Carbon rear wing protectors removal / replacement

[David aka Blue7]

I will be getting my xpel paint protection film replaced on rear wings soon and paintwork tidied up.  I will be replacing the carbon protectors, which are now looking a bit shabby.  Question being: is it just a simple case of drilling out the rivets to remove the existing guards and is there anything to be wary of?  It looks a simple enough task but Caterham tasks can sometimes develop an awkward aspect

David

[John Vine]

It rather depends on how they were fitted in the first place.  If it's just rivets, then carefully drilling out the tops will release the guard.  But some owners tend to use silicone as well as (or instead of) rivets.

JV

[David aka Blue7]

Thanks John, they are factory fitted with rivets ... good point, I don't really need to drill all the way through, but just enough to remove the head.

David

[Budjuggler]

When I replaced mine I used silicon sealant to fix to wings.  Saves unsightly rivets and dips.  BTW I also used the Milwood wrap around protectors which I think are so much better!

[David aka Blue7]

I did actually order and receive a couple of Jon's Millwood wing protectors but when they arrived they were so badly scratched that I had to return them and there was no offer to replace them.  Jon's explanation was:

"They are hand made (wet laid) and because of this each one has the odd blemish.  To obtain uniform perfection they would need to be vacuum formed which would significantly increase their cost.  We never advertised these stone guards and have them made primarily for our own use and only sell them by request at a very small amount over our cost price"

I don't have any argument with him but I couldn't live with the scratches on a new product and he didn't offer to replace them.

No matter which protectors are used, they eventually get damaged by surface dressing stones or fade.  I visited a local Detailing company and they are actually able to apply their version of Xpel to the whole width of the wing so we agreed that I remove the wing protectors and he applies the film to the wing and also to the replacement carbon protectors and I then fit the protectors back to the wings. 

I will bear in mind using silicone adhesive, my only concern would be how easy the protectors could be removed, if they are glued in place.  I did wonder about using the double sided sticky tape used for affixing number plates.  What type of silicone do people use?

David

[John Vine]

There's an earlier thread of mine here.  As you'll see, I opted for rivets to allow easy removal later on -- and black rivets on a black guard hardly show.

JV

[David aka Blue7]

Thanks John, everything I need to know there.  I did a search before posting but didn't find that thread, the search facility here doesn't always find the character string and often produces seemingly unrelated posts.

David

[Wrightpayne]

I used button head stainless allan bolts and nylocs on mine to aid future removal. M4 IIRC

[David aka Blue7]

I removed the carbon protectors yesterday, passenger side was straightforward but drilling out the bottom rivets on the driver's side was inhibited by the exhaust mounting so the exhaust bracket had to be unbolted and levered away from the body to locate my drill.  When I fit the replacements I think I will use Wrightpayne's solution above and fit black dome head m4 allen bolts with nylock nuts; using nylock nuts allows you to not fully tighten the bolts ... if you tighten too much it makes an indent in the carbon protector.  For information, m3 bolts fit the existing holes so the holes in wings and protectors will have to be widened slightly to take m4.  You could use m3 but they are so small and fiddly to fit the nuts.  Another option might be to use starlock washers instead of nuts.

[Jonathan Kay]

I did a search before posting but didn't find that thread, the search facility here doesn't always find the character string and often produces seemingly unrelated posts.

I'd have done that like this:

https://www.google.com/search?q=site:lotus7.club+wing+protector+rivet

Jonathan