How do I attach stays to f'glass hatch?

[hilldweller]

I'm stuck again Can anyone tell me how to do this? Hatch is fibreglass. Stays (newly purchased) are those little curved ones the man in the shop informed me are called quadrant stays. Detective work on the hatch, which is original and far as I can tell in good condition, uncovered:
- two sets of old screw holes close to the front edge of the hatch, and two sets close to the back. So far so good, but then also...
- four small metal patches on the outside covering the screw holes . The patches are different sizes and look odd.

I don't know what the original hinges were but placement of the holes in the hatch would be about right for the quadrant ones.

So what do I do? I don't necessarily want to recreate the original fixing method (though I'm curious about the metal patches); I do want something that's secure and won't leak.

Thanks in advance

[Roehm3108]

Hi hilldweller
Presumably you can attach the stays to the van body itself and have firm anchorage there. As far as attaching the hatch part to the stay, I would be using a small backing plate preferrably out of stainless steel, attaching it to the outside of the hatch section and then putting a stainless steel bolt through the backing plate, then the fibreglass then the hole in the stay, and attaching the nut from the inside of the van. Don't forget to apply sealant to the whole thing before tightening it up.

Hope that makes sense

Ray

[hilldweller]

Thanks Ray. Yes that makes sense. It seems as if the metal 'patches' might have been used as backing plates but if that was the case they should have bolt holes in them. Perhaps they have and I just can't see them under the paint. Should be obvious when I drill through. But anyway I know what to do now so thanks