Technical 32 ford hood/cowl gap

Hi guys, I have a 32 with a gl*** body & 3 piece hood. I have the doors closing nicely, nice gaps, hood sides and hood/grill has nice 3/16" gaps. The top hood/cowl gap is more like 1/4". That extra 1/16" is really bothering me. Comments aside about 3 piece hoods, what do you guys think?

 

? Nice 3/8" gaps?
Did you mean to say 3/16"? This is ideally what I would aim for.
Are you saying you want the same gap at the hood/cowl top line (your tape location).
I would say even a 1/4" is more than needed.
It's not unheard of to add/cut for gaps to be perfect.
Are you able to stand back some distance and verify the cowl to hood top runs in a straight line as this is what I notice to be off on a lot of cars, especially in new builds with aftermarket components from different mfg's.
More photos and a clearer request is needed I believe to understand your issues.

 

Gl*** body why not fill in the gap and grind to a better fit. HRP

 

Fricking 32 hood gaps!! I had my hood gaps perfect during mock up and then paint and final ***embly came around and the hood had ****y gaps. I'm just going to live with what I have.

 

B.t.w. good luck.

 

I gave up. It sits where ever it wants to.


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I meant to say 3/16". Sorry, I am coming down with the flu or something so the ole brain isn't functioning at 100%. I will take some more pics later. I don't have the hood sides, they are at a buddy's as I had to cut them down some and he is welding a new fold for strength on the backside. I blame the gl*** body before I blame the hood. Hood is rootlieb.

 

Are you serious? The fit wasn't all that good originally.

 

Your grille and hood are going to shake. No stopping it. Don't make the gaps too tight.

 

I have my hood off and on all the time when i put it back on I screw it down and go drive it. I never thought to look at the gaps on my car or anybody else's car. I guess I'm just not picky. Maybe I need to get out there this morning and check them.

 

The hood is set by the radiator/grille. Can you move the radiator back a hair. You can tilt it to gap the hood sides. I set the hood top gaps, front and back, and then position the radiator rods to hold that dimension.
Then put hood sides on. If the vertical gaps are off, move the bottom of radiator in/out to get the best you can. If your slightly off left to right side, move bottom of radiator on one side to even out gaps. Its a jig saw puzzle, and a compromise.

 

My rad is currently sitting out at the bottom as far as possible. Should I look into slightly enlarging the two mount holes on the frame a bit? I will need to, as I have already took some metal off of the 2 sides. I don't want to have to take off more. I think if I can get the bottom to kick out a little more then I can lean the top back another 1/16 - 1/8 and not be as bad

 

Will the body shove back?

 

It's a lot easier to file a couple holes larger than it is to cut/weld/paint a hood or shove the body back. Do it and don't think twice.

 

I shimmed my Wescott roadster body and it took the better part of the day before I got it done. If you plan on taking the body off again, I'd reccomend recording your shim thickness and locations if you haven't already done it.

 

Be glad it's not a '34...

 

File them a bit if you have to. Make sure you use Henry's spring/bolt to mount it to crossmember.

 

Yep, I will file it hopefully this weekend. I got the flu earlier this week and I've never had the flu before, so it's really kicking my ***! I'll post some pics after I get it all figured out. Thanks for the advice.

 

Here's a pic a couple weeks ago. Gotta say, it's one of the most enjoyable projects I've ever worked on. That being said, I have always loved these cars since I was a kid.

 

By the way, when your done tweaking the radiator for the hood sides,etc go back and kinda neutral the support rods so they're not in a bind. They can crack the bracket on your radiator over time.