MGA Interior Tech - Battery cover carpet and fasteners

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MGA Battery Cover CARPET and FASTENERS -- INT-101C

At 09:59 AM 10/10/04 -0600, John Keller wrote:
>"When I carpeted the battery panel, I cut about a ¾ inch slit into the carpet about and inch from each side of where the fastener will be under the carpet. I covered that part of the carpet and panel with masking tape before I applied the adhesive. After the new panel was installed I peeled back the carpet, removed the tape and applied ¾ inch square Velcro fasteners to the carpet and panel with contact cement. If you get your nose down to the carpet there is no sign what so ever the carpet has been cut. When you want to remove the battery cover, just peel back that little strip." -- John

velcro flap in carpet for battery cover faastener

Carpet tab before last Velcro piece is applied.

Dzus bail handle 1/4 turn fastener Okay, he's just making pretty. I'm not nearly so particular about appearances. In my world form follows function, and I just want to be able to get the battery cover off and back on in the shortest time possible, and preferably without tools. So I have replaced the original slotted dome top fastener with a bail handle Dzus fastener. This is getting to be a popular modification these days, especially for the MGB which has 5 panel fasteners. It is really nice to get a firm grip on the fastener and feel the way into the wire hook in a couple of seconds. In the MGA roadster nobody ever sees it anyway, as the side curtain stowage pouch hides that area whether the top is up or down. -- Barney

Addendum, May 2006:
Okay, people have been asking where they came from. I do some business with S.W. Anderson in Downers Grove, Illinois. www.swaco.com. There are a few of these around the country. This is an industrial fastener supplier, and they may require some minimum order or establishment of a business account. Occasionally you may be able to get a few pieces as samples.

For small quantities, Ed Kaler of Just Brits may sell these. www.justbrits.com.

The manufacturer is "DFCI Solutions Inc" http://www.dfcis.com.
For dimensions see www.dfcis.com/st-1200

Addendum, January 2010: More dimensions:
www.dfcis.com/st-1200/d5s.html
www.dfcis.com/engineering/C122J-R5RevC.pdf

For more detail about panel fitment and mating parts,
see the Southco/Dzus larger (7-MB) pdf file here:
www.southco.com/resources/documents/D4.en.pdf
The size 5 stud info starts on page 11.

DFCI is same company as founded in 1938.
DZUS is a registered trademark of Southco Fastener company.

This stud is 5/16" dia on the cam end with a 1/4" dia undercut on the shank. The panel hole will be 5/16" dia, so it will be slip fit for installation. The undercut allows 1/16" diametrical float once installed.

I have one piece in my possession, retained as a spare ever since I installed the things in late 1986. The head design is slightly smaller since then. Mine has grip length of .450 and undercut length of .225. If the stud is too short you're screwed. If it is a bit too long you can install a thin flat washer under the head. In my case the head rests on top of glued on carpeting, so if you install this in a bare panel it may be better with less stud length.