1963 stamp pad evaluation

[Patrick H.]

I have not seen the car in person, just photos. I have my own thoughts regarding this pad.
Real, not real, or ?


Patrick

[John D.]

Re: 1963 stamp pad evaluation

Patrick, The car is 1005 numbers or so into March 63. The engine was assembled on Feb 13th. I am just a engine pad novice. Will wait for the guru's to step in. The "R" on the RF looks like the one I typed. I like the R with the fat top to it and the short leg.
Also have seen a lot of F's that are tilted/slanted. But what do I know.

[Michael G.]

Re: 1963 stamp pad evaluation

Patrick, comparing it to a known original pad of similar vintage, 1) the VIN stamp looks very much lighter than typical, 2) many of the characters of both stamps look correct, 3) as with all pads, the surface is shaped like a "T", but on this one, the base of the "T" is at least 15% wider than the known pad. That suggests to me that some metal was removed from the pad surface...

Of course, I'm not an expert...

[Steve B.]

Re: 1963 stamp pad evaluation

Not an expert by any means but I say restamp.

[Bob R.]

Re: 1963 stamp pad evaluation

I disagree, the broach marks are there and you can see age in the surface so I think a re stamp is unlikely.

[Dan H.]

Re: 1963 stamp pad evaluation

The '8' has a wider bottom than the top, see this in later stamps but not on this early type '8'.

[Edward J.]

Re: 1963 stamp pad evaluation

I agree with Bob the stamp looks good the numbers, letters appear to be correct, broaching looks good. my 63 is a day or two before this stamp and numbers and dates look close to mine.

[Michael G.]

Re: 1963 stamp pad evaluation

Well, the characters look good, but the depth of the stamp doesn't. Maybe the normal guy was on break...

[Michael J.]

Re: 1963 stamp pad evaluation

I don't like the R or F in the "RF", and the VIN looks shallow, but I am not an expert.

[Jim D.]

Re: 1963 stamp pad evaluation

Not an expert by any means but I say restamp.

I agree. I would be VERY surprised if this was proven to be an original,untouched pad. But hey, I've only been looking at pads for 40+ years and still don't consider myself an expert.

[Tracy C.]

Re: 1963 stamp pad evaluation

Patrick, I'm sure in real life it would pass during a judging event.

However comma

The downfall for this pad is that with high resolution photos blown up to kingdom come, we see many little nuances otherwise undetectable with the naked eye. Some of the broach marks do not appear to be perfectly parallel. For me this spells re stamp. The fact that the stamp may be is lighter or heavier on one end or the other doesn't bother me at all.

It goes without saying, but I will say it anyway. I am no expert and my opinion is worth exactly what you paid to get it.

tc

[Timothy B.]

Re: 1963 stamp pad evaluation

My opinion is it's good to go, the pad probably suffered from paint, scraping, and sandpaper over the years like many of these engines before stamp numbers meant so much.

The stamping on my 63 is not deep, I can't see any circular broach marks from previous rebuild but I can't see any straight broach lines either.

[Andy C.]

Re: 1963 stamp pad evaluation

For Starters the Numeral "1" is not typical of what was used for the serial number stamping. You may want to consult an expert before purchasing the car. Here is a pic of one close to yours

Good Luck!

[Leif A.]

Re: 1963 stamp pad evaluation

I agree. I would be VERY surprised if this was proven to be an original,untouched pad. But hey, I've only been looking at pads for 40+ years and still don't consider myself an expert.

Jim,
You don't ever want to be considered an "expert". Break the word down...an "ex" is a has been and a "spurt" is a drip under pressure. No one ever wants to be a has been drip. It must be Friday

[Rich Y.]

Re: 1963 stamp pad evaluation

For comparison purposes, I will post a photo of my stamp pad.
The assembly dates are only two days apart.