Front bumper brackets: T vs Y?

[sjuengst]

Just out of curiosity, are there two different styles of front bumper brackets for 3000s? My original service parts manual and the Moss catalog both show a "T" shaped bracket, but mine are more "Y" shaped. What's up with that?

stu

 

[Brinkerhoff]

Yours look fine. They have to extend from the chassis then dip under the shroud and up to the bumper. All 3000 bumper brackets are the same. Kevin

 

[roscoe]

The drawing is not a very good representation of how the two halves of each bracket fit together. Beat 'em to fit, paint 'em to match. I had to tweak mine some to make for a good stress free fit. Don't forget to swap pieces around for the best fit.

 

[AUSMHLY]

Beat 'em to fit, paint 'em to match. I had to tweak mine some to make for a good stress free fit. Don't forget to swap pieces around for the best fit.

Now here's an experienced Healey owner. "Beat'em to fit". Jon's telling it like it is.

I bought new ones from one of the vendors and needed to elongate the mounting holes that the bolts go through at the frame.

I've come to expect that the aftermarket things I'll have to tweak, or beat'm to fit It's all part of the fun of owning a Healey or any other vintage E-Ticket ride.

Cheers,
Roger

 

[big6]

I purchased a set of front brackets from one of the normal sources. The RH bracket had a made in GB sticker and the LH bracket had a made in China sticker. The LH made in China bracket was not even close. The bends did not match, the material was thinner, the material was wider, and when mounted the front bumper was approximately 1.5 inch too far out on the LH side. I returned the LH bracket and kept the RH bracket. I was able to salvage my LH bracket by utilizing the “Beating it to fit” method. I then applied flat black power coat paint for the finish. Along with “beat to fit” sometimes you have use a flame to both heat and beat to fit…

 

[Randy Forbes]

Something else I've noticed...

On a lot of the replacement brackets for the front bumper, it "tips" the ends of the bumper downward (start looking closer at the cars pictured in the monthly Healey club magazines for examples).

I used flat-washers cut in half to shim between the bumper and the bracket, so that the ends of the bumper lie parallel to the ground (matching the rear bumper).

I too had to elongate (and widen) the slots in the brackets where they attach to the frame to get an acceptable fit.

Pita!

 

[richberman]

Darn...now I need to find flat, level ground..shheeeesssh!

 

[Legal Bill]

I did everything mentioned above AND spent a lot of time with a file to make sure I had good clearance under the shroud and then took a hack saw to them to shorten them up after I elongated the holes. I consider the crap from the "suppliers" to be little more than raw stock with some slight bends to suggest what they are supposed to look like.

 

[John Turney]

With all that said, I guess I'll keep my old ones.