Reproduction front end

[Dave C.]

Ok I finally found a car , definitely an original 435 horse 67, it has every single clue that you guys told me to look for, ie: original differential with 427 code, 90degree bend in fuel line, clip for TI ignition , solid end caps on half shafts, rear sway bar and finally JB code on the back of the instrument cluster. That's the good stuff, but the car has an aftermarket front end on it , I was just looking on ebay at these press moulded , jig assembled front ends that are available for about $5000.00. Will these front ends pass NCRS judging , or is there a better source, I know when I did my 72 20 years ago you could still buy the pieces from GM?

thanks,

Dave

[Donald H.]

Re: Reproduction front end

I restored a 1960 and replace the whole front end, except the hood. The car got Top Flight at Regional and National last year and no comments regarding the body parts. We used Sermersheim's press molded panels. I ordered the pre-assembled front end, but I would strongly recommend not doing that. My body/paint guy had to take it completely apart and glue it together on the car to get the panels to fit correctly. Their assembly was pretty bad in some areas.

Don

[Larry M.]

Re: Reproduction front end

I restored a 1960 and replace the whole front end, except the hood. The car got Top Flight at Regional and National last year and no comments regarding the body parts. We used Sermersheim's press molded panels. I ordered the pre-assembled front end, but I would strongly recommend not doing that. My body/paint guy had to take it completely apart and glue it together on the car to get the panels to fit correctly. Their assembly was pretty bad in some areas.

Don

[Patrick H.]

Re: Reproduction front end

This is probably the right answer. However, some folks simply install bonding strips on the (high quality) one piece front end to replicate the multi-piece bonding process. This generally passes judging………….

Larry

Or not.

That will get you "boxed" in the other judging organization resulting in a less-than-Gold rating.
In NCRS you just lose a boatload of points.

[Richard M.]

Re: Reproduction front end

Larry, Don's was the Serm's "jig assembled". He paid a premium for that. They're separate (as original)press molded panels with bonding strips, not the hand laid one-piece like you can get from Eckler's etc.

P1280001.jpg P1280015.jpg
for the record, i'm ashamed to admit i did one of these once......never again.

A "one piece" front end sold be Serm's is actually a multi piece front end, press molded(PM) as original, but is "jig assembled" with bonding strips as originally done. You can buy it assembled, which costs more, or you can buy all of the pieces and bond it together yourself, as Don mentioned.

A "one piece" hand laid(HL), non original front end is something entirely different. It has no bonding strips, as it's made in a huge mold and the glass mat & resin mix is applied with a chopper gun like the way they build boats. Yes you can add bonding strips to make it appear as a original type, but the labor involved to "smooth" the rough inner glass fibers to give the appearance of a PM original is extensive. If one adds the bonding strips without smoothing the glass, IMO.....
is like rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.

[Richard M.]

Re: Reproduction front end

Dave, Congrats on your find!

BTW, that JB is a typo I think....."LB" right"

Before you chop that FE off, what exactly is it. Aftermarket by who? Is it HL or PM?

Rich

[Dave C.]

Re: Reproduction front end

Thanks Richard, your right I meant " LB" I don't have the car in my possession yet but the front end is a hand laid one , not sure of the manufacturer , the car is red but the trim tag indicates silver, ( which I love) so when the time comes to do the body properly , I would definitely like to do it right, from the comments above, it sounds like the press moulded aftermarket units are the way to go.

dave

[Larry M.]

[John D.]

Re: Reproduction front end

Some pics would be nice !!!

[Patrick H.]

Re: Reproduction front end

Thanks for the info. In my reply, I was NOT referring to using a hand laid fiberglass piece, but was referring to using a Sermersheims or Corvette Image press-molded piece that may not of had all the appropriate bonding strips installed as per factory assembled.Hard to believe that BG would brand a car counterfeit for this. I agree that the top side of the glass and the underside of the glass have to be like the original factory pieces……or points are deducted.Larry

Larry,

I thought you were referring to the hand laid piece, that some will throw bonding strips on and make it sort of look correct. It's not, and when caught it has consequences in both judging organizations.

The 1 piece hand laid parts will get you "boxed" in the BG system. The box on the judging form means no higher than a silver, no matter how good the car scores. See attached example of the judging sheet.
It is not a counterfeit labeling, just one of the quirks of the judging system.

Note that I did not use the counterfeit word - that was of your doing. BG has its own set of words with regard to the trim tag and engine as well, which if anyone is interested in that format of judging should be studied when presenting a car for judging.

Patrick

[Domenic T.]

Re: Reproduction front end

Dave,
I own a 67 435 HP coupe with a one piece front end on it. I was the one that installed it back in 1971. It was like a bad dream as the glass was not the same thickness and it needed t******* at the doors.
The glass mooved for about 20 years, meaning that a flat surface would get a dip with age.
I just did a frame off and the glass finally setteled down. The dips were no more than a 64th deep and I filled them, but took years for it to stop. I was told that the pressed glass removes excess resin and the strength is not in the resin but the glass (with the right amount).
I should have used GM parts back then as I was a Chevy mechanic, but took the advice (bad) of the body guys that probably never did a 1 piece front end.
I'm not saying this to discount anything. what I am saying is that I would only use a press moolded front end and never one built like boat glass.
You will find that the flywheel ring is EASY to replace, if you have a oven & a freezer after you tap the old one off.
DOM

[Joe L.]

Re: Reproduction front end

Ok I finally found a car , definitely an original 435 horse 67, it has every single clue that you guys told me to look for, ie: original differential with 427 code, 90degree bend in fuel line, clip for TI ignition , solid end caps on half shafts, rear sway bar and finally JB code on the back of the instrument cluster. That's the good stuff, but the car has an aftermarket front end on it , I was just looking on ebay at these press moulded , jig assembled front ends that are available for about $5000.00. Will these front ends pass NCRS judging , or is there a better source, I know when I did my 72 20 years ago you could still buy the pieces from GM?

thanks,

Dave

Dave------


One thing to keep in mind: LOTS, and I mean LOTS, of Corvettes suffered front end damage in their lives. So, there are LOTS of them out there today that have either repaired front fiberglass or replacement front ends. Of course, this sort of damage doesn't happen too much to older Corvettes today but they lived a lot of their lives during a period in which it did. The vast majority of folks that bought Corvettes in the "old days" bought them to drive them and folks that were inclined to buy Corvettes drove them in ways which greatly inclined the cars to front end damage.

[Mike M.]

Re: Reproduction front end

dave: it'd pay to consult with wayne wobble, who jigs c-2 front ends and does excellent work. wayne is a fairly frequent poster on this tdb. mike

[Gary F.]

Re: Reproduction front end

Purchased a jig front end & rear quarters from IMAGE of Oregon for my 63 Coupe. No issues with fit, or any attaching components.

[Dave C.]

Re: Reproduction front end

Thanks for all your imput guys, and Gary for those photos, my next question is how do you get the old one off?