just wanted to share with everyone pics of my interior. I made a new hatch area cover that opens to expose the spare tire as well as new door panels, sub enclosure, etc. Let me know what you think. Hatch cover actually weighs less than the carpet.

 

Looks AWESOME!!!!

I want details on that hatch cover!!!

 

used luan, which is really light weight plywood, and vinyl I found that matched the grey seats. Got the vinyl at joann fabrics. Used the old carpet as a template and traced it onto the luan then cut it out. Took a lot of trimming to get the desired fit. Once I had it trimmed I cut it directly in half and used a piano hinge. Had to use the dremel to cut all the screws so they would not show through. Vinyl was kinda tricky, had to put it on when I installed the hinge and then wrap the luan. Used staples instead of screws and had to cut them with the dremel as well. could not find anything that was less than 1/8th inch so a lot of customizing was needed. Patience...took awhile but was worth it. If anyone else is interested I could be convinced to do a write up on it...step by step.

 

Next step is too embroider a rotor into the vinyl the same silver as the 7. maybe maroon

 

Nice work, good initiative and execution.

 

I like it!

 

does luan absorb water, or can it be waterproofed to prevent swelling & warping?

 

thanks guys, means more coming from fellow owners than the oohs and ahhs from the locals. In case anyone was wondering what I have a couch in my garage for, it's so I can sleep with my babe. lol.

 

it is going to absorb water just as any other grade of ply would. You could seal it if you intend to let water get into that area of your 7. With the amount of heat that is generated in the hatch area due to sunlight, humidity should not be a problem.

 

ah that's sweet
maybe if you work on her some more, you can move from the couch and 'sleep' on her...just keep bein the smooth operator..then make your move

 

That's just it - water + heat = humidity. All it would take is a small spill when filling the rear wiper reservoir bag or a bad weather seal along the hatch glass

 

smooth...can we use that word when we talk about the 7.

fast...and hard

 

I get what your saying now. I do not have the rear wiper so water was not a concern for me. Your typical wood sealer would work fine to prevent any damage from the humidity in case of an accidental spill.

 

What about using Corebond, the sturdy plastic sheeting used for signs, glue 2 sheets together, would be light, strong, waterproof.
Just a thot, might try it myself, thanks for the idea,
Mike

 

never thought of it but i don't see why it wouldn't work

 

This gets the praise of the russian

 

the thread or the work??

 

The work man it looks great.

When you put the rotor on the back panel is it going to be raised. We used to use pillow foam(real cheap) to make the raise, then some glue, and finally sewed around the design.

 

I havn't figured out exactly how I am going to do it yet, but I definetely want it raised. Just do not know how raised I want it.

 

THe more it is raisd the more shadow you gets and it also makes the image look deeper. But to high mkaes it look like a crappy job.

I have used about 1/2 as the highest and they usually turned out nice. Nut all in all the stiching determines what the final product will look like.

 

I was thinking maybe 1/4 inch in hieght. Still enough for a shadow and gives it some depth. Don't think I would go much higher since the area is used and will constantly get wear and tear from putting things in the hatch. Wouldn't want to go thru all this and have it ripped up.

 

www.rotart13b1.com sells a cool rotor patch that has real good embroidery, it is about 2.5-3 inches.

jeff

 

Thanks for the info !

 

wow.. thats the same as thing that happend when my wife found out how much time I spent with my '82.. lol

 

Looks Great. I wanted to do the same thing years ago, to hide a small storage compartment where the spare normally goes.