Dzus fasteners to mount side covers?

[Anonymous]

Hey All,
Trying to think of ways to repair my side covers, I have a couple of missing posts and the rest seem like a risk every time i pull the covers off.
I was thinking about flush mounted , aluminum ( maybe polished, maybe stainless) Dzus type 1/4 turn panel fasteners.

has any one else considered/ done this?

[Jethro]

I went to Ace Hardware and bought a couple knobs I found. There is a 1/8" threaded hole in the back side and it's concave on the back surface. I drilled a couple of 1/2" holes in the side panels at exactly the right place. I located the holes by using a string line from the foot peg to the side of the tank with tape, running the line right through the center of the hole where the rubber washer was that recieved the tab on the cover, and marking the center of that big hole with a pen. Then I reinstalled the cover with the string still in place and put a mark on the cover where the mark on the string was and drilled the hole. I then epoxied the 1/8" bolt with a washer to the back of the hole on the frame. The knob, being concave on the back, sort of self centers the cover. I've been meaning to take some better pics, but this is what it looks like:

[Anonymous]

side panel fix

Hello All

the easiest and best way to repair your broken posts on side panels
1) Gently file, sand or grind the area of the old post
2) Drill a 1/8 inch hole 1/8 to 1/4 inch deep, Being very careful not to
drill through the panel or u may have to paint it.
3) Screw a #2 3/4 inch long phillips machine screw into the drilled hole
4) Then mix up a small amount of J B WELD and apply it to the screw
head and the surounding area making sure to smooth it out making
sure the screw head is exposed with only a small amount of JB to
cover the screw. this will allow the screw haed to pass through the
rubber gromet holding the panel securely.

Best of luck, Archie

[Jethro]

In my case the post broke off entirely on both panels. That would only work if only the very head broke off.

[Anonymous]

post repair

Hello Jethro
Yes ! this fix is for a post that is completely broken off at the base as mine did 3 yrs ago and it still is holding well. You just might have to adjust your drill size and depth to suit your needs.
Good Luck, Archie

[alan]

My posts haven't broken yet, but make me nervous everytime I pull them which has been a lot lately. So, I'm going to try a trick a friend of mine did to his panels. His were cracked and ready to snap off. He got some automotive epoxy and built up a number of layers around the base of the post and up the post as far as he could go without interfering where it goes through the grommet. It's very solid now.