Trident gutter and roof removal

Im aware one or two people have asked about this before and I have now done it. Happy to give advice on what to/not to do! [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Yes....assuming your van had the pvc gutter rail covers similar to the Duetto, i'd be interested in the safest method of removal. Only one side piece (indicated) is needed to be removed as i have some rusting to address on that corner.

A/S told me it's just "simply screwed in with nylon screws" which, given the amount of weathering that stuff gets, i feel is probably one of those jobs which could turn into a nightmare.....even more so when A/S said they do have spare rails incase it gets broken (almost as though impending doom is a foregone conclusion!).....but at a mind blowing £400 each!! 

It won't be me doing the paintwork anyway so i may even be tempted to ask the bodyshop guy to figure a 'work-around' but just thought i'd ask how yours came off.

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Visually it looks as though your Duetto LE has the same fixings as my '99 Flake (sorry, Flair). If so, they comprise, as A/S say, nylon bolts into stainless steel stand-offs, with the stand-offs bonded onto the roof rather than the vehicle body. If that's true, you probably stand a good chance of getting them off complete. IIRC other/earlier vans have a directly bonded on gutter and I recall it's near enough impossible to get that type off complete.

The above makes sense. Mine( 1992) were bonded directly on with a few tiny self tappers oneach side....presumably to keep it there whilst glue set and whose heads were under filler in fibreglass gutter. They had to come off so I bit bullet. Carefully using wood chisel between vanbody and bottom edge of gutter afer removing all screws ; I cut through sealant from underneath and gently prised as Iwent. A couple of places chipped, cracked but bothcame off inone piece. If i was doing it again(never!!) I would have taped along body underneath gutter/above windows to minimise scratching. The gutter had a piece of square crosssection timber glued into mouldi g along its length.
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Very brave! It helps to have a big dry shed to work in though...

-mojo- wrote:Visually it looks as though your Duetto LE has the same fixings as my '99 Flake (sorry, Flair). If so, they comprise, as A/S say, nylon bolts into stainless steel stand-offs, with the stand-offs bonded onto the roof rather than the vehicle body. If that's true, you probably stand a good chance of getting them off complete. IIRC other/earlier vans have a directly bonded on gutter and I recall it's near enough impossible to get that type off complete.

Are the nylon bolts 'capped' mojo as iirc there are no visible slots for a screwdriver? I'd go and look now except it's dark! Did they unscrew easily? Personally i hate these nylon screws/bolts (such as you find on the panel cover below the windscreen) as they invariably have a nasty habit of snapping the heads just as you try to turn them! Silly idea imo and no other reason than penny pinching to save using s/steel bolts/screws which would last a lifetime, not to mention resist u/v rays the nylon rubbish suffers.

-mojo- wrote:Very brave! It helps to have a big dry shed to work in though...

My first thoughts too when i saw that! An absolute dream for any rebuild work and a shed that size he could lose a coach in that!

Bulletguy wrote:
Are the nylon bolts 'capped' mojo as iirc there are no visible slots for a screwdriver? I'd go and look now except it's dark! Did they unscrew easily? Personally i hate these nylon screws/bolts (such as you find on the panel cover below the windscreen) as they invariably have a nasty habit of snapping the heads just as you try to turn them! Silly idea imo and no other reason than penny pinching to save using s/steel bolts/screws which would last a lifetime, not to mention resist u/v rays the nylon rubbish suffers.

I've a feeling we may have had this conversation before? On the Flair they were cheesehead with a slot and no covering cap - if yours do not have a slot then it must sadly be a different system - though crosspoint head with a cap is a possibility, I guess.

However, if they do have a slot you should not have toooo much trouble. The stand-offs on mine looked to be top quality marine grade stainless - no corrosion at all despite the usual accumulation of damp leaves all around them. IIRC I had one shear off but the remainder came out easily (think it was sheared during installation) and the thread was, from memory, a metric one that is commonly used on car number plates, so it was easy to replace - albeit with the wrong head shape.

The bigger problem on mine was that several of the stand-offs were not well bonded to the roof, so I had to bond them back in place - not difficult, just a bit tedious.

-mojo- wrote:

Bulletguy wrote:
Are the nylon bolts 'capped' mojo as iirc there are no visible slots for a screwdriver? I'd go and look now except it's dark! Did they unscrew easily? Personally i hate these nylon screws/bolts (such as you find on the panel cover below the windscreen) as they invariably have a nasty habit of snapping the heads just as you try to turn them! Silly idea imo and no other reason than penny pinching to save using s/steel bolts/screws which would last a lifetime, not to mention resist u/v rays the nylon rubbish suffers.

I've a feeling we may have had this conversation before? On the Flair they were cheesehead with a slot and no covering cap - if yours do not have a slot then it must sadly be a different system - though crosspoint head with a cap is a possibility, I guess.

However, if they do have a slot you should not have toooo much trouble. The stand-offs on mine looked to be top quality marine grade stainless - no corrosion at all despite the usual accumulation of damp leaves all around them. IIRC I had one shear off but the remainder came out easily (think it was sheared during installation) and the thread was, from memory, a metric one that is commonly used on car number plates, so it was easy to replace - albeit with the wrong head shape.

The bigger problem on mine was that several of the stand-offs were not well bonded to the roof, so I had to bond them back in place - not difficult, just a bit tedious.

Quite possibly as it's an issue i'd discussed with the bodyshop guy who nearly had a heart do when i told him the replacement cost if a section cracks apart. I'll have a look tomorrow in daylight.

The rusting isn't major serious, more cosmetic at the moment.....right on the corner on the bodywork below the strip. It's only on that one corner side and due to how my van is parked on the drive which slopes for rain water run off. Gathers in the corner after a good shower and if i go out in the van after, i always have to remember to leave the window shut because soon as i brake a few yards down the road....water comes gushing to the front!

Im renting a space in a barn....solely so I can do this job. Its almost waterproof. Would have been impossible otherwise.