I have a manufacturer working on making new inner fender bracing for 70-2 Skylarks...this item is spot welded to the fender and bolts to the cowl at the A-pillar and the lower cowl (2 bolts) and it is commonly rusted away. They are also going to make the lower rear qtr patch panel, goes behind rear tire to rear bumper and below body center line, so you don' have to buy a complete qtr skin to repair this commonly rusted area. Supposed to have both available in Feb or the first week of March.
That's great news George! So will the same lower rear quarter skin patch panels fit both hardtops and convertibles being that they will be for below the body center line? What years you are covering? Projected cost(s)?o No: Thanks very much for this contribution!:TU:
The braces will be $65 each. General pricing on the qtr patches will be in the same price range. Will fit both coupe and conv. Manufacturer will only do 70-2 Skylark models now and will see how sales go to determine future projects. I have several other Skylark items for him to review and give me a proposal on...all depends on these new items. I should get a definite date on the braces by mid-Jan and the qtr patches by the end of Jan.
order from you hi george do we put in the order with you or somewhere else? I need four fender braces and two sets of quarter panel patches And thank you very much for geting this done. bill
george we need lower fender patch panels that are pressed to correct size and shape to go along with those fender braces. all the repro lower fender patches ive seen were not even close, they looked hand made. i think all the buick suppliers are selling the same ones. correct me if im wrong, are there any good patches out there.
George, this is great news! Thanks for making this for us. WOuld you happen to have a pic of the lower fender brace? I am wondering if it would work on 69 Cutlass fenders also? Thanks Bob
The braces and patches will be available directly from the manufacturer. Once I get confirmation on price and availability, I will let everyone know the details. Should be available in March. I only did the leg work on this to get these items made since almost every fender I have installed had a problem with the bracing and no one seemed to be interested in doing the legwork. I also heard from many Skylark owners that they don't want to spend $170-190 + shipping for a qtr skin only to fix the damage/rusted lower qtr section. I spoke to the manufacturer and he said this will be an easy one since they already have the qtr skins and can quickly make the patch panel. As far as I know, no A-body models share the same inner fender brace. But I don't have experience with Chevelle and LeMans models. I do know the 70-2 Cutlass models use a different brace due to the body line in the fender. I agree the lower fender repair sections are a poor fit where it needs to meet the wheelwell trim contours. I just used two of the patch panels on the car I am restoring now. Every fender I run into here in FL has the same problem. The inner brace is rusted through or away and the outer metal skin is rusted between the door and fenderwell trim but not into the edges. So the patch panels have the correct bend in them to match the skin profile which is the area I need to make repairs. I can ask the manufacturer to consider the fender patch panels but this will require very good to slightly rusted fender lower sections to use as a template for new reproductions. Problem with this item is no one wants to cut up a fender in this condition unless the fender was crunched and/or wrinkled in the front. But.......you never know...maybe someone here has fenders like this and would be willing to donate them to the "cause."
great news I've thought for a long time that someone should do these. Good job! Think of all the nice fenders out there with only rust on the very bottom. The rear quarter is a good idea too. It would be nice if your manufacturer could build the lower fender patch panels too and put some alignment holes in both panel and inner structure to make the job even easier. I will need at least a half dozen of each. Thanks, Scott
I was told by the manufacturer to call at the end of Jan to get an update. I will call him on 1-31 for an update.
Just spoke to my contact.....he is verifying the final production run and availability...he says tentatively should be available by the end of Feb for qtr patches and braces. Also, he has 60 sets of 70-2 qtr skins on order.....these are made in the USA by a huge manufacturer that stamps panels for GM, Ford and Chrysler. As soon as they get a break....they should be able to stamp all 60 sets in 2-3 days. He told me he expects them in-stock in a week to 30 days. Does not look like Tabco will have them any more. He has heard many rumors that Tabco is in financial trouble.
Heard late Fri from my Sherman contact. Patch panels and braces will be available in March. As the final date gets closer, I list it.
Hey George is anyone trying to get Tabcos Buick dies ? Maybe Sherman or TPP will step in here . I bet someone that doesn't have to make a die would make out well with these .
My understanding is that Sherman is looking at their business for specific items....not the entire business. As for who owns the dies.....I do not know. There are two basic set-ups when you have metal parts made: 1. You pay for all tooling and development costs and you own the dies. 2. You pay for development and split proceeds with the metal stamper to cover his costs......he owns the dies. As for which set-up Tabco has....I do not know.
Spoke to my Sherman contact today...should have final pricing and availability on the parts soon...he wants to have this info for their new catalog that goes out in April.
thanks for all the hard work on this... i'm sure i will be in for these since my '72 needs some quarter panel lovin!
