Spacedoggy Posted January 10, 2022 Share Posted January 10, 2022 Essentially I'm after a cockpit cover that will protect the interior whilst the car is garaged, whilst allowing me to access the engine and gaze fondly at the rest of it (sad, I know) 😀. I have an RAC roll bar in place, so it'll need to accommodate that. I was hoping to buy a Walker St Clair Cockpit Cover, but I understand these are no longer being made now. Anyone have anything suitable that they are looking to get rid of? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard (OldStager) Posted January 10, 2022 Share Posted January 10, 2022 i have to ask the obvious question, do you not have a soft top... this time of year mine is up when in the garage as the roof leaks a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman Posted January 10, 2022 Share Posted January 10, 2022 It's a different league cost wise, but I've got a Soft Bits for Sevens Storm Cap which works really, really well. Mines for s standard roll bar - not sure if they do an RAC specific version. I've actually used min on a Westfield with an RAC bar though, and while a little short at the back, it was OK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spacedoggy Posted January 10, 2022 Author Share Posted January 10, 2022 42 minutes ago, OldStager said: i have to ask the obvious question, do you not have a soft top... this time of year mine is up when in the garage as the roof leaks a bit. Obvious questions are usually a good place to start 😄. I do have a basic soft top (no side screens). My garage is dry enough, but the soft top wouldn't keep the dust etc out. It's also a bit of a pain to fit. I don't really want to invest in full weather gear because, to be honest, I'll never really use it. I think I'd get more use from the cockpit cover, since I'd use this when the car is parked up after/during a drive. But by all means let me know if you think I'm barking up the wrong tree. 😀 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spacedoggy Posted January 10, 2022 Author Share Posted January 10, 2022 51 minutes ago, Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Secretary said: It's a different league cost wise, but I've got a Soft Bits for Sevens Storm Cap which works really, really well. Mines for s standard roll bar - not sure if they do an RAC specific version. I've actually used min on a Westfield with an RAC bar though, and while a little short at the back, it was OK. Thanks. I just had another look at Soft Bits for Sevens offerings. The SEIW Tonneau would probably be just what I'm looking for. Although they don't show a picture with a standard windshield car, they list it as an option. Bit pricier though, and I thought I read somewhere that their lead times are quite long at the moment... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard (OldStager) Posted January 10, 2022 Share Posted January 10, 2022 how are you with a sewing machine..., may be worth looking at different materials and making one to suit your actual car rather than a generic westy. i had to made the soft top as i also have the rac bar, but my windsceen is not a wf item. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spacedoggy Posted January 10, 2022 Author Share Posted January 10, 2022 2 hours ago, OldStager said: how are you with a sewing machine... Never had the opportunity to find out. I'm fairly practical though so maybe I could give it a go as a last resort. I have a three year old who'll probably want Halloween costumes etc in the future, so probably a useful skill to have. 😀 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DWaldie Posted January 16, 2022 Share Posted January 16, 2022 On 10/01/2022 at 17:31, Spacedoggy said: Thanks. I just had another look at Soft Bits for Sevens offerings. The SEIW Tonneau would probably be just what I'm looking for. Although they don't show a picture with a standard windshield car, they list it as an option. Bit pricier though, and I thought I read somewhere that their lead times are quite long at the moment... I ordered mine in Sept and there is no sign of it yet 😭😭😭 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spacedoggy Posted April 9, 2022 Author Share Posted April 9, 2022 On 16/01/2022 at 08:54, DWaldie said: I ordered mine in Sept and there is no sign of it yet 😭😭😭 Just wondered whether your Soft Bits cover ever arrived and, if so, was it worth the wait? 🤣 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DWaldie Posted April 12, 2022 Share Posted April 12, 2022 Now, that's along story. I ordered in Sept and the first one arrived in Jan. Unfortunately, the website had no option to specify which seats you have. I have the turbo sports variety. Consequently, the cover went back. To Softbits credit, they reached out to a user (from here?) who had a similar spec to me and drove 30 miles to create a template. Anyway, the tonneau arrived in March and was pretty much a breeze to fit. I had a bit of fiddling to do as I have the comfort dash, so the front studs fit to that. Great bit of kit. I would strongly advise you speak with softbits to make sure you and they are clear about what you are ordering. They are excellent at communicating though (thanks Tristan) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spacedoggy Posted April 12, 2022 Author Share Posted April 12, 2022 @DWaldie Thanks for the reply, and sorry if it brought up painful memories. 🤣 Looks great now though, so hopefully it was worth the pain. The front studs might be an issue for me too, but presumably these are the only ones that need fitting in addition to the 'standard' ones for the weather gear? Other than that, I just need to work out what kind of seats I have...🙂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DWaldie Posted April 12, 2022 Share Posted April 12, 2022 All of the studs for the tonneau were newly installed just for it. None of the hood suds were remotely in the same place. If you have dark bodywork, you might want to specify black studs. I picked up a cheap leather punch from Lidl. It was so much better than the item that softbits supplied. Let me know if you get one and I can help you avoid some of the mistakes I made along the way 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spacedoggy Posted April 13, 2022 Author Share Posted April 13, 2022 Sorry if I'm being thick, but did you have to install new studs into the body of the car, or just put the studs on the tonneau in the right place to match those already on the car? Drilling into the car scares me a bit, but adapting the tonneau sounds more doable. 🙂 Thanks for the offer of help, BTW, much appreciated! 🙂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DWaldie Posted April 13, 2022 Share Posted April 13, 2022 Yep, all the studs have to be drilled. Don't worry, it's much easier than you'd think. Excluding the comfort strip over the dash, it's only three new holes per side 👍 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman Posted April 13, 2022 Share Posted April 13, 2022 Aye, depending on the brand of tonneau, it's style, and the body shape of the car, (FW, ZK, ZK with rigid boot lid), you may share some, or none at all of the roof fixings. You will always have to add the front scuttle (across the top) and under/around the doors/side screens, as they aren't part of the normal roof attachment points. Yes, the first time drilling into bodywork is ALWAYS nerve wracking! Plenty of masking tape, where the holes need to be drilled into grp, and, daft though it sounds, either a fairly blunt drill bit, or use the drill in reverse; to start the hole and drill through the gel coat layer a blunt bit, or reverse uses the drill bit to sort of grind through the gel coat rather than cut, and pull, which can cause chipping. Mark them out, and take your time. If you've not drilled grp before, you might even consider drilling a test hole somewhere out of sight, first! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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