fitting a sunroof on a hijet/porter pickup

It occurred to me that summer is just around and with my newest ride I'll be cruising on a heat source.
A sunroof looked like a good way to get rid of some of that unwanted warmth.
On the internet second hand market I've found a new one for cheap:

Only issue to make it fit are the fins meant to give the thin 0.8mm roof some structure.
Whilst getting the paint out, I'll also tackle some rust:


I haven't done much, but here's what I have so far:


Protect what's dearest or give it your best shot:

Unfortunately I did not do so for my own protection. The safety glasses I had on while doing this were too low on my nose, and a metal particle found it's way into my eye. Tomorrow, when personal protection is increased (face shield), I'll continue.

Cheers!

Ohw shit... there goes the perfect roof!!

To bad about your eye man.. Hope it's not to bad! Keep us updated

ohw.. by the way, I changed the frond and of my pickup and managed to keep the original radiator. I did change the brackets though. And the rest of the front is customized.

it wasn't perfect, there was a small dent in the corner

The eye is feeling and looking better, less red, more eye. The crappiest part was to get the stuff out, eyeball needle poking isn't fun. And 3 days passed before I went to have it checked. Rust was formed in these days. That rust took the longest time to get rid of...
So yeah, wear your condoms kids... Face shield is cheaper than a doctor's visit...

I'm also thinking to go custom on the front, but still not 100% sure what route to take. My brain is processing several ideas, hoping for the best

Ohw shit.. that really doesn't sound good. But as long as you have no permanent damage to you eye, you will be fine. It will be a hard lesson learned. And we can all learn from you

I will follow your progress. Really looking forward to the outcome of your project. I really like the small pickup and have ideas for a next one. But.... time is a bitch. So for now I have to do with watching your project (Although I'm still not finished with my woodbed pickup)

nice work man.
I like that you can admit your faults and laugh about it.
Most guys just say everything went perfect.
Like pvdb said we can learn from it and laugh a litle
I also post my faults and things that i could have done better.
So that if somebody else reads youre topic they think: aah well i may give it a try to.
Im not a mechanic and just try things to, its ok if its not 100% perfect.

I started spraying plastidip that contains 50% thinner in an inclosed space without ventilation.
After a couple of minutes i almost passed out
And i didnt buy enough dip to.. but who cares..i learned from it and see it as a base layer and will finish it later on by just applying some more layers.

nice to see the amount of pictures and updates, its been a while since we had that here.
keep it up

Thanks Scotia & PvdB!

Auwch Scotia! there's some nasty chemicals out there! what were you trying to dip? I've done it too and you really need a lot, and after a few months it didn't look good anymore. IT was easy to remove, that's a plus

I wanted to post an update earlier but there wasn't much updated. I had to overdo some of the earlier work.
I've ended up making 3 sets of cardboard dummy pieces:
The first set was done flimsy; I tried to hold it with one hand from underneath whilst marking it with the other. Ending up with bad templates. I made them in metal too
The second set I fixed with masking tape. But after I took them off, I saw that the sharpie's ink was soaking in my cardboard leaving uneven lines, and that maybe I should start with straighter holes.



So I put some reference lines to file my holes straight(er) and made a third set. So far so good. 11 more to go


Oh and these are the glasses I was wearing:

dipped the carry

Well done Delcampo, keep the updates comming. As Scotia said, been a while since we had some projects going on here. Mine have had to take a little back seat for a while for one reason and another.

OK, I see why you ran out now Scotia Nice job!
Thanks Raggy! Here's a small update: I started welding on 3 of the 12 holes.
The other plates are being filed into shape while I do one spot weld at the time. I hold the plates in place with small sorta heat resistant magnets. So far no deformation visible. Machine is set to 12 amps, straight DC, 1.6mm tungsten, 1.6mm filler rod.

Excellent, looking good so far, really jealous of the workshop. Love the portable welding kit/trolley.

Thanks Raggy!
Got the welding cart for free and only took 20 mins to build
I wish everything went that fast...
It’s fully welded and I’ve learned a few things again:
- don’t use filler. Without there’s no need for grinding afterwards. And less heat is needed.
I’d just do some spot welds with if I had to redo it, and let the rest flow together.
- cut out 2 pieces instead of 12. If I took out two big pieces, there would’ve been a lot less cleanup afterwards. Fitting would’ve also been faster.
- don’t lean on the roof... a bit idiotic, but leaning on the roof causes extra work.

Tonight I’ll finish cleaning up the welds and get my hammer collection out

Here’s what I’ve left behind...




Sent from Topic'it App

There are always things that could have or should have been done, the main thing is you are having a go and learning as you go along, that’s what we all do. Best part is that you are documenting it so that others can learn from it, keep up the good work.