11 replies to this topic

[Charliezminiz]

hi all, hope everyones having a fine evening,
as title really im looking to add a set of fibreglass doors to a resto im doing, it has 1098 engine, fibreglass boot ,flipfront and a-panels. so i no you cant put normal windows etc in what does everyone think i could use perspex? or mk1 sliding windows?
cheers callum.

[1984mini25]

I'd stay away from fiberglass doors to be honest, could go for the alloy streetfighter doors with mk1 windows tho.

[Charliezminiz]

are they that bad or just the face there fibreglass, ?

[1984mini25]

I've heard that they don't fit too well and change shape at speed, hence why i've stuck with standard steel doors with the inner skins chopped out and mk1 polycarb sliding windows.

[mini-man-dan]

Hi there. If you're looking for polycarb windows I'm the man to speak to! If you scroll down on the forum page to the traders section we've got a 15% discount on our Mini windows for tmf members. I'd put a link up, but i'm using my phone at the moment which doesn't let me copy and paste! Wouldn't use perspex as it splinters when it breaks. You cannot actually break polycarb! Put into youtube 'polycarb vs acrylic' (of which perspex is a trade name) and watch some videos. It's good stuff! And also, on average, polycarb is half the weight of equivalent glass. Dan

Edited by mini-man-dan, 30 March 2010 - 09:41 PM.

[LukeH]

Hi

I am in the process of fitting fibreglass/carbon fibre doors to my mini project and I will be fitting MK1 sliding windows made out of polycarbonate. I have covered the build process on my website and I will be adding more detail as I go along including a technical document on how to convert from MK3 doors to MK1 style. The specific page on my website is;

Carbon Doors

A few things to mention about fibreglass/carbon doors;

1. The shape is not quite right and needs some work to get them to fit properly.

2. Fitting standard locks has taken me a lot of work including making metal spreader plates, bonding them into postion etc....

3. If fitting MK1 sliding windows you will need to make and bond into place a blanking channel for the window rails/rubbers to fix to (detail on my website)

4. MK1 sliding windows will cost approx £140 for all of the polycarbonate, catches, rubbers and seals etc...

Now for your choice of windows it is best to use polycarbonate as it is light but much much stronger than glass and will not shatter. I purchased mine direct from a plastics specialist for £60. I have enough to make MK1 sliding windows for both doors and it came pre-cut to the rough size to make it easier to work with. One of the most difficult things I have found is getting hold of the dimensions for the MK1 windows including the catch postions. I have these now and can supply if you need them.

If you want overall strength and ease of fitting you could go for fixed poly windows with sliding portals in them. Take a look at the website that mini-man-dan has suggested, they're a good price to.

If I was going to start over with my doors I would probably do them again in carbon/fibreglass - why? because I like the fact that I have a lot of carbon and fibreglass on the car including boot floor, boot lid, rear valance, flip-front, carbon roof skin etc...They have been a pain to work with and have taken me ages to get right but I'm happy with the end result oh and I've fitted mine using MK1 external hinges, which made it even harder.

I hope this helps and give me a shout if you need any help.

Luke.

[1380rich]

the carbon weasel doors dont flex and change shape at speed... unlike my fibreglass doors

imo mk1 sliding windows

[Charliezminiz]

so can i use my original heavy steel doors but take out all the window mechanisms etc and use polycarb windows. thats got to saves lots of weight hasnt it?. i dont mind the work of fibreglass but if i can do something with my original doors then great! the cars not an everyday car its a show car so not worried about crashes etc,

[Charliezminiz]

also if can i cut the inside of the door out the bit the the window mechanism bolts to and replace with a sheet of ally?

[mini-man-dan]

Hi

I am in the process of fitting fibreglass/carbon fibre doors to my mini project and I will be fitting MK1 sliding windows made out of polycarbonate. I have covered the build process on my website and I will be adding more detail as I go along including a technical document on how to convert from MK3 doors to MK1 style. The specific page on my website is;

Carbon Doors

A few things to mention about fibreglass/carbon doors;

1. The shape is not quite right and needs some work to get them to fit properly.

2. Fitting standard locks has taken me a lot of work including making metal spreader plates, bonding them into postion etc....

3. If fitting MK1 sliding windows you will need to make and bond into place a blanking channel for the window rails/rubbers to fix to (detail on my website)

4. MK1 sliding windows will cost approx £140 for all of the polycarbonate, catches, rubbers and seals etc...

Now for your choice of windows it is best to use polycarbonate as it is light but much much stronger than glass and will not shatter. I purchased mine direct from a plastics specialist for £60. I have enough to make MK1 sliding windows for both doors and it came pre-cut to the rough size to make it easier to work with. One of the most difficult things I have found is getting hold of the dimensions for the MK1 windows including the catch postions. I have these now and can supply if you need them.

If you want overall strength and ease of fitting you could go for fixed poly windows with sliding portals in them. Take a look at the website that mini-man-dan has suggested, they're a good price to.

If I was going to start over with my doors I would probably do them again in carbon/fibreglass - why? because I like the fact that I have a lot of carbon and fibreglass on the car including boot floor, boot lid, rear valance, flip-front, carbon roof skin etc...They have been a pain to work with and have taken me ages to get right but I'm happy with the end result oh and I've fitted mine using MK1 external hinges, which made it even harder.

I hope this helps and give me a shout if you need any help.

Luke.

Sorry to say, we could've saved you a tonne of hassle. Our Mk1 sliding windows retail out at £59.99 for all 4, with the TMF discount is £50.99 + £10 P&P. So for an extra £1 you can have all the windows finished, pre-drilled, ready to go! And they are all made from 4mm Lexan Polycarbonate.

Here's a link to the offer
LINK

And yes removing the middles of your steel doors and using polycarb windows will save a lot of weight. If you don't want to use all the Mk1 runners, you could alsways use Mk3 windows with sliders in (see link above for picture).

Cheers
Dan

Edited by mini-man-dan, 31 March 2010 - 04:53 PM.

[1984mini25]

Hi

I am in the process of fitting fibreglass/carbon fibre doors to my mini project and I will be fitting MK1 sliding windows made out of polycarbonate. I have covered the build process on my website and I will be adding more detail as I go along including a technical document on how to convert from MK3 doors to MK1 style. The specific page on my website is;

Carbon Doors

A few things to mention about fibreglass/carbon doors;

1. The shape is not quite right and needs some work to get them to fit properly.

2. Fitting standard locks has taken me a lot of work including making metal spreader plates, bonding them into postion etc....

3. If fitting MK1 sliding windows you will need to make and bond into place a blanking channel for the window rails/rubbers to fix to (detail on my website)

4. MK1 sliding windows will cost approx £140 for all of the polycarbonate, catches, rubbers and seals etc...

Now for your choice of windows it is best to use polycarbonate as it is light but much much stronger than glass and will not shatter. I purchased mine direct from a plastics specialist for £60. I have enough to make MK1 sliding windows for both doors and it came pre-cut to the rough size to make it easier to work with. One of the most difficult things I have found is getting hold of the dimensions for the MK1 windows including the catch postions. I have these now and can supply if you need them.

If you want overall strength and ease of fitting you could go for fixed poly windows with sliding portals in them. Take a look at the website that mini-man-dan has suggested, they're a good price to.

If I was going to start over with my doors I would probably do them again in carbon/fibreglass - why? because I like the fact that I have a lot of carbon and fibreglass on the car including boot floor, boot lid, rear valance, flip-front, carbon roof skin etc...They have been a pain to work with and have taken me ages to get right but I'm happy with the end result oh and I've fitted mine using MK1 external hinges, which made it even harder.

I hope this helps and give me a shout if you need any help.

Luke.

Sorry to say, we could've saved you a tonne of hassle. Our Mk1 sliding windows retail out at £59.99 for all 4, with the TMF discount is £50.99 + £10 P&P. So for an extra £1 you can have all the windows finished, pre-drilled, ready to go! And they are all made from 4mm Lexan Polycarbonate.

Here's a link to the offer
LINK

And yes removing the middles of your steel doors and using polycarb windows will save a lot of weight. If you don't want to use all the Mk1 runners, you could alsways use Mk3 windows with sliders in (see link above for picture).

Cheers
Dan

Mine were even cheaper to do, seeing as i bought a pack of 2 sheets of 4 mm polycarb for about £50 and found i got away with making both pairs of windows from one sheet, so still have one spare.

And in total with all the parts, my mk1 sliding windows on mk3 doors cost less than £100 for both doors

[danoz24]

Tell me if this sounds silly as I'm still learning about the do's and dont's of poly windows, but what's the problem with fitting poly windows in the existing door winder mechanisms as of mk3's??? Has anyone done this?? It would be wiked to have much lighter doors (and everywhere else if replacing all rear windows the same) and still have a fully winding door windows...

Edited by danoz24, 10 October 2010 - 01:37 PM.