Tested the Hood for Fit Today . . . Little Problem

[Joe Flanagan]

So today my neighbor helped me test fit the hood on my Plymouth. It seemed to fit pretty well. Then we tried to open it and discovered that it was binding at the back edge near the cowl. We pushed it up and it caught and bent the sheet metal. It's nowhere near as bad as it looks in the picture. But the metal has a bow in it in two places. I figured the metal had stretched so I took a try at heat shrinking one of the spots. Seems to have made it worse. I took a hammer and dolly to it and it improved somewhat but the bow is still there. Any suggestions?

Also, I'm trying to figure out how the back edge of the hood should sit in relation to the cowl. Flush? Right now it's pretty much flush at the two corners but sits lower than the cowl everywhere else.

[dezeldoc]

You need to have the cowl lace in for the height or it will be low all the time. the cross brace can be adjusted to bring it up a little.

[Plymouthy Adams]

you going to have to shrink the metal..do you have a shrinking disc..you have better heat control with that device...the more you play with them the more you gonna like them..

[Joe Flanagan]

I have the brace all the way up. That's what fixed the binding problem. But the back edge of the hood is still low.

I don't have a shrinking disk. I was using a torch. If you're looking at that upward bow in the metal, where would you apply the heat?

[randroid]

Joe,

Last summer I replaced a broken hood hinge rivet and needed to remove the hinge assembly to do it. While in there I found more adjustment points than I could imagine, so I suggest you remove a hinge (it's easy to do and don't worry about the springs because they're a walk-in-the-park to reinstall) and take a look at it. I'll bet you'll be able to get that puppy to align easily.

-Randy

[dezeldoc]

Joe,

Last summer I replaced a broken hood hinge rivet and needed to remove the hinge assembly to do it. While in there I found more adjustment points than I could imagine, so I suggest you remove a hinge (it's easy to do and don't worry about the springs because they're a walk-in-the-park to reinstall) and take a look at it. I'll bet you'll be able to get that puppy to align easily.

-Randy

Yes their is more adjustment points but the way it is designed they are not that easy to get to line up and have the sides still match up.

[randroid]

dezeldoc,

I found adjustment points for all three axis and have assumed that with a little trial and error it could be easily done but I haven't tried it myself because I've yet to locate the hood brace I need to finish the job. Maybe I spoke out of pocket but I don't see how it would miss.

Next time I get to your neck of the woods I'm going to need to look you up; I have an unexploded WWII practice bomb from a long-defunct range not too far from you and it still makes people nervous when they come to my house. Aside from knowing your area a little we seem to have a few philosophies in common that might make for good conversation.

-Randy

[dezeldoc]

Thanks Randy! the ol' dummy bomb eh, just don't let them play with a hammer near it. the trouble with the hood is in the center their is no contact with the brace so it kinda wants to flop around unless it is supported by the lace, you can get it close with the adjustments.

[Joe Flanagan]

Right now there is no weather strip on the cowl. Should I not worry about the alignment of the rear edge of the hood until the weather strip is in?

[Plymouthy Adams]

Joe the cowl lace will prevent the hood from going below the surface of the adjoining cowl and help prevent any accidental bite the hood may expenrience. The hood should also have a decent gap at the rear as these hood tend to move rearward before much upward travel in the between time getting cowl lacing..you can tape some paint sticks on the cowl to mimic the rise needed to adjust the gap front to rear.

[Joe Flanagan]

Tim,

As far as I can tell, I've got the brace all the way up as high as it will go. I'll check again this AM to make sure. As it is now, it will open fine without catching the edge of the cowl, and that's because I moved the brace up, as you and dezeldoc have suggested. The only thing I need to do is fix the warp in the edge and get the hood to sit up flush with the cowl. Yesterday I was trying to align the sides of the hood with the fenders and so I consulted the manual. When I read the instructions I thought, That doesn't make any sense at all. But I went ahead and followed the directions anyway. It worked. I love it when that happens.

[blueskies]

...It worked. I love it when that happens....

Glad you got all the parts aligned... I had a hellava time getting mine together. It still isn't quite right, but it's ok. My hood sits a bit high at the rear edge, and the rear edge of the hood flaps up and down a bit at speed... maybe I should just slow down some...

Pete

[Joe Flanagan]

I went out and messed around with the hood some more today. Here are some more photos of how it looks. I think it bent downward in the middle where it caught the cowl. I also think there was some stretching because the rear edge is now wavy and you can push it up and down with your fingers. I posted the problem on another forum that specializes in paint/body work and one guy there told me that it couldn't have stretched and that I should not try to heat shrink it. Don't know what to do at this point. Here are some pictures:

[dezeldoc]

I would use heat as a last resort, try and work it with a hammer and dolly,push up on the low spot and work around the edge of the dent.

[aero3113]

I think you need to shock the metal. Not sure how you do it but I think you heat the area then shock it with a cold wet rag and it should straighten it out.

[dezeldoc]

That is called shrinking and it is a last resort to use on the edge.

[Joe Flanagan]

Dezeldoc,

I'll try your suggestion on the dent in the middle of the rear edge and report back. Thanks.

[55 Fargo]

Glad you got all the parts aligned... I had a hellava time getting mine together. It still isn't quite right, but it's ok. My hood sits a bit high at the rear edge, and the rear edge of the hood flaps up and down a bit at speed... maybe I should just slow down some...

Pete

These front clips can be a bee-atch to align, mine is like yours Pete, not quite right, but good enough, looks okay, and you forget about after a while , like paint flaws, paint chips, imperfections, they sorta don't matter, as long as you can go cruisin,especially at high speeds, that be, what counts................LOL

[Plymouthy Adams]

especially at high sped..Pete..is this like the saying..who is going to notice on a charging elephant

[Joe Flanagan]

Today I took a piece of sheet metal and reproduced the bend in my hood. I followed Dezeldoc's advice and used the hammer-off dolly method, pushing up on the dent with the dolly and hammering around its ege on the top side. I also read something from a metal shapers web site that described how to do this and what, exactly, hammering on dolly and hammering off actually do to sheet metal. The light went on for the first time. All the descriptions I've ever read never really made much sense to me. Anyway, between Dezeldoc's advice and the article I read, I was able to fix the dent in the scrap metal almost perfectly. On Thursday I'll be trying it on the actual hood. I hope I can fix it.

[dirty dan]

Today I took a piece of sheet metal and reproduced the bend in my hood. I followed Dezeldoc's advice and used the hammer-off dolly method, pushing up on the dent with the dolly and hammering around its ege on the top side. I also read something from a metal shapers web site that described how to do this and what, exactly, hammering on dolly and hammering off actually do to sheet metal. The light went on for the first time. All the descriptions I've ever read never really made much sense to me. Anyway, between Dezeldoc's advice and the article I read, I was able to fix the dent in the scrap metal almost perfectly. On Thursday I'll be trying it on the actual hood. I hope I can fix it.

Please post a link to the metal shapers web site you found. I need that same light in my head.

[Joe Flanagan]

Here's the link:

http://www.metalshapers.org/tips/covell/

I found it also helps to watch metal working videos on YouTube. There is some good, useful stuff there. One of the most interesting things to me was how hard you DON'T have to hit the metal. I always thought you had to bash away on it but if you watch someone do it, they actually just tap lightly all around the dent. The other helpful thing was someone likening a piece of sheet metal to a rolled out sheet of pizza dough. It will stretch and compress in somewhat the same way. Anyway, for an ignoramus like me, these things help. Sometimes it feels like I'm in the Stone Age back there in my garage and I need someone to tell me how to make a fire.

[billwillard]

I will bring matches

Bill

[blueskies]

...mine is like yours Pete, not quite right, but good enough, looks okay, and you forget about after a while , like paint flaws, paint chips, imperfections, they sorta don't matter, as long as you can go cruisin,especially at high speeds, that be, what counts................LOL

I think the issue with mine is that the driver's front fender is sitting just a touch too far back, which makes the hood look like it is too far forward at the front end of the hood. I don't want to mess with it now because I have the rubber seal between the fender and door just right. If I pull the fender forward, I will have to redo all the rubber which was a chore to get right... I think I leave it be.

especially at high sped..Pete..is this like the saying..who is going to notice on a charging elephant

Exactly Tim, it's all about the speed...

Glad you are having success with the metal work Joe, you are a renaissance man... From my experience, getting the front clip dialed in before paint is key. If I could do it again, I would figure out a way to mark the location of everything after getting it just right, so that when it's painted, it will go together easy. Putting the fenders on without chipping the paint was really hard for me, and I have about five chips in the fenders and doors to show for it... having an extra set of hands would have been a big help a the time too. I have no idea how these cars were mass produced and perfect at the same time...

Pete

[Joe Flanagan]

I was just scheming about how I can mark everything before I take it all apart again. I've had it together and apart several times now and I've learned a few things that should help me avoid chipping any paint. An extra set of hands is number one. It will be a high stress adventure when that day comes. I would love to have seen how they did it in the factory.