1969 Cuda Grill Resto...any tips/tricks??

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4spdragtop

4spdragtop

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Im thinking of re-doing my 69 cuda grilles as they have some cracks in them, but very leery as these are ridiculously priced and dont wanna bugger them up. Has anyone plastic "welded" or epoxy repaired? What products did you use? I will post pics of my grilles later.
Thanks all
4spdragtop
 
4spdragtop said:
Im thinking of re-doing my 69 cuda grilles as they have some cracks in them, but very leery as these are ridiculously priced and dont wanna bugger them up. Has anyone plastic "welded" or epoxy repaired? What products did you use? I will post pics of my grilles later.
Thanks all
4spdragtop
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piece of cake sarge.........3M brand 8115 Also known as panel bond is awesome for this kind of thing .....you can sand it drill it .....and it wont stick to duct tape so you can actually mold it

i cant find my pics now but i fixed a 72 dart grille with it and repaired a console..as well as other stuff ....cracked steering wheel, no problem with that stuff.

cracks can be "V" notched with a die grinder and filled in with the 8115.

if you have breaks on the grille you might get welding pins from a stud gun and you can use a soldering iron to melt the stud into the plastic to bridge the break for structural support so that your repair dont crack.

its kinda expensive the first round bcoz a container of 8115 is about $35. but it requires a "caulk gun" type dispenser to get the two parts even and mixed properly and most paint jobbers can rent the gun out or they are about $100. from 3M......if your going to do a lot of repairs like i do its well worth it to get your own dispenser gun from 3M

this repair is very possible but your in for a lot of work ....this is a time consuming project ....i have spent hours sanding to get it the way i want it...i feel your pain on the cuda grilles ....my cousin has a 69 fastback and parts seem non-existant for the car ...and when you do find them they are out of the atmoshpere in price .......i have same problem with my 67 cuda which seems a little easier than the 69 but still.
 
So you can use it to fix gaps in Rim Blow wheels and stuff like that with 8115?
 
jos51700 said:
So you can use it to fix gaps in Rim Blow wheels and stuff like that with 8115?
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im not sure if the horn switch will get in the way on a rim blow ....but i definatly have fixed the gaps on a woodgrain wheel before
 
Thanks Rani, I have to take a look at my grills to see how bad they are. Were you happy with the 3M product?? $35 isnt too bad 3M makes good stuff. The gun is a kick in the "boys" though!! Im worried bout the sanding as I dont want to lose the textured factory finish. Thanks for the advice "Princess"!
 
4spdragtop said:
Thanks Rani, I have to take a look at my grills to see how bad they are. Were you happy with the 3M product?? $35 isnt too bad 3M makes good stuff. The gun is a kick in the "boys" though!! Im worried bout the sanding as I dont want to lose the textured factory finish. Thanks for the advice "Princess"!
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yes im my opinon 3M is the best one ....bcoz SEM and Valvoline make a similar product ....the SEM is is good stuff...a little cheaper ....but i dont feel that it feather egdes out as good .

the valvoline dries translucent white and harder which can be good at times ....but it sands like a rock ....so i dont use the valvoline anymore.

this is going to require total re-finishing, and they do make a number of texturing sprays ...or you can use primer to manipulate orange peels or theres a few options but yes the texture will be disturbed in the repair areas.
 
Rani is correct-3M is great for building grille parts,also does great on 4 speed humps-a pillar covers-instrument panel covers,just about everything but the crack of dawn.
 
I use a product made by Devcon thats called plastic welder,comes in a small two part syringe.
Steve
What are you refering too when you say a texture finish on 69 grilles?Black grilles were molded in black and are smooth and grey grilles are painted with a light argent silver that is smooth also.

I have been real busy repairing many grilles lately,both 72-74 cuda grilles were just pieces when I got them a couple of weeks ago.
 

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moparclown said:
I use a product made by Devcon thats called plastic welder,comes in a small two part syringe.
Steve
What are you refering too when you say a texture finish on 69 grilles?Black grilles were molded in black and are smooth and grey grilles are painted with a light argent silver that is smooth also.

I have been real busy repairing many grilles lately,both 72-74 cuda grilles were just pieces when I got them a couple of weeks ago.
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Hey Doug, referring to the exterior/visible part of the finish on the plastic surrounds. My grills have been swapped and/or painted sometime in their life as they are silver. Mine is an "S" and should be black.

Thanks
Steve
 
I just finished restoring my grill. I used the SEM 2 part product to fill in the cracks and to blend in a patch piece for a broken fin.

Check out my intro thread http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=205942 for pics.

My process

- Using a dremel I opened up cracks and angled the edges to give the material somewhere to go.

- Mixed a small amount of the SEM filler and used an old gift card to fill the cracks and get it as smooth as possible.

- After letting the filler dry for about 30 minutes I came back and sanded it down to blend with the surrounding area.

- To replace the broken fin I used the dremel to clean up the edge and cut a piece of scrap plastic to fit the opening. Then I used a 2 part plastic superglue you can get from Walmart to set the piece in place. After it dried I used the filler to blend the edges then repeated the sanding process.

- For primer I used SEM flexible primer. I still have the can if you need a specific number, but it's pretty much intended for parts that will flex. Use multiple thin layers of primer and build up areas that you may have missed when you sanded. You will be able to see them much easier at this point.

- For paint I used SEM satin black. I chose this color so it wouldn't have that shiny "painted plastic" Krylon look.

For the headlight buckets I used a fine grit paper for prep then used the same primer and paint.


Hope this was helpful.
 
another option would be Scott Smith's technique.
mix bits of abs plastic with acetone until it's a wet paste,but not too thick.
repairs are very strong.
 
ir3333 said:
another option would be Scott Smith's technique.
mix bits of abs plastic with acetone until it's a wet paste,but not too thick.
repairs are very strong.
Click to expand...

This works great. also what's good about it. You can make it look like factory with no paint. only thing very time consuming. also do in a good vented area.

I also seen Doug's grilles and they are very nice.
 
Reviving an old thread here, I think Im finally "ready" to make these grills a winter project.
One thing Ive noticed is that there are rivets that hold the plastic oval to the outer most chrome piece. I have spoke to another member and he mentioned that I could just drill them out but there is no chance of "re-riveting" it back on.

What has anyone else done for this part of the repair?
Im assuming in order to do a proper fix the plastic oval that the chrome has to come off.

Ideas??
Sorry for the lousy pics, but hopefully you can see the rivets in the pics
 

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I drilled the rivets out to repair mine.

I used a cheap tool (Tubular rivet clincher) purchased off E-Bay.

Got the tubular rivets from rivetsonline.com

Got a bunch of different lengths for the grilles, ash tray, wiper motor and more.


These factory style rivets have much better holding power than pop-rivets.
 
The blind side of the rivet shown doesn't appear to be accessible.
According to another's post I guess it is.
 
RaniDart70 said:
if you have breaks on the grille you might get welding pins from a stud gun and you can use a soldering iron to melt the stud into the plastic to bridge the break for structural support so that your repair dont crack.
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you can also use stainless steel screen for your bridge. it can be cut/contoured to the shape you need, melted in with a wood burner.

these tail light lenses had 5 out of 6 screw holes cracked. they now have studs. first i melted in the screen pieces with a wood burner. then i used a tap to lightly make threads for my stud. i cut the studs to 1" , fit them in the holes, and used a soldering gun to get them hot to the point where they mated to the plastic. i had to make sure it slid into my housing properly, remelted any studs that were canted so they would fit. new tail light lenses would have cost $399 for a set of 2

View attachment DSCN0787.jpg
 
RedFish said:
The blind side of the rivet shown doesn't appear to be accessible.
According to another's post I guess it is.
Click to expand...

You are correct!

I glanced at that pic on my phone and read rivet. It is not a rivet at all and is part of the chromed pot metal surround. If the surround must be removed from the housing for re-chrome then the only choice is to grind or cut the peened heads off. Epoxy will be needed on re-assembly.

I was however thinking of the rivets that hold the inner trim to the housings. These are just tubular rivets and are easy to replace and used in multiple location's on our A-body's.
 
I have (6) 73 Duster Grilles and wanted to try different products on each repair. I have primarily used PLASTIFIX (available online from Urethane Products) Hands down, the best and easiest to apply. I have filled holes, repaired fins and cracks etc..... (Tip: either drop the fluid first and squirt the filler or vice versa into the repair as the needles instantly harden if you make a mistake. You can EASILY reattach those pesty broken mounts if you have both pieces.

Just for grins I also used Q BOND as well. (Super strong) You can watch Q Bond in action on U Tube. It dries hard and rough which could require more sanding than usual as opposed to Plastifix. It will be difficult to use in tight areas and I don't recommned it.

FYI: I am only an amature and wanted something to do in my spare time.
 
Thanks all! Time to get out the Dremel tool....and see what zackly is under dare....
Check back cuz Im sure they will be a ton more questions....
 
Good luck,

it is a little scary but you can do it. Many of us have!
 
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