Is the rear tray on a 40 sedan held in place or does it just lay in place. The rear seat back would hold it in I guess but I think something should hold it down. The formed tray was junk so I made one from fiberglass cloth. Does it get covered with headliner or door panel cloth? Any help would be appreciated.
As far as I know that tray is spot welded into the body and is an integral part of the body. It is also the structural support for the seat backrest. Frankly making something like that out of fiberglass cloth sounds like a problem waiting to happen. I wouldn't want to be riding in the back seat.
I re-read your post and thought you were talking about the metal part of the tray, My mistake. The cardboard piece that covers the metal tray is covered with headliner material. The material is glued down to the cardboard(or in your case fiberglass). The material is folded over on the back edge and sides to give it a finished look. The front edge hangs over the edge and glues down to the front edge of the metal tray. The seat back holds everything in place.
Most of the old Ford fordor sedans have structure back behind the seat to hold the seat back and even the spare tire sometimes. The rear shelf is generally just some cloth covered panel board using a cloth to match the head liner or rear seat material. Some of those panel boards were steam formed to a specific shape to fit the recessed area better then covered with the cloth and possibly even some jute padding. It would likely have some screws to hold it in places that can be covered by the rear seat or at least some shiny screws and trim washers where they can be seen. It would only take a few screws to hold it since the rear seat likely also helps to secure things a bit.
I've never done a 1940 sedan but I've seen a few of them after they were redone.
Was there a welt around the back edge where the head liner meets the package tray? I have seen pictures of this on the coupes. I can see how the cloth covering could extend down under the back seat and be glued to hold the front of the tray but how is the back held down?
One of out members "Kube" may know what went on there. He is the resident 1939/40 specialist. A copy of the EFV8 Club 1939/40 book may have the answer as well.
I figured it out! After I finished the new fiberglass rear tray I checked to see if the rear window frame was going to fit. After installing the window frame it became apparent that the frame would hold the tray down in the back. Gluing the tray cover to the seat frame in the front will hold the front edge. Thanks to all.
