Any ideas or measurements that will get me a good looking profile when setting my grille height ? I have my 26 RPU bucket body set up hiboy style and the grille shell I am using is a filled 28 repro. I can't roll the car outside to have a look at it so I'm wondering how to get it right. Any way to measure the height say at the cowl and then at the shell to get the right height dialed in ? A few pictures.
I put a straight edge on the center of the cowl following the slope of the cowl to the top of the grill shell. Does that make sense? You don't want it level with the leading edge of the cowl.
Just at quick glance I think that it needs to come down just a bit. I'd say 1/2 - 1". Really though, the only way to do it is to get it out in the sun and check. I know you said you can't, but it is important. You might also try using more tape to "flesh in" the hood top panel. Something more solid will give a better reference point.
its hard to tell in those pictures...get further back and get lower with your shot..about eye level with the center of the door with the camera,,, than we can tell better.. one things for sure..no up ward slope..at all other than that...looks nice
A lot of this depends of the height of your radiator and where/how you are going to mount it! Alot of rods with a too-high grill shell were limited by the radiator they were using. Are you going to mount your shell, then get a radiator custom built to fit the space available? If you mount a stock height radiator too low you take the chance of hitting something with it. (never a good thing!) But I'm sure you know all this!
Looks too high because of the center peak of the rad shell. Run more tape. One in the center for sure, to get an idea of if it really is too high. If you have extra time, get some thin cardboard to make a fake hood. Just do one side panel and one half of the top panel.
Set up mine the same way your doing, I just used more lines of tape as if a hood was being placed on it. You just want to try and keep the angle the same as the rake of the car. Nothing looks worse than a car having a nice rake from the firewall back and the hood/engine compartment appear to flatten out level. And like the others have suggested, you really need to step back away from it and try and look at it from every angle until you are pleased. Good Luck...
I guess I may have to put it off till I can roll the car outside. That will be spring. I wanted to get the height set now if possible and order the rad custom made to fill the space. Because I have a flat front crossmember and the rad will be right on top of it I will need a very slim bottom tank. I would have liked to order my Brassworks rad now when the Canadian dollar is high I'll spend a little time looking at it, I'm just limited for room to get back from it in my double garage.
Tape, then cut a peice of heavy paper to size for a hood (the tape will hold it from sagging), get a chair and a beer and sit down about 30 feet from the cars side and look at it from a distance. Move the shell up and down in 1/2" increments until you get that warm and fuzzy feeling. You will know when you've nailed it.
You also need to consider the rake of the car overall. If the hood were dead level with the cowl, you would expect the same rake that the chassis has when sitting on it's wheels. Depending on the car, I like the nose to have a little additional rake beyond the chassis attitude. Step way back and look at those imaginary lines that run through the chassis, beltline, hood and roof (where applicable). They should come to a point out ahead of the car somewhere. How quickly is a matter of taste.
Yup, Mritech has the right idea. Even if you don't plan to run a hood, fit the grille shell in the position it should be in as if you did have a hood.
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