Attaching D-rings to underside of elevating roof panel

[barry]

I want to attach a couple of small D-rings to the underside of the aluminium elevation roof.
Is this possible?
Has anyone done it?

How thick is the aluminium panel?
Is there any other material between the underside of the roof panel and the fabric that looks down on the bed?
Could a short self tapping screw be used or one that creates its own hole.

I’ve looked at the rings that the child safety net is attached to but it’s not clear what the method of attachment is.
Hence my question(s).

 

[WelshGas]

I want to attach a couple of small D-rings to the underside of the aluminium elevation roof.
Is this possible?
Has anyone done it?

How thick is the aluminium panel?
Is there any other material between the underside of the roof panel and the fabric that looks down on the bed?
Could a short self tapping screw be used or one that creates its own hole.

I’ve looked at the rings that the child safety net is attached to but it’s not clear what the method of attachment is.
Hence my question(s).

Not a simple fitting.
Part 33

 

[barry]

Not a simple fitting.
Part 33

View attachment 49849

Mmm...
Need to go and look at this fitting again when it gets light in the morning and stops raining.
Thanks for the heads up.
I think

 

[andyinluton]

The Thais roofline I had previously, used self tappers that were 6mm long to fix the poppers into the headlining.
They didn't have to support much weight. If you were using anything longer you would want to make sure you were going through to the higher part of the external skin rather than lining up with one of the troughs.

You can see how thick the roof lining is by carefully sliding a blunt knife in the join in the headlining between items 5 & 6 in the drawing above.

 

[hirsty]

What are you wanting to attach to the roof panel? - there may be another way?

 

[barry]

Good question hirsty
I've had the bellows/tent of my T5 57-plate replaced recently.

I've moved my 10 year old Brandrup Iso-Top from the old tent to the new one.
Industrial strength hook n eye (velcro) tape has been used to anchor the base of the Iso-Top all round and works fine.
The D rings in the roof used for attaching the child safety net have been used again to support the weight of the front end of the Iso-Top and work fine, too.
But the hook n eye (velcro) arrangement supporting the Iso-Top 2/3 of the way down its length towards the rear doesn't seem to be strong enough. Although this probably doesn't matter much, there'll soon be a knock on affect to the velcro support across the top back.

I know of two attempts to replaced these two weak velcro supports using the adjacent stays built into the tent which seems smart but on both occasions the huge rubber gasket onto which the tent is sewn has pulled away from the aluminium roof panel and I want to avoid this.

Self drilling short screws seemed to be a simple solution if the roof was thick enough.
Welshgas has pointed to using the 'proper' VW cali D-rings which makes excellent sense but fitting looks tricky.
AndyinLuton has used self tappers in what looks like a similar but not identical sort of roof.

BTW We used the van up in Glen Nevis last weekend in some of the heaviest rain I've ever experienced (3-days n nights worth) and am pleased to say the old Iso-Top / new tent combo is as waterproof and draught-free as ever!!

 

[WelshGas]

Good question hirsty
I've had the bellows/tent of my T5 57-plate replaced recently.

I've moved my 10 year old Brandrup Iso-Top from the old tent to the new one.
Industrial strength hook n eye (velcro) tape has been used to anchor the base of the Iso-Top all round and works fine.
The D rings in the roof used for attaching the child safety net have been used again to support the weight of the front end of the Iso-Top and work fine, too.
But the hook n eye (velcro) arrangement supporting the Iso-Top 2/3 of the way down its length towards the rear doesn't seem to be strong enough. Although this probably doesn't matter much, there'll soon be a knock on affect to the velcro support across the top back.

I know of two attempts to replaced these two weak velcro supports using the adjacent stays built into the tent which seems smart but on both occasions the huge rubber gasket onto which the tent is sewn has pulled away from the aluminium roof panel and I want to avoid this.

Self drilling short screws seemed to be a simple solution if the roof was thick enough.
Welshgas has pointed to using the 'proper' VW cali D-rings which makes excellent sense but fitting looks tricky.
AndyinLuton has used self tappers in what looks like a similar but not identical sort of roof.

BTW We used the van up in Glen Nevis last weekend in some of the heaviest rain I've ever experienced (3-days n nights worth) and am pleased to say the old Iso-Top / new tent combo is as waterproof and draught-free as ever!!

In what way is the Velcro not strong enough. You can get Very High Strength Velcro, nothing like that which is normally used. It also has a High Strength Industrial Adhesive .

 

[WelshGas]

Good question hirsty
I've had the bellows/tent of my T5 57-plate replaced recently.

I've moved my 10 year old Brandrup Iso-Top from the old tent to the new one.
Industrial strength hook n eye (velcro) tape has been used to anchor the base of the Iso-Top all round and works fine.
The D rings in the roof used for attaching the child safety net have been used again to support the weight of the front end of the Iso-Top and work fine, too.
But the hook n eye (velcro) arrangement supporting the Iso-Top 2/3 of the way down its length towards the rear doesn't seem to be strong enough. Although this probably doesn't matter much, there'll soon be a knock on affect to the velcro support across the top back.

I know of two attempts to replaced these two weak velcro supports using the adjacent stays built into the tent which seems smart but on both occasions the huge rubber gasket onto which the tent is sewn has pulled away from the aluminium roof panel and I want to avoid this.

Self drilling short screws seemed to be a simple solution if the roof was thick enough.
Welshgas has pointed to using the 'proper' VW cali D-rings which makes excellent sense but fitting looks tricky.
AndyinLuton has used self tappers in what looks like a similar but not identical sort of roof.

BTW We used the van up in Glen Nevis last weekend in some of the heaviest rain I've ever experienced (3-days n nights worth) and am pleased to say the old Iso-Top / new tent combo is as waterproof and draught-free as ever!!

Could you use these. Designed for Headliners in Vehicles.

Car Roof Repair Fabric Upholstery Screw Twist Pin For Headliner Soft Ceiling | eBay

Easy to use, simply insert pins into the fabric with a twist of your hand & twist in reverse direction to remove. 1 Box of Twist Pins. With these pins you can easily secure loose fabric in place without harming fabric.

www.ebay.co.uk

 

[barry]

In what way is the Velcro not strong enough. You can get Very High Strength Velcro, nothing like that which is normally used. It also has a High Strength Industrial Adhesive .

I've used the industrial velcro with the industrial adhesive and it's worked fine throughout.
I'd rather not secure the Iso-Top to the tent on the two regions I've indicated because of the problems I outlined above - so looking for ways to secure it to the roof.
.

 

[WelshGas]

I've used the industrial velcro with the industrial adhesive and it's worked fine throughout.
I'd rather not secure the Iso-Top to the tent on the two regions I've indicated because of the problems I outlined above - so looking for ways to secure it to the roof.
.

Those Headliner Screws should do the trick and can be easily removed.

 

[barry]

Could you use these. Designed for Headliners in Vehicles.

Car Roof Repair Fabric Upholstery Screw Twist Pin For Headliner Soft Ceiling | eBay

Easy to use, simply insert pins into the fabric with a twist of your hand & twist in reverse direction to remove. 1 Box of Twist Pins. With these pins you can easily secure loose fabric in place without harming fabric.

www.ebay.co.uk

Might just be a solution?
Must go and look at the lining and how securely it's attached

 

[barry]

I don't think I've used the forum much for a good few years.
I'd forgottent how useful it could be.
Thanks folks.

I'll let you know how I get on ...

 

[barry]

Might just be a solution?
Must go and look at the lining and how securely it's attached

Ordered some of these pins.
Delivery window 20 Sept - 20 Oct.
Looks like they'll do just fine.

 

[barry]

Ordered some of these pins.
Delivery window 20 Sept - 20 Oct.
Looks like they'll do just fine.

Arrived Sept 21 (air mail from china)
Will get to it at the weekend.

 

[yanathem]

The plastic catches are designed to be held on with a rivnut so unless you have the correct tool just drill a 5mm hole in the headlining and use expanding polyurethane glue like gorilla glue, lumberjack, etc.....don’t go overboard with it though just enough so it expands and fills the gap with the ring in place. Done it with my first generation iso top because the Velcro stuck to the plastic tabs was forever coming off. Been around three years now since i fitted mine with none coming loose.

 

[barry]

The plastic catches are designed to be held on with a rivnut so unless you have the correct tool just drill a 5mm hole in the headlining and use expanding polyurethane glue like gorilla glue, lumberjack, etc.....don’t go overboard with it though just enough so it expands and fills the gap with the ring in place. Done it with my first generation iso top because the Velcro stuck to the plastic tabs was forever coming off. Been around three years now since i fitted mine with none coming loose.

View attachment 50769

View attachment 50770

View attachment 50771

View attachment 50772

When you drilled through with your 5mm bit, what layers did you come across? How far in did you drill?

 

[yanathem]

No layers as such, just a thick board (headlining) then the roof. Just go slow with your drill the headlining is pretty soft so no need to use any weight with a drill. Ignore the previous hole measurement above, I’ve just measured one of the spare ones I bought and the width is 7mm x 14mm for the height.

 

[yanathem]

All together the plastic hook, rivnut and the screw that holds the hook to the roof is 26mm so it seems there is quite a bit of room to the underneath of the aluminium roof cap.