are quality trim pieces available for these cars?

[WaltCasten]

I received my trim pieces from England and have to say I am THOUROUGHLY UNDERWHELMED with the quality of most of them. Here I thought I was going to be a smart guy and purchase these items from England so I wouldn't get the low quality stuff I have been getting from the two major suppliers in the U.S. Well guess what?

I have not contacted them yet as I have quite literally been in shock since they arrived on Wednesday. I don't really know what can be done as the cost to ship this **** back to them is going to be prohibitive.

Here is the situation, hopefully this will help other forum users should they decide to purchase from ** ******:
<ul style="list-style-type: disc">[*]knock-off spinners - top quality pieces [*]side spears and trunk hinges- listed in their catalog as "premium"- good quality useable pieces [*]various badges- top faces are okay but they plated right over all the grind marks around the perimiters where the Chinese ground the flash off- not useable [*]headlamp inner rings- plated right over relatively deep forming marks- not much of these actually show so they <span style="font-style: italic">might</span> be useable. [*]headlamp outer rings- these are a complete embarrassment- one has very deep forming marks all around the perimeter which were plated right over. The other has moderate forming marks but incomplete chromium plating. There's a spot (right on the very top of course) where you can actually see the copper! [/list]
I'm not building a show car but I'm also not building a "rat rod". My question is is there a source for high quality trim pieces for these car or is all that is available anymore is Chinese junk? I say Chinese junk because even for China, some of this stuff is pretty bad.

Sorry for the length of this and the rant for stuff you guys have probably heard a thousand times.

Walt

 

[Johnny]

Don't know about the rest without a photo but I do know the copper rivet at the top of the outer headlight rim IS supposed to be seen.

 

[Superwrench]

Walt, You will probably have to have some of your stuff rechromed to get the finish you want. I have got really good results using Britanniclassics, Woodbury,CT He is on ebay from time to time. I don't have phone # on me. His prices are fair and finish is great. Bob

 

[Randy Forbes]

Walt, You will probably have to have some of your stuff rechromed to get the finish you want. I have got really good results using Britanniclassics, Woodbury,CT He is on ebay from time to time. I don't have phone # on me. His prices are fair and finish is great. Bob

This would be my recommendation also.

Within reason, even slightly damaged original pieces can be repaired (dents, scrapes, etc.) and rechromed to a better surface finish than some of the reproduction stuff.

Where you get into trouble with rechroming, is if a part has a lot of detail, and it's polished too much prior to plating. In those cases, the raised impressions are too blended into the background__except for perhaps the door handles, not much of a problem on Healeys.

As a point of reference, when my windshield was rechromed, I took a few detailed pictures of the parts I gave to the plater, and (in a page protector) gave him a copy. This saves any argument later about what you brought in for rework. Anything can happen; parts fall off racks in the (multiple) tanks, and may not be recovered for years__unless somebody knows they're missing.

An example:

 

[Keoke]

I'm not building a show car but I'm also not building a "rat rod". My question is is there a source for high quality trim pieces for these car or is all that is available anymore is Chinese junk? I say Chinese junk because even for China, some of this stuff is pretty bad.

Yep!!! sure is but obviously crossing the pond is no solution to the problem it all seems to come out of the same bin. consequently you have two options:

1] restore the original useable pieces you have

2] locate restorable pieces from others or off E-Bay.

------Fwiw--Keoke

 

[AUSMHLY]

Walt, You will probably have to have some of your stuff rechromed to get the finish you want. I have got really good results using Britanniclassics, Woodbury,CT He is on ebay from time to time. I don't have phone # on me. His prices are fair and finish is great. Bob

I used Britanniclassics and both times had very bad experiences with him. First time I received very bad quality spears and the door waist molding got bent in shipping because he did not pack it correctly. He put it in a cheap box instead of putting it in something like a tube to protect it. He would have no part of helping me with the shipping company, which I feel he should for he is the one who packed it so poorly. The second time I purchased a front badge and it too was not as he described. I had to involve the credit card company to refund my money, for I sent it back to him and would not credit me back. He would not reply to emails, phone messages and when he would pick up the call, he would give excuses of he's been sick, busy, etc. Those excuses went on for 6 months before I contacted the credit card company to help me get my refund.

People should know about a guy that promotes he has the good stuff, when he does not and does not work with you after the sale.

Guys I try to play well with others and just want to share that not all experiences are as good as we wish we would like them to be. Just a heads up if purchasing from him.

Cheers.

 

[WaltCasten]

Don't know about the rest without a photo but I do know the copper rivet at the top of the outer headlight rim IS supposed to be seen.

Johnny, the rivets are ground down and plated over. There are actually a couple patches an inch or so away from the rivet where the plating is incomplete.

Thanks for all your input guys, it looks like I am going to have to find someone to do chrome plating. Here is another issue I have, the car is a BN2 and the grille insert is hammered. I also ordered a grill insert in the premium range from these guys but it is backordered. Now the dilemma as what to do about that.

Funny thing is my Dad did a low end cosmetic resto on this car back in the early 80's and ordered parts from Moss. This is pre-internet and they were the only real game in town. Some of the parts, like the side spears are pitted pretty bad but the trunk handle still looks brand new some 30 years later.

 

[bighealeysource]

Hey Walt,
Not sure which Brit supplier you are referring to but I have had good luck with AH Spares on their chrome parts - door handles, spears, grill surround, etc for my BN6. I did receive two door handles that had a slight curvature on the base and they replaced at no charge and didn't even want the other ones back.

From my experiences with them, let them know and they will get it right at their expense.

REgards,
Mike

 

[BertVanBrande]

Hi Walt,

regarding the grille insert, I have the same issue. The grill is probably the toughest to get right on a 100. Even finding a NOS one would not guarantee a reasonable flawless one after laying 50 years on a shelf and it will cost $$$. I discussed this with a Socal clubmember who has the the same issue and came to a plan of action.

1. Bring the grille insert to plating shop, have them strip the chrome plating, take back home.
2. Remove (brass) slats that need straightening, straighten them individually, probably using some kind of jig.
3. If needed, polish out scratches but then bring back to satin sheen (see below)
4. Braze back the slats.
5. Bring back to plating shop.

Or find a plating shop that can do 2-4 for a reasonable price.

Note that the insert slats have a satin or "butler" chrome so picking a plating shop that can do this is paramount. They need to create the satin/butler finish after nickel plating, before the chrome layer. I also read about bead-blasting/scuffing/sanding before the whole plating process instead of doing this between nickel and chrome. I admit I still need to do more research on this topic (it's not urgent for me at this point) , open a dialog with the platers and get some more input from fellow Healey enthusiasts.

Bert

 

[WaltCasten]

Hey Walt,
Not sure which Brit supplier you are referring to but I have had good luck with <span style="font-weight: bold">AH Spares </span>on their chrome parts - door handles, spears, grill surround, etc for my BN6.

From my experiences with them, let them know and they will get it right at their expense.

REgards,
Mike

Mike, that would be a VERY good guess. I am going to contact them either today or tomorrow depending on how work goes today. The problem is that I don't see how them sending me more of this quality of parts is going to fix anything.

Thanks again guys,
Walt