These were quite rusty in places where the zinc plating had worn off or become damaged so I decided to paint them. I used Screwfix T Wash, then acid etch from a spray can and finally rolled on the satin marine blue enamel.

The hasp on the passenger side was sprayed with chrome effect paint.

Soundproofing

On previous vehicles I have used a foam strip / draught excluder tape but this time I thought I’d try something else. I sourced some 3mm black self-adhesive neoprene / foam sheet from Camthorne Industrial Supplies Ltd via their Amazon shop. I got a square metre which easily covers the three lids with some left over for other jobs. This company has other products that I will buy later on.

The idea was that by covering the whole lid rather than just the edges it might dampen the ‘drumming’ noise as well as curing rattles. I have seen drummers dampening otherwise boomy snares and toms with ‘Moongel’ and the difference is amazing.

I am very pleased with how these came out, the adhesive seems very strong and the material is easy to work with. The rolled on paint finish is reasonable (considering), but certainly much smarter than it was.

I guess the underside of the centre lid will get splattered with mud and may be awkward to clean. Time will tell. I have spray painted the new self-tapping screws and washers, and fitted new spire nuts in the seat box to complete the job.