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Response LX ski locker mod (accomplished)


jfw432

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So I talked about it in another thread but I finally did it. It's not totally finished and I'm not happy with the hinges I selected at this time but here are the preliminary results. The gap between the two halves is alarmingly larger than I anticipated. Also still need to attach the struts to hold the halves up.

Original shot.

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Foam underneath the vinyl. I was surprised that two different foams are used.

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I was also surprised to see that the deck is made of aluminum honeycomb but staples still go into it.

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Current results. The outsides aren't perfectly flush with the top and there is a slight gap underneath. I need to find better hinges.

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Excellent work! As with many mods they sometimes are a work in progress. I like the split trunk. 

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Turns out the new hinges were worse and the old ones were good enough. Some of the complaints I heard with a split hatch were that you had to open both hatches. One side has the original 20lb strut and the new one is a 30lb Strongarm D4398 model. The new strut has a longer stroke so the hatches can open further. It also opens itself when you unhook the latch. The parts store only had 1 on my way home even though they said they had 4 so I'm picking up the second one tomorrow. As you can see the longer strut allows the hatch to open a bit further. I also cut the hinges down so it would look clean until the back seat needed reupholstering. 

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Nice modification!  I would try to find some beading that would cover the staples up, they sell some black stuff that is pretty rigid, would hide the vinyl edges and trim it out nicely.

Here is some in bone.  You staple the center and the outsides flap over the staple, so it provides a nice clean edge.

http://www.fabricguru.com/p-outdoor-fabric/inch-hidem-gimp-upholstery-trim-3

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Did you re use the original base honeycomb type material?

i have the mounting points on my LXI a lot lower allowing the hatch top open further.

long piano type hinge 

 

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4 hours ago, Andrew63 said:

Did you re use the original base honeycomb type material?

i have the mounting points on my LXI a lot lower allowing the hatch top open further.

long piano type hinge 

 

Yeah I'm still using the original aluminum honeycomb so my options of hinge placement is a little limited. I was originally planning to use a piano hinge but the foam on this deck would need to be thicker to hide the hinge. I either needed to buy all new foam or the hinge would show so I opted to just use some hinges that would get the halves near vertical and be hidden. I put the other strut on today so both are near vertical now and both open on their own. This piece of polycarbonate that I had laying around was the final touch to keep the side down without the latch. 

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