Hood Lifting

[nbb350]

Does anyone else have trouble getting their hood open? My hood has springs to keep it up once open, but has to be manually lifted into position - which isn't very often (I don't open it at shows or anything). SInce I use unequal-length-arm hinges on my hood, I can't just lift and pivot - I have to have another person (one per side of car) help me lift at all four corners of the hood. The back edge near the windshield is easy to grab and lift, but the front edge is near-impossible for even my wife's small fingers to grab - let alone my sausage-fingers. So I decided I needed something better to grab onto and lift...

I made some little (3/4" wide) stainless steel "hooks" that I mounted to the front edge of my hood. They work fine, but since they wrap underneath the edge of the hood, they lay against the paint - not good. I haven't even driven the car on the road with them installed and they're already rubbing the paint. Adding felt bumpers would just cause the hood to stick up too much. Plus, they look like Sore Thumbs.

Anybody have any better ideas? My original idea was to get some STIFF stainless steel wire and bend it into small "curly-cue hooks" that would be functional-yet-unobtrusive. But I wasn't able to source the wire.

 

[Brett Proctor]

I have another option but this is the easiest one

Compression latch

Compression Latch

Got this from Amazon Took about a month to get it Using it for the engine cover but I think it could be used for the front hood/bonnet. If the handle is in the up position you know the latch isn't locked down so there is kind of a visual safety feature. When you lock it down the striker pulls...

www.sterlingkitcars.com

I installed this on my engine cover. The handle flips up and gives you something to grab onto and lift the cover up. and you can lock it.

The other option requires much more work but I'm using on my hood and its working ok.

 

[farfegnubbin]

I can’t remember exactly how your hinges are set up but have you considered something like “door popper” springs? They are just a fairly small compression strut with a rubber bumper end. Here is a photo just as an example.

The action on these is usually about an inch (or two at most.) But anyway, could you put one on each side under the middle of the lower parallel arm… or at the front corners of the hood… or at all four corners, etc? It would require that you had a positive lock down for the hood. But if so, when you trigger that lock, strategically placed popper springs might bounce the hood up enough that it’s easy to grab. And nothing would mar the paint or be seen externally. Just brainstorming.

 

[farfegnubbin]

I found another ad/photo. This one happened to give dimensions.

 

[nbb350]

It would require that you had a positive lock down for the hood.

Good idea, but Unfortunately I only have pin locks at the back of the hood by the windshield. Installing spring-loaded poppers would kick the front of the hood up all the time.

BUT, it makes me think...I wonder if there is a Manually activated Popper that I could install, then activate with one hand while grabbing the front of the hood with the other hand. Then release the Popper Manual handle, and grab the back of the hood. I already have the perfect spot to mount a single Popper at the center of the front of the hood - I was going to install a conventional hood (front latch, rear hinges), but decided not to and now have a blank plate where that front latch was going to go. Hmmm....

Also with the conventional hood arrangement plan: I was going to install AeroCatches at the front corners, but decided they looked WAY too much like Nostrils! lol

 

[Brett Proctor]

is this your setup or has it changed

 

[nbb350]

I have a different, wider, thicker radiator now, so the gas struts are gone. same hinges though. You can kinda see the "cutout" for the former latch in the aluminum headwall...

 

[Brett Proctor]

Move the lower strut mount further back to get a better angle for the strut to lift
Might have to get a longer strut
In the closed position the strut isn't applying any (or hardly any) lifting force to the hinge

 

[Brett Proctor]

In the closed position the strut isn't applying any (or hardly any) lifting force to the hinge

View attachment 10790

Thats the location where you have it now, or where it was in the picture

 

[nbb350]

I decided to KISS and just make a smaller, less obvious finger lifting hook for the front corner. I took some 3/32" stainless steel welding rod and bent it (ow, my hand still hurts) as shown below. Simple, but effective and barely noticeable when open or closed.

 

[farfegnubbin]

Good solution! Keep it simple.