Hitman's Pontiac Trans Am Forum
Trans Am Photos => Restoration Projects => Topic started by: kitemare on March 27, 2007, 08:01:08 PM
-
It looks like my car is going in for paint next month & I want to have the wheels refinished as well. I've found a local company that can do this work here in Seattle but they want me to have the wheels powder coated to a color that is close to the stock gold rather than painting them to the original color specification. My question to you all is that is powder coating a far more durable finish to paint that it's worth not getting the color exactly right? or, are you better off just painting them to the color specification?
KM
-
It depends on whether or not you want to keep it totally original.
-
The powdercoating is more durable than the paint and should last longer. The only problem I see with powdercoating is that yes the color is a little off, but they can get it close. The second problem I have with powder ocating is that it is like ceramic.... if you knock it or ding it, it will chip like a China plate.
-
Thanks for the advice. Hitman, do you know what is the correct paint & color for the gold snowflake wheels. I think I'm leaning that way. I'll probably have the wheel restoration company strip & repair the dings in the rims & then have my painter paint them if he still insists on powder coating.
KM
-
The PPG color code is 82352.
-
Thanks Hitman, here's a couple of pictures of my project (if I can figure out how to post them). I also need the front air dam & side spoilers. Do you have a good source for those?
KM
(http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t157/kitemare/TransAM.jpg)
(http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t157/kitemare/TransAM4.jpg)
-
Yes, for the spoilers buy the GM ones, not the Danko Reproduction ones. I took photos earlier today, but have not posted them yet. There is a big difference between the two. Once I get the photos uploaded, I will post them here.
-
Perfect, thanks. You & this web site have been a big help!
KM
-
How about a link to where one might buy the GM flares and spoilers Hitman.
-
Hello all!
I'm Joe, I hail from Sweden and I'm new 'round these here parts. I'm also right in the middle of trying to choose spoilers for my '73 (and a Hood bird and moldings from Hitman as soon as he has time to answer my pestering questions ;) ).
I got a tip from a Swedish acquaintance that the pricier spoilers that Classic Industries carries are good... they supposedly have the welting, attached bracket for mounting and fit right away, without modification. After speaking to CI on the phone, I'm kinda convinced they're the way to go. They also have cheaper variants but they apparently don't attach like the originals...
But I'm all ears for info on a good spoiler package.
-
Here are the photos of the GM reproduction ones that are $89-$90 each.
Notice the nice fit with no modifications:
(http://www.78ta.com/ebay/809269d0.jpg)
Now, here is the Danko Reproduction ones that are $75 each (with inner bracket)
Notice the poor fit and need to modify the spoilers:
(http://www.78ta.com/ebay/80f44b30.jpg)
So, which would you rather have and spend the money on?
-
nm
-
Hey Brett, you didn't post where to get them.
-
You can get them from Classic Industries, Performance Years, The Parts Place, Ames Performance, Year One, National Parts Depot.
-
Thanks Hitman, I bought some & they don't fit very well I'll try to get some GM reproductions.
KM
-
Thanks for the pics Brett... BIG difference! :o
I've looked around a bit and those that I assume are the GM repros (in the online catalog) cost about $120 each at CI (or 399 for a kit of 4). Haven't seen them cheaper. (CI's part numbers are F70781-F70785, with the last one being the kit.) Can someone maybe confirm they are the correct ones? :)
-
You can also get them from performance Years for about $89 each (roughly). The parts numbers are like GFR18 and GFR19 or something like that. If you need me to get the exact part numbers, let me know.
-
GFF42 and GFF43, would that it?
-
Yes, GFF42 and GFF43 are for the fronts, and GFR18 and GFR19 are for the rear, and GFF69 is for the lower front air dam.
-
Hitman, are the GFF42 & 43 from Performance Years the ones that you're holding up in the photo? I got a set of fiberglass ones from Texas Trans Am Specialties & they don't fit very good so I ordered from Classic Industries & just got them this morning. They are definately the Danco reproductions that you show in your picture so they fit even worse. I'm willing to try again a third time if I can get something to fit like the ones that you show in your picture.
KM
-
Yes, the Performance years ones are the ones in the photos that I compare to the Danko reproductions.
-
Thanks, I got them ordered today. I'll let you know how they fit.
KM
-
I guess I lucked out. I had already ordered the danko reproductions with the optional bracket adapter, and mine seem to fit snugly against the fenders. I shouldnt have to do any trimming.
-
I am waiting on a complete set (4+1) from NPD (Performance Years were out of stock and I can't really wait). They are the more expensive ones and are a supposedly not the Danko ones (which are fibreglass?) The description I got is that they are black(ish) ABS plastic and that they were made by:
The C-8131-211S is made by The Parts Place in Elburn IL. USA
The C-7833-230A is made by D & R Classics in Warrenville IL. USA
At any rate they are supposed to attach exactly like original. It has been kinda confusing trying to get info on all the variants that are out there, but I really (really) hope that I got the correct ones! :-\
I'll try to let y'all know on monday how they fit!
KM... which ones did you get from Classic? They have two different sets of spoilers.
-
I'll check when I get home tonight but I did take my car & all the parts down to the paint shop this morning & he wasn't too worried about spoilers that didn't fit right. He said that all he had to do was heat them up a little & he could fix whatever fitting problems that there was with them.
KM
-
Well... I just got my spoilers... and there's a major problem. I think I got the correct side-spoilers (haven't tried them on the car yet) but the front spoiler is waaaaay off. I can't have ordered the wrong one, 'cause it's the only one in the catalog.
(http://www.urbanchant.com/temp/bad_spoiler_fit.jpg)
I suppose it might be made a little better with some heat, but at the risk of warping the plastic even more. The only other "fix" I can think of is modifying them with fiberglass filler, but that would take a lot of work (and time that I don't have).
Exactly how are the edges supposed to look when mounted? There's a "lip" that obviously is supposed to be overlapped by the side spoilers, but are the side spoilers even supposed to overlap the actual front spoiler at all or line up like in the photo?
/Joe
-
Joe, The parts # that I ordered from Classic Industries was PT51414 & they didn't fit good at all. Still waiting on the parts from Performance Years. I'll post how they fit once they arrive.
KM
-
Thanks KM! I know those aren't the more expensive versions that Classic has. I just got home and tried out the spoilers against the car.... I feel like letting out that pathetic "Noooooo" scream that Darth Vader does at the end of Episode 3 because I just paid through the nose for FedEx shipping do they'd get here fast. The fit is way off on the front spoilers against the fender. The rear flares fit ok, but the front.... well... have a look:
(http://www.urbanchant.com/temp/spoiler.jpg)
They are stamped inside with "The Parts Place". The left is a little better and I can almost get it into place if I try real hard... but the right one is too stiff.
Brett... the good-fitting grey one in your pic... do you think it's that the same make as the ones I have? Maybe I got a couple of bad pulls...
/Joe
-
My car is the red one shown previously in this post. Does anyone know if the snowflake wheels came painted solid gold like that from the factory or did someone previously do a cheap restoration previously & not mask off or polish out the edges of the snowflakes like you'd typically see on a gold wheels? I'm trying to decide whether to match what I've got or pay the extra to have the edges show polished aluminum. If a solid gold rim was factory stock I'll probably just match what I've got.
KM
-
Yes they were factory gold wheels that had paint all the way to the lip. The only part not gold was just the about 1/2 inch lip on the face of the wheel nearest the tire. My 78 has the gold wheels on the build sheet.
-
Thanks, I think I'll re-paint them exatly like they are & it's good to know that they'll be in stock condition & not just a hack restoration job.
KM