aluminum body parts

[maxwedge5281]

i recently bought a set of aluminum fenders for my v8 converted 59 bn6. when i bought the car it had huge flares and huge tires and wheels. i knew that i would replace those as well as the fenders but had no idea that body parts could be so difficult to fit....properly. i found a set of aluminum fenders with moss part numbers still attached that had never been mounted...at a very good price! i can do most things mechanically but after trial fitting of the fenders i am very skeptical of my ability to mount properly...so i am off to a local very well respected body man to have him take a look and advise me of the issues that will have to be overcome for a nice car....wish me luck and if you are considering replacement fenders my advice would be to try to find original ones.

 

[Bob_Spidell]

... my advice would be to try to find original ones.

Which aren't guaranteed to fit without tweaking, either. Legend has it when assembled the body assemblers would try different pieces from a pile--and picked the ones that fit together best--and they still usually required some, uh, adjustment. I acquired some used OEM rear wings for our BN2, whose wings were rusted out in the usual place (bottom of the 'dogleg' portion). These required quite a bit of sworking to fit halfway decent.

There was an article a few years back in Austin-Healey Magazine (blurb from AHCUSA). They heard from a gent who worked in the body stamping plant--Jensen?--who stated that they often/usually stamped up to 3 panels at a time which, of course, did not result in precise shaping.

Side note: My dad used to work for Ford and was based at the old Fremont, CA assembly plant. He said they picked the biggest, strongest man in the plant--who happened to be black--and gave him the job of adjusting the doors on the early Mustangs. He used a 2X4 about 4 feet long.

 

[mikephillips]

who stated that they often/usually stamped up to 3 panels at a time which, of course, did not result in precise shaping.QUOTE]

So each one from each stamping cycle would be slightly different in size from the others. I'd guess the fit of the male to female dies was fairly inexact to allow up to three sheets of metal to go through at a time..

 

[Keoke]

Well Max:

In your case it isn't just the stamping cycle that is against you. It is the fact that you picked aluminum which only a limited number of people know how to work.

Actually looking at your picture of the smaller flares, I would rather modify the existing metal fenders to the same configuration than try to fit aluminum ones
Cost probably about the same???

 

[HealeyRick]

I like the small flares. I'm afraid stories of the aluminum fenders being difficult to fit have been going around for years. I'm not sure if they come from one manufacturer and sold by different sources or whether they all come from the same maker. Hope your body guy can work his magic.

 

[vette]

...so i am off to a local very well respected body man to have him take a look and advise me of the issues that will have to be overcome for a nice car....wish me luck and if you are considering replacement fenders my advice would be to try to find original ones.

Max, contrary to popular opinion aluminum is not any harder to make fit than steel. It is just that you have to take your time, be careful with it and if you must weld then you will have to tig weld it which most shops don't do. If you find a skilled metal man and he is willing to take his time the aluminum can be fitted quite easily. I will guess that most shops will want to charge a premium to do alum because it is not their standard practice, but if they are willing I'm sure they can get it done.
As an example, I have been shaping metal (panelbeating) for quite a while now but I have never had the opportunity to work in aluminum. Well about a month ago I did get the opportunity. I created a new aluminum door skin for an MGA roadster. I found that I love it. The aluminum is so much easier to work with. Not near the hammer work necessary with steel. Easier to shrink and stretch. You just have to be careful that you don't over work it. But all materials have their limit. Here's some examples. Hope you find the right guy. Also, I have to say, unless I was racing and looking for all the weight reduction I could get, I would not put aluminum on my car. The heavier car with steel rides better and the steel doesn't dent and mark up like aluminum.

 

[Keoke]

i recently bought a set of aluminum fenders for my v8 converted 59 bn6. when i bought the car it had huge flares and huge tires and wheels. i knew that i would replace those as well as the fenders but had no idea that body parts could be so difficult to fit....properly. i found a set of aluminum fenders with moss part numbers still attached that had never been mounted...at a very good price! i can do most things mechanically but after trial fitting of the fenders i am very skeptical of my ability to mount properly...so i am off to a local very well respected body man to have him take a look and advise me of the issues that will have to be overcome for a nice car....wish me luck and if you are considering replacement fenders my advice would be to try to find original ones.

Good You one smart fella---

 

[PHulst]

Side note: My dad used to work for Ford and was based at the old Fremont, CA assembly plant. He said they picked the biggest, strongest man in the plant--who happened to be black--and gave him the job of adjusting the doors on the early Mustangs. He used a 2X4 about 4 feet long.

The doors of the 63-67 Corvette coupes were fit in a similar manner.
To adjust the front fenders to fit, they used a sledge hammer. I've seen a photo of this happening at the plant in the last 70s.

 

[HealeyRick]

The doors of the 63-67 Corvette coupes were fit in a similar manner.
To adjust the front fenders to fit, they used a sledge hammer. I've seen a photo of this happening at the plant in the last 70s.

 

[blueskies]

The doors of the 63-67 Corvette coupes were fit in a similar manner.
To adjust the front fenders to fit, they used a sledge hammer. I've seen a photo of this happening at the plant in the last 70s.

Hitting fiberglass panels with a sledge hammer; I would like to see that.

Panel beating is an art. Beating (and welding) the rear wings/quarters on the BN4 into submission today.

 

[maxwedge5281]

i decided to hold off on the body man visit and spend a day with the panels on the drivers side which did not line up as well as i would like. after a few hours of trimming and enlarging body mounting holes i have the drivers side in good shape. lower front shoud area will need some work to match up the fender lines below the headlight and turn signal opening. it appears that the fenders have the larger bump for the later turn signals. but, that can be dealt with easy enough. this car is not a restoaration but i still want it nice and clean in appearance. thanks to each for your comments....and yes i would have preferred steel for maintance sake over aluminum! my user name is maxwedge....from the old muscle car days of the of mopar maxwedge cars....some had aluminum front end body parts and lots of elbow ripples from lookers leaning in!

 

[Jim 58 BN6]

Maxwedge, I have always wondered what one of those intake manifolds, all up with the carbs and air cleaners weighed. I hope that Chrysler cast them from aluminum (but it wouldn't surprise me if were cast iron!). That's a nice old Plymouth ('62?). I'll bet it moves! Jim

 

[maxwedge5281]

aluminum i think and had been reworked for better horsepower. it is a 63 plymouth savoy and in drag racing form was a 10.2 seconds car in the 128-130 mph quarter mile. i bought it with a broken engine. it had been rotissiere restored and raced on the nostalgic super stock circuit for a couple of seasons back in the early nineties. it had been decalled and painted to match arlen vankes ole brownie drag racer from back in the day! i sold it a few years ago to a friend.... it was a super nice car and like new!!!! it was not an original maxwedge but rather a very well done copy and with a 528 cubic inch stage three maxwedge engine!

 

[HealeyRick]

Well, It's possible to get the Moss panels to fit:

But not without some work:

"The Panel Shop did body panel fitting, which was considerable because the aftermarket panels didn't fit right out of the box. The aluminum front and rear fenders (a.k.a. "wings") were sourced from Moss Motors. Aluminum door skins, louvered bonnet, and boot lid came from Capesport in the UK. Fine parts, but installation requires a fair bit of care and finesse. "

This is a pretty incredible Nasty Boy with an LS2 motor: https://www.britishv8.org/Other/JimElliott.htm

 

[maxwedge5281]

rick, the guy i bought the fenders from also had the louvred hood, door skins, and the trunk lid in aluminum. but, the fenders were what i needed...i looked for steel but could not find and got the aluminum ones at less than half moss pricing....and they have moss stickers on them! i do wish that the front fenders had the rally vents, but nope! i got the drivers side on and lined up fairly well. my intent is to mount the fenders with lights etc and drive for a while as it is..partial body paint and unpainted aluminum. then maybe this winter i will have it painted! i still have ny bj7 nasty to drive in the meantime!!!

 

[pan]

Bob Spidel, I worked at the Holden plant (General Motors) in the early '70s and they used a similar method to fit the doors. The hammer handle was held against the gutter and then the door was slammed against it. Door closed perfectly!