TR2/3/3A 3A Front Apron Question

[M_Pied_Lourd]

Hi All,

Been working on the 3A project pretty much on a daily basis and getting closer to getting it primed and painted.

Trying to get the panels to fit a little better. Specifically, I have a question regarding the front fender to bonnet gaps. It seems that my front apron is about an inch wider than the leading edge of my bonnet. When I center the hood on the apron leaving about a 1/2 inch gap on either side, I have quite large gaps running along the edge of the bonnet where it meets the front wings of at least a 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch as a result of the width of the apron and narrowness of the bonnet.

I know that the beading will take up a small amount of this gap along the wings but definately not enough.

Seems that I will have to make some sort of decision regarding adding metal to the bonnet or subtracting from the apron....

I can take some photos and post tonight if my description above is unclear.

Cheers,
David

 

[TR3TR6]

David:

When I had my car painted, I took all the body parts off and my brother striped everything down to bare metal and did any body work that needed to be done. He sprayed each panel seperate. When he attemped to assemble the car I got a call; he said the front fenders, the bonnet and the nose would not fit right. So I went over and put enough bolts in to keep everything together and brought it home. I had to take all the body panels back off on the front end. What I discovered was that the order that you put everthing back together is the key to whether it will fit right. Unless you have added parts from another car, you should get a pretty good fit. Its been so long since I did this that I don't remember everything that I did. What I do remember is that I when I put the panels back on I left all the bolts pretty lose and didn't tighten anything until I had everything lined up the way I wanted it. Sorry this is so lengthy. Hope it helps.

 

[M_Pied_Lourd]

Hi Terry,

Thanks for the reply.

I guess what I am mainly concerned about is that no matter what I do the fact remains that the leading edge of the bonnet is an inch shorter in width than the apron.

Would someone be able to do a visual check and just confirm that the leading edge of the bonnet should be close to the outside edge of the front apron? That would be a good place to start.

Cheers,
David

 

[TR4nut]

David-

Just a reference point, but I measured the apron and bonnet on my 3A and don't have that big a difference:

Bonnet - flange to flange, straight measurement: 46"
Apron - flang to flange, straight measurement: 46.25"

This is for a pre 60K car.

Randy

 

[Geo Hahn]

Mine (TS47nnn):

Bonnet - 46 1/8
Apron - 46 3/8

As my wife would say - 'Such a good fit it's practically a convulsion'.

 

[M_Pied_Lourd]

Thanks Guys,

Will post some pictures and take some measurements tonight (of the hood and apron in case Don is reading this).

Cheers
David

 

[TR3TR6]

Well David, just to give you an idea as to how mind was; when I went over to get my car, the bonnett was just about an inch overlapping the front apron. I couldn't believe it could be that far off. It had a good fit before I took it apart. After rereading your post and that of the others, I'm beginning to think that either your front apron or your bonnett has been changed out.

 

[M_Pied_Lourd]

Played around with it a little bit tonight. Best I can get is about a 1/2 inch gap on each side. Might have to live with that.

Yes the front valence has been replaced at some time. In my avatar photo of the PO vintage racing the car, you can see that the valence that was on the car then has a small air intake under the original grill. The valence in the car now doesn't have the cut out or repair area so.....

Here are a couple of pics of what I have to work with.

I guess with a skim coat of filler some primer and paint plus the beading will take up a little bit of that gap....

Cheers,
David

 

[TR3driver]

I wouldn't worry about it. These cars were nowhere near perfect when new, and replacement body panels never fit quite right. My gaps are about like yours, caused by the replacement front apron.

 

[JFeher]

How does the leading edge of the bonnet line up with the apron? Could the bonnet be bowed or the apron flattend out? I'm still working on my rusty shell and not quite ready to test fit bolt on panels. I measured my apron out of curiosity and came up with 46 1/2 inches. The front edge hood measures 46 1/8.

John

 

[mallard]

Looks just like mine does. It also looks like the gap is the same all the way up, which is the way it should be. When you put the bead on it will be a smaller gap. You want a little wiggle room to open and close the bonnet. You should be good to go.

 

[CJD]

Hey Dave,

It may be the angle, but it looks like the forward arch of the bonnet is slighlty higher than the arch on the apron. If it is, you can reduce the arch on the bonnet by pushing the center down to line up with the apron. That will have the action of spreading the front of the bonnet, thereby reducing the forward gap.

Of course, if it's just the angle of the photo and the two arches are even, then I would recommend altering the apron instead of the bonnet. The curves of the apron will reduce any distortion if you have to cut and weld it to size...vs. the bonnet, which has large flatter areas that will make extending and welding much harder.

All the above is dependent on you worrying about it. The bead hides the gap from all angles except dead on from in front. I was less critical with my bonnet gaps (compared to, say, the door gaps), since the flimsiness of the bonnet makes whacking it against the wings when closing it more likely. I did work hard to make sure the gap was consistent along its length, though, and centered evenly from side to side.

John

 

[TexasKnucklehead]

I have 2 aprons, a small mouth and a large.

My bonnett is 46"
Large mouth 46 1/4"
Small mouth 46 3/8"

I can see in your picture, the mounting points at the apron are a little bent at the captive nuts. You might straighten those and get a little less space.

 

[M_Pied_Lourd]

Thanks guys for all the feedback.

Cheers,
David

 

[Tr3aguy]

David,
Looking good...I am impressed with your work so far.

 

[M_Pied_Lourd]

Its getting there JP. Over the rest of the weekend I am going to refit the rear fenders and replace all the rusted off cage nuts at the rear of the wings and then on the body tub.

Almost done welding. Just need to close the rear of the car out.

Getting pretty close to doing actual panel prep for paint....

Will update the "making progress" thread hopefully on Sunday night. Unfortuntely ,won't have time to work on it today as I have other obligations.

Cheers,
David

 

[SPACER]

Hi David,

My car, a post TS 60000 with plinths on the bonnet & the later curved or reflexed apron measures:
bonnet 46"
apron 46 3/8 ".

I assume your car is also a post TS60000. There cannot be that much variation in parts as they should have come off the same stamping dies. This assuming that both our cars have original parts.
Since the apron has a substantial return flange along the rear edge, I doubt that it is distorted.
The bonnet is possibly bent or flattened as the"top hat" reinforcement is weaker, but unlikly.
If the bonnet profile matches the apron, I would rather live with the gap issue than a mis matched profile.

Edit: Do you have the early or late apron & are they different in width?

Bob

 

[Marvin Gruber]

Install the beading for a test fit. It will close up the look of the gap a lot.

Marv