removed them with great effort, then cut them down to a shape I liked. I refinished the newly cut edges and sent them out for a new paint job.
<P>
This is the result:
One last tip: I discovered the second time around that painting the edges of the double-sided tape with the Ford Touch-up paint, before applying the roof caps to their final destination, really gives them a nice, finished look. This is pretty easy to do, but it took at least two coats to completely cover the edges of the tape.
<P>
Here, you can see the difference, between the first installation and the second installation:
I wanted a material that had the right thickness, stiffness, and pliability. I looked for something I could round the edges of with sandpaper, and would accept paint. I decided on 12" squares of un-textured linoleum floor tile. They are very inexpensive, so I bought several squares because I wasn't sure how many I was going to use.
<P>
This is a list of tools and materials you will need:
<P>
<LI>12" square linoleum tile
<LI>Heavy duty scissors or Tin Snips
<LI>Drill press (not pictured)
<LI>Router bit (3/4" straight cut)
<LI>Router bit (1/2" dovetail cut)
<LI>Pencil
<LI>Bondo Glazing & Spot Putty
<LI>Silicone sealant
<LI>Assorted & 400 grit sandpaper
<LI>Heat gun
<LI>Cotton gloves
<LI>Masking tape
<LI>Sharp scissors or razor blade
<LI>Color coded Ford Touch-up paint
<LI>3M Automotive Accessory, double-sided tape (7/8" wide)
Option 2 begins with the assumption that you have already removed the roof rails, as described in Option 1, so the first thing to do is create some templates. I made mine from the same material I planned to fabricate the roof caps from. I wanted to get a feel for how the linoleum would be to work with.
<P>
Using one of the roof rails as a guide, trace an outline for each cap onto the floor tile. Be sure to mark the holes, as well. If you plan to make caps for all six roof anchor locations (three per side), you only need to make three templates. The pattern will swap over to either side. If you only plan to cover the rear areas, one template will suffice.
After tracing the outlines, but before you start cutting, it’s a good idea to warm the linoleum tile in the sun, or with a heat gun. It’s much easier to cut this material when it is soft and pliable – also, the edges are less likely to tear. Bone-cutting scissors from the kitchen work very well, but I imagine Tin Snips would work, too. I think a heavy knife would be more difficult for this task, but you may use any tool you think will work. Use a drill press with the ¾†router bit to cut the holes in the templates, and some medium grit sandpaper to clean the edges up a bit. It’s not necessary to get the edges perfect – these are just your templates. The templates should end up looking something like this:
Use the templates to trace the outline of your caps on a new piece of floor tile. Load the ¾†router bit into your drill press and set the travel on the control arm so the bit will only cut halfway into the tile when it stops. You’re using the router bit to cut a recess into the tile that will allow for the raised portion of the roof inserts that the caps will cover. This recess, combined with the thickness of the 3M tape, will provide enough clearance when you apply the caps. I cut the recesses before I cut the patterns out of the tile, for safety reasons. I didn’t want my hands too close to the spinning drill during this process. The extra material gave me good control, also. Once this part is finished, use the ½†dovetail router bit to clean out the raised section that remains from the ¾†bit.
Now you’re ready to cut out the patterns. Don’t forget to warm them first. Use a Course or Medium grit sandpaper to smooth the edges of the newly created roof caps. Work your way up to a 400 grit paper, until they’re nice and smooth. Afterwards, if you hold the new pieces up to the light, at just the right angle, you’ll probably notice some small pits along the edges. These will require the Bondo putty to fill. Smear the Bondo along the edges with your finger, using thin coats. If you decide to add a second coat, let it dry at least an hour before you do. Let the Bondo harden overnight before sanding. The picture below shows one set of caps after sanding, and one set before sanding (bottom side up & top side up).
Use masking tape to hold the cap in place, then get it good and soft with a heat gun. Don’t be afraid to get it hot. You want the material to bend easily without breaking or cracking. You’re going to need gloves to press the cap down flat against the contour of the roof because, it’s going to be hot. Hold the piece firmly in place, with both hands, until it cools. It should hold its shape after that.
Here’s a view of the left front and center caps taped in place.
You’re ready for paint! Contact a local shop that specializes in doing custom automotive paint work – or anyone you trust to do a quality paint job. Be sure they understand that the pieces need to be flexible after they’ve been painted. My painters used an epoxy base for this, under the paint, and the pieces turned out very well. Don’t be alarmed if your roof caps come back from the paint shop with less curvature than they had before. If the painter did his job well, they should bend back into place with no problem at all.
<P>
After your pieces return from the painter, you’ll need to apply the 3M double-sided tape to the bottom sides. The edge of the tape will show, so different vehicle body colors may require a different color of tape for the roof caps to look good. I think the darker colored vehicles look better with black tape, but the lighter colored vehicles may look better with a lighter shade (black tape still tends to have a gray edge, though). I used Black 3M tape, 7/8†wide. The red you see in this picture is just the peel-away backing. Remember, since the edges of the tape will show, be careful to trim the tape as cleanly as possible with a sharp pair of scissors, or razor blade.
When you’re ready to apply the caps to the roof, squeeze a dab of silicone sealant into each threaded insert first. You don’t want water working its way into these holes later. Remove the peel-away backing from the 3M tape, and carefully align the cap before pressing it firmly into place (it’s a good idea to do a couple of dry runs before actually sticking the “live†tape to your truck, just to develop the right technique). When the tape first touches the vehicle, don’t press down yet. You will be able to make fine adjustments to the alignment of the cap if the tape is barely making contact. Once you’re happy with the alignment, press down and hold it in place with one hand while you warm it with the heat gun with the other. When the piece feels soft enough to bend easily, press firmly with both hands until the cap cools in place.<P>Here’s a BEFORE and AFTER picture:
Post Script:
<P>
Sometime after I installed the rear caps, I decided I just didn’t like their design. They were too long (extending past the roof seam at the front end), and the back corner was too square, in my opinion. I removed them with great effort, then cut them down to a shape I liked. I refinished the newly cut edges and sent them out for a new paint job.
<P>
This is the result:
One last tip: I discovered the second time around that painting the edges of the double-sided tape with the Ford Touch-up paint, before applying the roof caps to their final destination, really gives them a nice, finished look. This is pretty easy to do, but it took at least two coats to completely cover the edges of the tape.
<P>
Here, you can see the difference, between the first installation and the second installation:
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