C1 Horn Mounting Plate Installation

[Eric A.]

Need some help installing horn mounting plates on a 1958 corvette. I don't understand how to rivet the plates in place when you cannot get to the other side of the fiberglass without cutting a hole in the top of the car. If anyone knows how to do this or knows of an article please help.

Thanks, Eric

[John F.]

Re: C1 Horn Mounting Plate Installation

If not being judged, try pop-rivet.

[Bill M.]

Re: C1 Horn Mounting Plate Installation

Remove headlight bucket.

[Richard M.]

Re: C1 Horn Mounting Plate Installation

You cannot get a soft aluminum rivet installed with the rivet tool once the surround is bonded to the inner skirts. I believe the factory installed them before the surround was bonded to the skirts. You can't get a pop-rivet gun in there either, at least the 2 types I own. The face of the pop-rivet needs to be facing down so the rivet tip holds the plate which is hidden in that shallow area.

I had the same issue on several C1's recently. I tap the plate rivet holes(made for 1/8" rivets) to #6-32 and I use short machine screws, with the slot filled in with a little dum-dum to look like the head of a rivet.

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Then a little black out paint over everything and it's done.

Rich

[Eric A.]

Re: C1 Horn Mounting Plate Installation

Rich - do you have a photo of the finish product installed ? This would be a big help. This is a judged car so I am a little confused when you say the face of the pop rivet needs to be faced down. Which side is the face sorry, sorry new area for me. Eric

[Roger W.]

Re: C1 Horn Mounting Plate Installation

Very cool. I have my horn plates just sitting there temporarily in place with the rivets not headed over. You have saved me a lot of aggravation when I finally install them permanently.

[Richard M.]

Re: C1 Horn Mounting Plate Installation

Eric, Sorry both cars are gone. No photos, and I haven't installed them yet in the '61 I'm working on. I'll try to get a photo of my '59 in the morning, or I may install the plates in the '61(I need to do that anyways) and take a few shots then.

The plate mounts on the top side/inside/top of the skirt, in that area in Bill's photo seen with the HL bucket removed. The bolt for the horn passes through from underneath. The face, or head of the rivet I should have said, passes through the fiberglass from behind, where the horn attaches against the fiberglass, then into the plate. The soft rivet head would be on the side of the fiberglass, and gets peened from the side that passes through the plate.

If you can get a rivet gun in there, which I doubt, the gun would have to fit in that shallow space, where the horn mounts. I couldn't get a rivet gun in there, which is why I use the screws.

Rich

[Richard M.]

Re: C1 Horn Mounting Plate Installation

Here's a few pics of my '59 with original plates installed. Pics from the wheel well area, via a mirror. The ends of the rivets are seen. Heads on the other side against the fiberglass. I think they used flush rivets now that I think of it, so if you use machine screws, flat head may be better.

Rich

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