UKSaabs

HI David,

That car looks awesome.

Did you do all the engine detailing and cleaning yourself or was that Martin also.

Jim.

I was let loose on a few bits, but most of it was JamSAAB

Not sure if the is the correct way to do repairs (time will tell), but thought if anyone is tackling the same issues may find this helpful.


On a flat worktop, the peeling begins


The fibreglass backing is very fragile. Recommend you wear
gloves to stop the fibres getting at your skin.


Partly removed. The brown areas are old material which the
previous trimmer had used. This was removed where possible.


When finished the surface was sanded using a rough paper
to remove any loose bits.


Parts of the edging was either broken or cracked, so this was
restuck using an adhesive. In this case 'No Nails'.


I ordered some scrim foam (6mm) from Woolies, which when it arrived
had a gauze backing. Some of this backing extended further than the
foam so I cut off the excess and used it to add some strength and
rigidity to the repairs.



Glued using PVA.


The parts where sections had simply disintegrated, were more of
a challenge. I used 2 bits of foam board (art shops) cut to shape,
then sanded to profile.


This was then carefully refined to fit and glued in place using
a quick drying epoxy.


For additional strength a layer of paper mache was applied.


And while still wet a piece of the gauze was laid over.



Missing edge of the panel. Again using foam board, this is glued in position.

Well that's as far as I have got. More info soon.

I simply don't have the attention to detail or the patience to try a roof lining - Hats of to you David, great work!

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......Gotta love a 9K..........

We can't go far on enthusiasm, but we don't go far without it

When I tackled my headlining I had the same problems as you, cracks, sections missing, delamination of the layers, etc. After repairing the biscuit, I covered it all over in a durable calico/canvas before applying the headlining material. Made it nice and stiff and protected it from scrapes and further damage when putting it back in the car.

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99 (not a T16 any more) in a special kind of brown

Good tip.

The Woolies foam has a cloth backing which is there for stitching - in this case it will be stuck direct to the shell to add some reinforcement - but first I am going to seal the surface of the shell with a thinned coat of varnish which should increase rigidity and prevent further delamination.

Woolies scrim foam link: http://www.woolies-trim.co.uk/p-1561-scrim-foam.aspx

Hi David,

I used a slightly watered down PVA glue mix on the headliner board and this stiffened it up no end. Also proved to be a good key for the glue.

I was advised by woolies that their brush applied glue was the strongest. I can't argue with that but it was a complete nightmare to apply to the material - a thick treacle like consistency, and once you have started you are committed!

Suggest that the spray glue is a much more user friendly option!

Cheers, Andy.

Hi Andy

Thanks for that. I have 4 cans of spray ready for the fitting. Plan is to start from the middle and work out, maybe using a small decorators roller. Martin also suggested that I leave the foam and fabric flat for 24 hours to settle before fitting, as this helps prevent that 'SAAB blister' found in many old cars.


A paper mache and gauze covering.


Side panels were given the same treatment.


Completed roof, given a thinned coat of varnish then left to dry.

Thanks Naranto this job has been looming at me for some time now...keep putting it off but I keep sitting on fallen drawing pins or end up flying by instrumentation alone due to obscured vision. Can't wait to hear how you get on with the gluing and cutting bit...what spray glue is it ?

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Saab 99T 2 Door Black

Hi,

Done a couple of headliners myself, and a couple of noteworthy tips...

if you are using spray glue, make sure you pick up the stuff thats rated for Very High Temperature. The 3M stuff is the best.
I've have done headlining before thinking any old spray adhesive would do, and the new material was sagging down again a month later.
Also yes, leave a good 48 hours with the headliner uspide down for the glue to cure.

The technique for sticking the headliner material down is to lay it out over the backing board and get it positioned.
Then cover half of the headlining material with a dustsheet, lengthways down the centre, and fold the other (uncovered) half back on top of it. You then spray a line of glue about 4 inches wide into the fold between the material and board, wait 5 mins and then carefully fold the material back again. Wear Vinyl gloves (ideally have a whole boxful to hand), and smooth the headlining down onto the glue with your hand as firmly as you can. Using a slight rubbing motion to generate a bit of friction heat definitely helps. Give it a few mins to tack, change the dustcover and gloves for new ones that doesn't have spray glue on them (very important!) then fold the headlining back on itself again and spray the next 4 inches.

By working in 4 inch furrows a bit at a time you will ensure that you get it stuck down perfectly, also don't stretch the material, it wants to be pressed firm, but not taught, or it will pull away from the backing board again after a few temperature cycles in the car...

I did not use a dustcover here, it can be done with caution, but it is advisable to use one as its a swine if you accidentally spray glue onto the top side fo the material! Failing that, have some celly thinners and a microfibre cloth handy, that can be safely used to mop up small bits of stray glue...



note here I am using a tin of cheap pink glue, which would result in my having to redo the job later. The 3M stuff I redid it with has spend 2 years in a cold old garage with the 99 in pieces and it still very firmly stuck to the roof!



Edit: oh and a nailbrush is a really handy tool for getting rid of all the dead glue / foam from the back board before you glue anything to it

_________________
'84 Saab 99 8vT (project)
Stub-nosed c900i 'vert

Incidentally, I'm intrigued as to why you bought the foam and the material seperately, when woolies sell the right headlining material with a foam / scrim back already on it?

The stuff I used on mine...

http://www.woolies-trim.co.uk/p-1358-br ... ining.aspx

_________________
'84 Saab 99 8vT (project)
Stub-nosed c900i 'vert

Before you start working in that horrid gluey space between the roof and the headlining.....


....... Shave your forearms!! Otherwise it hurts afterwards!

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Everything will be OK in the end. If it's not OK, it's not the end...

Used the same stuff except in limestone. Shame that you can't seem to get it any more as I don't like the greys.

Also used the woolies high temp brush on glue instead of spray and I can confirm that it is a challenge to use. Mine has been up, albeit in a garage, for 2 years now, definitely worth spending the extra on a good high temp adhesive.

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99 (not a T16 any more) in a special kind of brown

As others have stated,the material from woolies is the incorrect colour,way tooooooooooo grey in my opinion,therefor I purchased the last roll of the correct colour ,but unfortunatley it only has a very thin coat of the scrim foam.

M

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Jamsaab - The UK's Leading Independent Saab Specialist
0117 986 9997

what he said

I also have the woolies dove grey scrim lined material. I knew it was not the right shade, but wanted to use if for ease of application - if it wasn't for the glue they had recommended then it probably would have been!

Colour is a definite blue/grey tint rather than beige/grey of the original. I think that Woolies sell another material called Empire Grey which is a closer match.

With the face of the roof sealed I decided to remove the fine paper coating stuck to the reverse. It had started to break up with bits falling off, which may find their way to the face side. Also it means that when I tuck the covering over it will have a firm stable base to stick too. Maybe a bit OTT (who moi?) but if nothing else it will stop any additional dust from dropping.


Stiff brush, soft brush, then vacuumed.


The covering of choice (I found it at the back of my paint shelf) was an old can of emulsion

Scrim foam added and the final cloth cover stuck to the face. This will be left overnight to set before the edges are trimmed and glued to the reverse.


Side panels completed.

Only a few more bits to do. Popped over to JamSAAB on Friday and the grille, side windows, exhaust and a few bits have been fitted. The engine is now running ;D


Badges have been repainted and sealed. I quite like the slightly abstract look of this and yes I know there is one badge too many.


Hopefully you can see from the photo how yellow they had become. So with a light rub down with some fine sandpaper, followed by a wax and the original colour was almost returned

Engine running! A great milestone in any restoration.

What I am wondering is for those of us not travelling to the Belgium international in August, when will we get chance to see this fine motor?

How about a 99 meet later in the summer?

Cheers,
Andy.