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Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Tue Oct 31, 2017 9:32 pm
by Jim Johnston
Should A series Carrera GS/GT bumper deco be polished or somewhat dull (given fine horizontal scratches to create such an effect)?

Re: Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Thu Dec 14, 2017 5:34 pm
by Dick Roth
They just got dull over time but never had a dull, or matte look applied in any way. Get out that tube of Simichrome and get to work...
1959 Carrera GT copy.jpg

Re: Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2018 9:43 am
by Peter Bartelli
Dick Roth....was this your car I saw at Amelia yesterday?

Re: Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2018 2:40 pm
by Dick Roth
Hi Pete, Does seem to be my old GT coupe, now in the very capable hands of the folks at Road Scholars. I don't love the white roundels, which personally I can do without. Blackened exhaust does seem to speak to some serious exercise, a laudable, and no doubt enjoyable experience for the party behind the wheel. Regrettably, I didn't get as much time in it as I did with my RSK, which was a never to be forgotten part of my Porsche life.

Re: Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Tue Nov 20, 2018 11:14 am
by Conrad Carter
Anyone know where I could purchase this trim? I really like the clean look and want to convert my 63B T6 Coupe.
Conrad

Re: Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Tue Nov 20, 2018 11:36 am
by Tom Scott
I believe that the aluminum GT bumper trim was originally extruded and replacements should therefore be a slightly dull finish, nor polished. However, the 'norm' today is to polish the trim to almost a chrome appearance, it is your car and nobody can criticize what you decide to do. I seriously doubt that the factory polished the original trim.

I had 50 sets of the GT trim pieces made many years ago and I do have one set left. I also have the narrow trim pieces which are attached to the body, just above the bumper. Contact me at tomlynns@aol.com if you are interested. I do have several bumper trim pieces with a 'V' notch in the center for 1950 only.
Tom :D

Re: Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Tue Nov 20, 2018 3:39 pm
by Brad Ripley

Re: Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Fri Mar 15, 2019 2:38 pm
by Conrad Carter
I see that the trim is available but don’t see anything to finish off the ends. Anyone?
Conrad

Re: Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Fri Mar 15, 2019 2:47 pm
by Mike Wilson
I'd suggest touching base with Bob Kann of GTWerks. He's listed on our vendors' page.

Mike

Re: Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Fri Mar 15, 2019 5:30 pm
by Bil Brown
I take the trim to a good welder and have him weld a roundish end on the trim.......then I take it home and file it by hand to the proper shape.......no big deal.

Re: Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Fri Mar 15, 2019 8:14 pm
by Conrad Carter
Thought about that. Hoped there was a “ready made” solution.
Conrad

Re: Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Fri Mar 15, 2019 8:24 pm
by Conrad Carter
Thought about that. Hoped there was a “ready made” solution.
Conrad

Re: Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Sat Mar 16, 2019 4:36 am
by Harlan Halsey
Bob Kahn sells the trim and it's no piece of cake to install. I takes a skilled body man who has done it before about 6 hours for each one. The difficulty is in getting a nice looking bend at the ends, and getting a tight fit to the bumper. Roughly here's how. First you have to shape the back of an end so that it tapers and can fold neatly around the end of the bumper. Then you have to anneal the strip. You can anneal the strip by lightly smoking it with the torch, and then heating with a clean flame until the carbon just burns off. Then bend it around the bumper fastening it as you go. Then finish the other end.

Re: Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Sat Mar 16, 2019 7:10 am
by Martin Benade
Will annealing it once do the job or does it work-harden quickly enough that it needs several heatings?

Re: Carrera bumper deco finish

Posted: Sat Mar 16, 2019 8:32 am
by Vincent Gillespie
In restoring our '55 deco strips, it isn't a Carrera so they had the rubber inserts, they work hardened after the initial massaging to get them to where we were happy with them, then a second annealing to fit them to the bumpers.

I worked from the middle out, going left and right sequentially, using clamps with buffers and much sweating or swearing, no it was both, particularly trying to get the base rubber seal in place correctly with the strip on tight, lots of loosening a bit, fiddle about, tighten a bit, repeat as necessary, trying at all times not to scratch the paint.

I don't have the equipment to give me a sooty flame so I use the other indicator method of annealing which is to wipe over the surface with a bar of soap, leaving a smear of soap on the surface, heat up the ally until this this turns black, & I mean BLACK, & it's annealed ready to work again.

Hope it helps.

V&S