Mid year bumpers

[Dave C.]

Just got my 67 roadster home two days ago, in a year or two I will start a full restoration on the car , but for now I would like to spruce it up a bit , and one thing it really could use is a set of bumpers, the ones on the car have had some really bad work done to them at the plating shop, so I would rather start with new ones, just wondered where the best source might be , there are so many suppliers out there. Ecklers has a full set for a grand, but it says" perfect for the daily driver" which leads me to believe that there are better ones to be had.
I also need to put a heater core in the car , as well as some other misc. items is there one main supplier that is better than the others in general? It's been a few years since I worked on my 66 and I can't even recall where I bought those parts from.

thanks,

Dave

[Paul J.]

Re: Mid year bumpers

The original bumpers are thicker than the reproductions, at least that was the case a couple of years ago. If the ones on the car are original, you might want to keep them and have them rechromed. If you want something decent just to use before you start the restoration, try to find some used ones on the NCRS classifieds or the classifieds on the other forum.

There are several suppliers, and some of them are just resellers of parts made by another supplier. Although saying bad things about a supplier or vender is now frowned upon on this forum, there are several references to good experiences, as well as problems that occurred in the distant past. Just search the suppliers name in the archives.

[Steven B.]

Re: Mid year bumpers

Dave, like Paul said check some of the suppliers on this board by searching their name. Be certain to know if you are not getting original parts you know the differences from reproduction and replacement. There are a lot of '67 folks and folks in your area who will be glad to help. There are some very good ones advertising in the Driveline. Also, search the board for platers. I prefer Paul's because they can repair, put the finish on you desire, and do an excellent job. Plating is expensive so get a good one and do it only once. Steve

[Joe R.]

Re: Mid year bumpers

Dave,

Paragon sells bumpers that are made by the original manufacturer IN the USA! Others are made in China! Nothing is perfect even from the original tooling! The tooling is over fifty years old and people etc. etc. When you see a bargain price think China!

JR

[Joe R.]

Re: Mid year bumpers

Hi Dave,

We ran an article in the last issue of the St. Louis chapter newsletter on the difference between original and reproduction bumpers. It's here on page 2:

http://www.stlouisncrs.org/news_files/St_LouisNCRS_ChapterNewsletter1stQuarter2014.pdf#page2

Joe

[Dave C.]

Re: Mid year bumpers

Thanks Guys, read the article, sounds like Paragon is the way to go, there probably pretty pricey so maybe I will start with a set of fronts, they are the worst.
Just came back from my first good run in the car, what a blast!, stopped at a friends place to show him the car and we noticed that the front carb was leaking fuel at the fitting, threads were stripped out of it and had to bypass it to get home, which made me think, why am i driving this plastic car around without a fire extinguisher.

[Bill W.]

Re: Mid year bumpers

I put a full set of paragon bumpers on a 63 . They fit good and looked good .

[Mike E.]

Re: Mid year bumpers

Thanks Guys, read the article, sounds like Paragon is the way to go, there probably pretty pricey so maybe I will start with a set of fronts, they are the worst.
Just came back from my first good run in the car, what a blast!, stopped at a friends place to show him the car and we noticed that the front carb was leaking fuel at the fitting, threads were stripped out of it and had to bypass it to get home, which made me think, why am i driving this plastic car around without a fire extinguisher.

Don't forget Paragon offers NCRS members a 10% discount. You have to call them and give them your NCRS member number. They keep it on file so when you log into their website it will show you the discounted price.




Mike

[Harry S.]

Re: Mid year bumpers

As I recall John Hinckley wrote an article after he visited the Paragon bumper plant. I do believe he did say they are the weight and thickness as the originals.

[Scott M.]

Re: Mid year bumpers

What is wrong with the ones on the car that you don't want to have them reworked. Mine had a hole in one, the other looked like it was torn from an accident, one front was bent. The shop repaired and straightened probably better than original and then replated, absolutely gorgeous and only $250 a corner

[Dave C.]

Re: Mid year bumpers

good point Scott, I should have our local plating shop have a look, its just that they have been kind of butchered by the last shop , really wavy and sanded flat on the front, maybe fixable though

[Mike E.]

Re: Mid year bumpers

I bought new front bumpers from GM in the late 1970's, when I got the car they were missing. The replacement bumpers from GM at that time were full of waves and extremely poor quality. I still have them but I wonder if the original bumpers were as wavy as those GM supplied as replacements at that time?


Mike

[Harry S.]

Re: Mid year bumpers

Mike, yes they were. I found an original set from a 63 that you could surf on. They fit just fine. All I had the shop do is re-chrome them.

When they straighten them or take the waves out you can see all the marks on the inside. It's either take a few point for over restored or look at the machine pounding the restorer did plus the originality point.

[Dave C.]

Re: Mid year bumpers

Took my front bumpers off the other day and dropped them off to be replated, and by the looks of them , according to the plating shop they are originals , that have never been replated, just can't believe they came from the factory that wavy.

[John H.]

Re: Mid year bumpers

Took my front bumpers off the other day and dropped them off to be replated, and by the looks of them , according to the plating shop they are originals , that have never been replated, just can't believe they came from the factory that wavy.

Dave -

It was pretty labor-intensive to join the two pieces together with a surface butt-weld on a primary show surface and then metal-finish the protruding weld joint away, leaving a flat surface; LOTS of them were wavy. Photo below shows the upper half fresh from the trim die, waiting to be welded to the lower half with the two bends in it.


MidYrTrimmed800.JPG