The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop Radiator Support

(Okay, if the subject was "aligning front body parts" no one would respond to the continuing and no one good answer subject.)

I am still trying to align all of the body parts that come together at the driver's full cowl panel that I am replacing on my '50 3100. That is to say: hood, fender, cowl, door, etc. (Plus having to cut and weld in the original side vent.) I am darn close, but my best fit seems to be if the radiator support is shimmed up over a full inch. Can this be right? The original shims were sheet metal thick, not blocks. Has anyone had to do this much in the way of shims?

In answer to the anticipated questions, this is off frame resto. Everything repaired or new. Cab to manual spec's as to shimming cab mounts.

The other question I have is to the fender adjusting rods, (firewall to fender.) The manual says to set the length of these rods at a measured set amount. The manual does not mention adjusting them any different in aligning body parts. Again is this right? I assume they are to be adjusted to what distance works for the simple fact that they are adjustable. Maybe a dumb question, but I have to ask.

Thanks in advance,
Steve O

You have discovered what I found to be the most difficult part of an Advance Design resto. Nobody's going to see how much shim you have under the rad support but a poor fit around the cowl,hood and fenders will surely be noticed. A little more shim under the rear cab mounts will help tip it forward a little bit and reduce what you need under the rad support. Do a search for hood alignment and there is a step by step page that has been posted many times. If you're happy with the fit across the cowl and hood sides then you can start moving the fenders around. The rod distance in the manual is only a starting point. I started over at least 6 times and I'm still not 100% happy. Worn hood hinges/springs can really foul it up too. Good luck.

Mine has ~1" of shim under the rad support. It was that way when I took it apart so I put it back the same way.

I remember working on Chevy cars and trucks in the late 70's and a stack of shims were a bodymans best friend.It was amazing how many shims they used to build these vehicles.

This is a good topic, I'm about to get to this stage of the game on a 49 I'm restoring for a customer, surely not looking forward to it!