The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop Body Panel Quality

Most of the patch panels i see online appear to be mfr by dynacorn.
Some are no name and i saw a few labled made in the USA. Is there any quality difference? I will be ordering door steps/rockers, rear cab corners, lower doors (in and out) and at least one short A pillar.
Thanks!

Dynacorn probably has the best rep for quality. Most panels are manufactured offshore. I've bought the same panel from different places for my '51, and found significant differences in fit, so you might expect that. The AD series cowl panels are the worst offenders and need massaging (sometimes significant) to fit correctly. I'm not familiar with Taskforce parts, but don't be surprised when they arrive and aren't quite right.
Good luck with your repairs.

Same here. There is a clear difference for sure; Chevs of the 40s had some nice US-made fabricated pieces made from OEM thickness steel - I bought many panels for other OT but still 40s/50s GM products from them and was happy with their suppliers in every case. I may be confusing vehicles here but for sure the splash panel on my 49 3600 was from them. Now, it still needed fitting it wasn't a direct fit, but I was happy with it.

I bought fabricated running boards from eBay (long box, so impossible to find) but they were fabricated in the USA from nice thick steel and those actually fit without any massaging of the running boards.

I've had other panels for different vehicles that required even cutting and welding to make fit, just garbage. But if there are multiple contours, well sometimes that's still faster than me on my shadetree English wheel and bead roller.

The prefab panels are a good option for those of us that dont have a sheet metal shop.

Yep, they're at least a good starting point.