any ideas on how to make the task of installing grab irons easier? I have slightly enlarged the holes, i use a magnifier. Still, this job doesn’t get any easier.
One piece of advice, and it might have been from Andy Sperandeo, is to cut one “leg” of the grab iron ever so slightly (not too much!) shorter than the other. That way you are NOT trying to place both legs in the tiny little holes at the exact same time – you are in essence putting on your grab iron pants one leg at a time.
I think it is trying to get both legs in both holes at the exact same moment that is the biggest frustration with grab iron placement.
Dave Nelson
I’ve done a few P2K stock cars recently and the grabs went pretty good. I used a big desk mounted magnifier with an integral light and testors liquid glue with the needle applicator. The glue softens and lubricates, the light and magnifier let me see whats goin on, and a DECENT pair of tweezers lets you manipulate the part without it moving about. I happened to get my tweezers from the ER when I got some stiches in my forehead. Seems they dispose of them now instead of sterilizing.
Yes they do. Medical clamps {hemostats?} are often helpful as they hold things really well. Ask if you have any proceedures done what they do with the equipment used and they may give them to you whne they are done as they don;t sterilize and reuse everything anymore. Shame for waste.
If you’re referring to plastic grabirons, yes, they’re nothing but trouble. If you want to use a tool to grip them, try wide-tipped tweezers or, even better, small pliers. Slightly shortening one leg of the grab is also helpful and, to get them started into the holes on the car, use a suitably-sized brush to place a very small amount of solvent-type cement (I use lacquer thinner) in the hole. This softens any paint that may be partially blocking the opening and also softens the plastic walls of the hole, making for a more secure grip once installed.
I usually replace the plastic grabs with wire ones, either pre-formed ones from Tichy or homemade ones fashioned from brass or stainless steel wire. Finger tips work well for installation on some cars, while smooth-jawed pliers are preferred for other applications:
Often, when you drill the holes for wire grabs, they’re not perpendicular to the side of the car, with the result that the installed grabs appear crooked. (Kit cars which include plastic grabs usually require that you plug the existing too-large holes, then re-drill for the smaller diameter wire.) However, if you’ve layed-out the holes accurately but merely drilled them crookedly, there is a simple cure.
I like to place a spacer of .020" or .030" sheet styrene behind the grabs, then, while pressing each one against the spacer, bend-over the legs of the grabs on the interior of the car. Remove the spacer, then apply ca to the bent legs in the interior of the car. After the cement has hardened, grasp any crooked grab along its length with smooth-jawed pliers and twist slightly, up or down, as required. You should be able to straighten any errant ones “by eye”.
