Wednesday, September 30, 2020

I’m not the only wrinkly one around here

Another sign of the Rolling Steel Tent’s age is its sagging headliner. The fabric is separating from its backing. It’s not bad when the weather is warm and dry and the fabric shrinks taut. But when humidity rises, the fabric swells and droops, making me feel like I’m driving some raggedy-assed piece of junk.

Out in the world of money the usual solution is to replace the headliner. Or the vehicle. My search for a new or lightly used headliner was fruitless.

I could remove the headliner and try reattaching the fabric to the backing with spray adhesive. It would be a chore just removing all the panels and trim holding the headliner in place. Was there an easier, less likely to fail, option?

I thought about it. For months. Then it came to me. A couple of metal strips to hold the fabric out of the way. Thus yesterday’s project. 

3 comments:

  1. Would you be able to insulate the headliner area better with a different headliner? In my trailer I am always looking to upgrade my insulation for more comfort.

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    1. The headliner is made of the fabric, a molded cardboard-like backer, and a quarter inch of jute-like insulation. It works fairly well. The cargo compartment didn't have a headliner, so I installed a couple of inches of extruded polystyrene board covered with 1/8" luan. That works very well.

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