How to remove the Wood panels?

[vwdmc16]

Kind of a simple question but how are the wood panels directly behind the seats attached to the underbody?

not the upper panels above the fuse box and lambda controls. the vertical ones. are they glued in? I see no screws. I wish to remove them for cleaning and paint while i do some 'glass work back there.

[jfirios]

Wish i knew, would be interesting to be able to fabricate something lighter and cooler than a plank of wood.

[dmc6960]

I remember them being glued. Using that thick green glue used to attached many pieces to the main underbody. The middle section does come out though, I remember a clamp or screw type thing on each side. Thats so the wiring harness, throttle cable, radio antenna, etc can go under without removing the whole thing.

Just give them a layer of dynamat.

[DMCMW Dave]

Kind of a simple question but how are the wood panels directly behind the seats attached to the underbody?

not the upper panels above the fuse box and lambda controls. the vertical ones. are they glued in? I see no screws. I wish to remove them for cleaning and paint while i do some 'glass work back there.

It's plywood glued to the fiberglass. Generally the wood will tear/break somewhat if you try to remove them.

[David T]

You can try heat to remove the wood. In some cars they are loose. Sometimes you can knock them loose with a sharp hit but as Dave S says, if they are well attached you will break the wood up before you get them loose. To reattach I use a couple of tubes of Liquid Nail.
David Teitelbaum

[dmcnorway]

Is there another alternative to plywood?
AFAIK, the wood panels are not available anymore.

Stian B.
Norway

VIN # 06759

[David T]

You can always make up new ones using the old pieces as a template. About the only part you will every buy for your Delorean in a Home Depot!!!!!!!!!!! As old fashioned as it may be to use wood, in the right place it has properties that are unbeatable. Strong, lightweight, inexpensive and easy to machine.
David Teitelbaum

[sdg3205]

I wish I had a picture of my face when I pulled back the carpet for the first time.

I thought I had been ripped off. "WOOD?!" WTF!

True it is unbeatable in hindsight, but what a shock the first time I saw it.

[john 05141]

Still do not know why wood was used.
What is that advantage? It is necessary or what is its function now?

I do not need to remove mine, but trying to knock it off, it there no danger you can damage the fibreglass underneath?

John

[DMCMW Dave]

Still do not know why wood was used.
What is that advantage? It is necessary or what is its function now?

I do not need to remove mine, but trying to knock it off, it there no danger you can damage the fibreglass underneath?

John

It makes up the carpeted panel behind the seats. Just about anything you would replace it with in the same dimension would be heavier and/or more expensive.

No - the would will break first.

BTW - you all realize that Corvettes have used wood in the floor since about 1997, right? (look it up!) It is very hard to beat its combination of light weight, good sound dampening, directional strength, and low cost, assuming you can keep it dry.

[jawn101]

It makes up the carpeted panel behind the seats. Just about anything you would replace it with in the same dimension would be heavier and/or more expensive.

No - the would will break first.

BTW - you all realize that Corvettes have used wood in the floor since about 1997, right? (look it up!) It is very hard to beat its combination of light weight, good sound dampening, directional strength, and low cost, assuming you can keep it dry.

Amazing, Dave. I didn't know that and I did look it up - came across this rather remarkable photo spread of a bare Corvette ZR1 chassis from the Detroit auto show in 2008. http://www.autoblog.com/2008/01/14/detroit-2008-corvette-zr1-chassis-display/ - they show the balsa wood floor panels quite clearly and even briefly discuss them. Cool!

[Farrar]

Wood: The Original Carbon Fiber.

©2012 Farrar Hudkins

[jawn101]

Wood: The Original Carbon Fiber.

©2012 Farrar Hudkins

haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.

I suspect you would be the only person who appreciates it when I tell people that insist on "organic" produce how much I hate when my apples are made of Tungsten. They certainly never get it...

[Farrar]

And I suspect that you would appreciate the sticker my brother had on one of his cars -- instead of "W: The President," it said "W: The Element."

Yeah, I come from a family of geeks. :lol:

Farrar

[David T]

Typically for added strength pieces of wood are "glassed in" when doing fiberglass layups to give added strength in particular places. Often done in boats too. It encapsulates the wood so it can't get wet and has the added feature of buoyancy which is desirable in boats. Up till the late 30's wood was a common element in car doors, roofs, and even some frames. Before aluminum came into common use airplanes were almost all wood. In many homes engineered wood beams are more desirable than steel. In even the most modern cars some dashboards and interior trim have the look of wood (made out of plastic!) because it gives the car a luxurious touch. Many airplane propellers are still being made out of wood because of it's many favorable properties.
David Teitelbaum

[jawn101]

And I suspect that you would appreciate the sticker my brother had on one of his cars -- instead of "W: The President," it said "W: The Element."

Yeah, I come from a family of geeks. :lol:

Farrar

Beat this, I used to wear a t-shirt with the Heisenberg uncertainty principle printed on it that said "don't ask me, I'm uncertain too"... lol. Sorry, off topic.

[Farrar]

This is not a contest.

End of off-topic posts from me. :)

Farrar

[Don Camillo]

Hi,

i removed my wood panels as they aged a lot in the 15 years VIN 573 was in a barn.

Attached you will find my self made replacement for the old wood panels...

7683

In the picture you see them not painted, but right now I painted them black again. They are a 99% replica of the original ones.


best wishes
Don

[jawn101]

Hi,

i removed my wood panels as they aged a lot in the 15 years VIN 573 was in a barn.

Attached you will find my self made replacement for the old wood panels...

7683

In the picture you see them not painted, but right now I painted them black again. They are a 99% replica of the original ones.


best wishes
Don

Wow, those look excellent.

[Victor]

The Morgan from britain is also a car that use a lot of wood:
▼
''The Morgan Motor Company located in Britain doesn't change in a changing world.
Not only it is still independent, but it also makes each car by hand.
A base model is about $44,000, but some cars cost up to $300,000.
And people wait for over a year to get their exclusive hand-built cars
with the shell made out of metal and much of the vehicle made out of wood.
Working on the wood interior, workers use metal shears to individually shape
a hood because each car has to be different.
Every year Morgan produces about 600 cars.
The company has celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2011.
It has a long interesting history, because it is still run by the same family: the Morgan’s.
Founded by Henry Frederick Stanley Morgan known as “HFS”, it was then run by his son Peter, and now it is run by Charles, the son of Peter Morgan.''

[Farrar]

I believe Morgan uses Ash for their frames. Lightweight and strong. But watch out for termites. ;-)

Farrar

[dvonk]

Beat this, I used to wear a t-shirt with the Heisenberg uncertainty principle printed on it that said "don't ask me, I'm uncertain too"... lol. Sorry, off topic.

more off topic...
i love my geeky shirts, your post remind me of this one that i have:
http://www.thinkgeek.com/images/products/zoom/quantum_mechanics.jpg

:biggrin:

/off topic

[Grover]

Hi,

i removed my wood panels as they aged a lot in the 15 years VIN 573 was in a barn.

Attached you will find my self made replacement for the old wood panels...

7683

In the picture you see them not painted, but right now I painted them black again. They are a 99% replica of the original ones.


best wishes
Don

What technique did you end up using to remove the wood panels glued to the fiberglass?

[Don Camillo]

What technique did you end up using to remove the wood panels glued to the fiberglass?

I grabbed the wood on top and ripped each of the two panels carefully of. In my case no extra tools were needed. Put you have to pull really hard. Each panel came of in one piece. Hope this helps.

Best wishes
Don

[Grover]

Thanks, the wood in my car is looking very sad. It is on the list of projects.

[Barson]

Hi

Have a look at what i did. I have no wood work skills, but it wasn't too hard to make a replacement panel.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7169/6690152249_4d2cc0b4b9_z.jpg


http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7012/6690152259_7526142dd5_z.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7014/6690152263_f2d56b1bc7_z.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7161/6690152275_ae2280b7ec_z.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7142/6690152285_5cba262fe0_z.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7012/6690155189_8c8edd4163_z.jpg



resolution isn't that great on the photos, but you get the idea.

1/2" ply for £20, spray paint, pva glue, no more nails. proper wood saw, couple of spade bits, router (plus bits), electric sander and plenty of patience.



laters
Dave.

[jawn101]

Hi

Have a look at what i did. I have no wood work skills, but it wasn't too hard to make a replacement panel.

resolution isn't that great on the photos, but you get the idea.

1/2" ply for £20, spray paint, pva glue, no more nails. proper wood saw, couple of spade bits, router (plus bits), electric sander and plenty of patience.



laters
Dave.

Damn, that's a LOT of Dynamat.