Original T3 Headlights?

[Florian W.]

We just lost some judging points because the headlights on our '60 were slightly different than those described in the Judging Guide. We assumed that they were correct as they have no DOT markings, have all the features described for a '60 part and just plain look old. The judges were looking for more "pebbling" within the triangle as described in the JG. I admit that there is little, if any, pebbling on these, but there is certainly no vertical ribs like on the later cars on these. Can the pebbling be this subtle, or do we have some other version of a T3 that I am unaware of?

Thanks,
Lee

[William L.]

Re: Original T3 Headlights?

We just lost some judging points because the headlights on our '60 were slightly different than those described in the Judging Guide. We assumed that they were correct as they have no DOT markings, have all the features described for a '60 part and just plain look old. The judges were looking for more "pebbling" within the triangle as described in the JG. I admit that there is little, if any, pebbling on these, but there is certainly no vertical ribs like on the later cars on these. Can the pebbling be this subtle, or do we have some other version of a T3 that I am unaware of?

Thanks,
Lee

Lee
I used to comb the bone yards for T3's and I have removed more than my fair share. I have seen T3's with a lighter amount of pebbling.
From 1960 to late 1967 GM used the same T3's in all of there cars, so to think that these millions of bulbs were exactly the same is a stretch.
If you don't mind saying how many points did you lose for not enough pebbling?
I think sometime Judges see something out of the ordinary and don't know what to do and are afraid to ask for help or advice.

[Jim D.]

Re: Original T3 Headlights?

I think sometime Judges see something out of the ordinary and don't know what to do and are afraid to ask for help or advice.

Or they are so arrogant and think they know everything.

[Jeffrey S.]

Re: Original T3 Headlights?

The only difference between the T3 used in 60 and the rest until '68 is the shape of the diffuser on the low beams. On 1960 headlights these were semicircular and on later ones they are round (as if anyone cares or even knows about this) The triangle is NOT pebbled as the 56/57 are but some may not be as clear as others. We're not dealing with fine hand cut lead crystal here. I'm no expert on C1's but I have heard this from others who had their car judged at a chapter meet with heavy reliance on the judging guide that may have some misinformation in it. Judges at local chapters, like myself, many times don't have the experience and personal knowledge that the seasoned national and regional judges have and have to rely on the judging guides. This is NOT a slam on the those who volunteer and do their level best.
Jeff

[Florian W.]

Re: Original T3 Headlights?

This was a chapter event and the judges were very decent about this - but at the end of the day they had only the JG to go by and the drawing in it gives the indication that the pebbling was quite pronounced. To their credit, they did look at the cars next to us and their lights had more of what could be called pebbling. It sounds as though the differences might be nothing more than normal variations within a very long production run. Hopefully the next edition of the JG with actual photos will help to sort this out.

For the fellow who asked, we lost 2 points/light for a total of 8 points.

Lee

[Harmon C.]

Re: Original T3 Headlights?

Do the headlights on a 60 have 40 points to make the deduction 20%. What I'm getting at is 8 points off what amount of total points?

[Florian W.]

Re: Original T3 Headlights?

We lost 8 points from a total available 12 points for the originality category of a four headlight set.

Lee

[Roy B.]

Re: Original T3 Headlights?

Don't feel to bad I've argued for 30 years that a mid to late 55 used seal beams 12V logo (all glass unit) NOT a tin back and it's still not in the 55 JM

[John D.]

Re: Original T3 Headlights?

Sounds a liitle steep for a minor configuration issue...no ?