Greetings, all! I'm new to the forum and very excited by what I've seen so far . . . lots of traffic and feedback on these forums! Although it has led me to be a little sleepy this a.m. since I was up late checking out several of the threads.
After the New Year, I plan to rebuild my front end. In the process, I will also need to replace my battery tray apron. Any thoughts/preferences from folks on here RE: best place to purchase body parts w/ regards to fit, quality, service?
I have used mainly Dynacorn products on my current project. However just to patch the apron I haven't heard anything bad about any of the other available sources. I have shopped NPD mainly with good results, but they don't carry Dynacorn.
No one manufacturer has the best of everything. Glazier/Nolan actually uses this stuff, and their techs can advise which is best for your exact need. For example, "original tooling" is usually the best, but they told me recently that they have been turning out some problem stuff lately, making them not the best choice. This may have changed, if they fixed the problem. "Best" seems to be a constantly moving target.
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Amateur restorer. (Well, once in a while I have been paid for it)
I generally use Dynacorn products and get them from CJs Pony Parts. Free shipping and points towards free stuff. They also have sales alot which really help out.
For smaller stuff I go with CJ pony parts because of the free shipping. For large items NPD has by far the best freight prices, making the purchase hundreds cheaper in some cases.
I have maily used CJ Pony Parts, and have attempted to use nothing but Dynacorn products (if they make them for a 69/70). The ony freight I have had to pay was for my 1 pc floor pan, everything else shipped free, or picked up at the Auto Fair @ Charlotte NC. (spring and fall). Easy to deal with, and mostly nice sales people. Lots of parts!
For small patches that can be fabricated - any automotive 16/18 g metal is fine. I went to a local body shop and they gave me (free) a tail gate of a crumpled new Chevy p/u. Those pieces worked great for me. Larger pieces (aprons/rails), structural pieces, unusual shapes - I just ordered from CJ or Mustang Unlimited....
22GT is correct, no single supplier has the "best" of everything, and as-such, sourcing is highly proprietary and important.
Dynacorn has many exclusive products that we do indeed carry, so it's not true to say that we don't carry Dynacorn. We do, but only those items that Dynacorn has exclusive control over.
What folks don't seem to understand is that much of what Dynacorn imports can be purchased directly by us through other channels. Or sometimes, we prefer another tooling to what Dynacorn may have sourced to.. It's a big, complex, mixed bag.
Many retailers use Dynacorn as their catch-all source for imported stuff, due to the fact that buying 40-foot containers directly from overseas, and the minimum-order-quantities often involved, requires a large investment in cash and floorspace, and a willingness to carry heavy inventory levels. We make this investment.
But many other suppliers simply turn to Dynacorn, letting them drop-ship larger stuff, and being able to buy the small stuff in smaller digestable quantities.
This practice is where the "we carry Dynacorn" statements come from. That means they source most of their Taiwanese product through Dynacorn, as opposed to negotiating containers with all the various sources, manufacturers and consolodators overseas. But it does NOT necessarily mean that all of the products are exclusive/unique to Dynacorn. Some is, alot isn't... For the stuff that isn't, we typically bring it in on our own containers, just like Dynacorn does.
Most repro metal is hit and miss fit-wise. I've had best luck with NPD metal. Lots of discussion regarding doors lately...never had any luck getting a repro door to fit worth a darn but they might have made improvements since. Rear valences also seem to be hit and miss...
I got all my sheetmetal from Mustangs Unlimited. Since they are only about an hour away from me, I can go pick it up and save all the freight charges. Another advantage is that I can inspect the piece before I take it. If there is any damage I can swap it out right there and save a trip later (or the hassle of shipping it back for a replacement) and there's no way they can say that I caused the damage.
For what it's worth, I got my doors, quarter panels, outer wheelhouses, taillight panel, and both valances from them. I was surprised to find that almost everything fit pretty close. The front valance and taillight panel were original tooling pieces - everything else was overseas reproduction metal. The worst pieces were the outer wheelhouses - they were so far off that I had to cut them into 4 pieces and weld them back together. The curvature was not anywhere close to the wheel opening in the quarter panel.
My doors needed some 1/8" round rod welded on the leading edge along with some grinding to get the gaps uniform. I also welded some 1/8" round rod on the sides of my trunk lid for the same reason. My trunk lid is original 1966 metal and it fit the old quarters just fine so I know it was the new quarters that changed the gap.
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'66 Emberglo Coupe - Restoration COMPLETE!
Modifications:
5.0 EFI conversion
T56 6-speed
Rod & Custom Motorsports IFS
TCP subframe connectors
Vintage Air Heat & AC
22GT is correct, no single supplier has the "best" of everything, and as-such, sourcing is highly proprietary and important.
Dynacorn has many exclusive products that we do indeed carry, so it's not true to say that we don't carry Dynacorn. We do, but only those items that Dynacorn has exclusive control over.
What folks don't seem to understand is that much of what Dynacorn imports can be purchased directly by us through other channels. Or sometimes, we prefer another tooling to what Dynacorn may have sourced to.. It's a big, complex, mixed bag.
Many retailers use Dynacorn as their catch-all source for imported stuff, due to the fact that buying 40-foot containers directly from overseas, and the minimum-order-quantities often involved, requires a large investment in cash and floorspace, and a willingness to carry heavy inventory levels. We make this investment.
But many other suppliers simply turn to Dynacorn, letting them drop-ship larger stuff, and being able to buy the small stuff in smaller digestable quantities.
This practice is where the "we carry Dynacorn" statements come from. That means they source most of their Taiwanese product through Dynacorn, as opposed to negotiating containers with all the various sources, manufacturers and consolodators overseas. But it does NOT necessarily mean that all of the products are exclusive/unique to Dynacorn. Some is, alot isn't... For the stuff that isn't, we typically bring it in on our own containers, just like Dynacorn does.
Rick
NPD
So, if I call NPD to order sheet metal and I say, "I'd like the best you've got", will the rep know which product is best?
So, if I call NPD to order sheet metal and I say, "I'd like the best you've got", will the rep know which product is best?
When I looked on NPD website, they didn't acctually state the manufacturer of the metal. It was listed as "Good Repop", "Better Repop" and "Best Repop" or maybe "Premium Repop"... you get the idea. I bought the "better" fenders and I think they fit fabulous.
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Where do you buy your sheet metal?
