Removing Coach Armor Shield

[MBuschor]

I am thinking of removing the front Armor Shield on my Allure. The one that came with the coach is a little hazy which made wonder do I really need it and or will I miss it. If I were to remove it I am not sure how to handle the holes. Has anyone removed theirs and if so do you regret it? I would appreciate any input.

[tbbg II]

Have you tried to clean the haze? If it is a surface haze, a little rubbing compound and buffer could do wonders. Certainly doable for a DIY'er or any body shop or detailer could do it in an hour or so. You can easily test with a dab of rubbing compound, a shop rag and some elbow grease.


No doubt it prevents paint chipping...

[deandec]

I removed my shield about 5 years ago.

The holes in the white portion of the rig pose a bit of a challenge regarding paint.

On my rig, the white portion is Gel Coat covered by Clear Coat.

Just filling the holes will likely not match the current color, so you would need to paint the entire affected area. A pro can probably do a close match with base coat plus clear coat. I have not been able to do so.

I have painted my green areas and that turned out fine including filling the residual holes.

I do not miss having to work around that shield and trying to keep it polished clear.

[CountryFit]

i removed mine two years ago. if you look around you will notice that those newly built premium mhs, even prevost by marathon and newell, have no armor shield. having it does not do much and will not increase the value one day if you are selling it. it's heavy making your engine work harder to carry it around... at the time, i went to a paint store and had them match the color. i filled up the holes with body filler, and touch up. nobody notices the holes. i am not regret for doing that.

[dons2346]

"............it's heavy making your engine work harder to carry it around..."

The engine doesn't know the shield is there. The whole shield weighs less than 50 pounds

If your shield is hazy, you can use a polishing product like used on an aircraft windshield such as All Kleer Windshield Cleaner & Polish - 8 oz. - MyPilotStore.com

A product called Flitz can also be used to unfog and take the haze off of the shield. It can also be used on acrylic headlights Car & Truck Polish, Wax and Detailing Kit for Automobiles

[Peralko]

About five years ago I disposed of the shield. It was starting to crack, and in certain wind conditions, it would set up a harmonic vibration that actually cracked the fiberglass. I put the screws back in with the "washers", and it looked OK until a tow truck driver drove the passenger side mirror through the front cap. CC replaced the passenger side of the cap, and filled in the holes on the driver's side, so no more trace of the shield!

[Mr_D]

Yep, using rubbing compound on the shield will scratch t even more. I bought a can of plastic polish from a military surplus place years ago that would work. The polish was made for helicopter and plane canopies to polish them.

[tbbg II]

Originally Posted by Mr_D

Yep, using rubbing compound on the shield will scratch t even more. I bought a can of plastic polish from a military surplus place years ago that would work. The polish was made for helicopter and plane canopies to polish them.

You know rubbbing compounds are formulated in various grits, just like other abrasives. That "polish" you bought is likely a higher grit compound repackaged to get a higher price. I am certain 3M makes a compound thay would make the shield gleem with no detectable scratches.

As others have stated, there may be other reasons to remove the thing, but haze doesn't have to be one of them.

[CountryFit]

in my case, the whole shield became yellowish. i had a polisher and i had used it to clear an older car headlight lenses so i knew what to do but just thought it's not worth doing it. for the weight, i felt pretty heavy, two of us got it off. needless to say, any weight will be added to the mass the engine has to move. the same logic went - i removed a hughes direcway dish from roof top, which was heavy too, a "sorta obsolete" technology for internet at 1.5mbps max, primarily for marine. the subscription with one of the only two small companies, one in houston, would cost $100-150/mo. i knew there was no way i would ever use it, so i trashed it and made the rig a hundred plus lbs lighter . keep in mind, any weight reduction will help improve fuel mileage

[fmc783]

if anyone has one that will fit a 2001 Allure, I might be interested in it. you can contact me @ 336-817-4618.

[deandec]

Well, I have one with all the Hardware that I removed from a 1995 Magna.

I have no clue if it fits your rig. It primarily is fastened to the nose of the generator hatch.

It is on the rig in my signature.