At 10:31 PM 9/20/97 -0500, John F. Bates wrote:
>Fellow Mogophiles:
>In my glacier-like way, I have been reassembling my 1956 Plus Four
>2-seater. Inasmuch as I was not the person who took it apart, I have run
>into areas that I cannot figure out. I would appreciate it greatly if
>anyone is aware of any published diagram of the wood framework,
>particularly involving the area behind the bench seatback. I don't have
>any idea as to what holds the seatback to the car. Also, there must be
>a support for the top edge, right? Thanks. John F. Bates, 56 Plus Four,
>other lesser vehicles.
Get a copy of Robert Couch's catalogue from Morgan Spares in NY. There are
some good illustrations therein. Also get Melvyn Rutter's catalogue which
has some terrific blowup diagrams of various components. If you don't
already have a copy, buy Fred Sisson's book: The Morgan Driver's Bedside
Reader. It will be the best $50 you ever spend on your Morgan.
To answer your specific question, the seatback of a Plus 4 sits loosely in
the car, held by gravity. The bottom edge can be placed in either of two
positions defined by wooden cleats screwed to the body sills just in front
of the rear wheel arches. The rake of the seatback is set by an ash
crossbar about 5/4 X 2 which traverses the car at the heiight of the
seatback and which is attached to the body side panels with two part steel
brackets. These brackets have about a three inch slot in the movable part.
The fixed part is screwed to the side panels. It has a stud which goes
through the slot in the movable crossbar bracket and a wingnut to clamp the
crossbar in place. Pretty primitive, and the wingnut chews up the side
panels of the seatback. A good modification might be to build some SS type
bucket seats using the complete directions in Fred Sisson's book.
There's also a plywood bulkhead just behind the seatback that stiffens the
body considerably and holds up the parcel shelf above the rear axle. I made
both the bulhead & the parcel shelf out of 3/8" marine plywood, screwed &
glued together.
Good luck finishing it off. It took me five years to get around to putting
my '67 Plus 4 back together and painted and now I'm having a ball with it.
Regards.
Jerry Murphy
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