I have started the frenching of my headlights on the 50 and I started sanding the headlight rings only to find out that they are brass. Was this a factory standard or are these aome aftermarket stuff? If anyone has an extra set I'd buy em from ya. TIA Root
I thought about it but my torch regulators are on the blink....I may see if I can borrow a reg. setup if I can't locate a set.
I seen alot of brass items that were chromed on the old cars. Yes, these are actually easier to work with.
did you call Flat Top about the rings...if he doesn't have them he can probably get some next door...
yes, Brazing, now if you don't have a torch its alittle harder but you can use brazing electrodes on a stick machine too.
Ya see I have a mig and a torch setup, but the other day it was acting crazy and I couldn't keep the torches set. I guess it is a 1960 model....guess I'll have to fork over the bux for a new set.
Unkl, are the steel ones really steel? Or are they some sort of alloy? Also, what about putting a filler over brazing? Any ill effects?
I havent ever used filler over brazing. But I have used it over lead. Just make sure the soft stuff has a good tooth so the stuff adheres well. I have welded older (steel) headlight rims with regular mild steel.. worked well.
Brass (as in brazing rod repairs) can be some trouble to put filler over. The old timer I used to work for, and taught me all the custom stuff, used to braze everything. Wouldn't touch my MIG welder, when I bought it to work on my Olds. He put plastic over braze, but it's a touchy situation. The hardener (oxidizer) in your bondo will immediately begin to oxidize the brass. Any pinholes, or leaks that can leak in water from behind the repair, will speed up the process quickly. The oxidized brass will begin to push away the plastic on top of it. It looks similar to rust bubbles pushing bondo up. By cleaning, and roughing up the braze very carefully, you can delay the problem. Thorough wire wheeling is good, sandblasting is better. Sealing the repair from behind is also very important. My Olds was almost entirely done in brass, and is still holding up well over 20 years, but it could be a combination of good work practices + good luck! In researching the problem, I found out it was a transition thing after lead work stopped. Brass repairs will take lead very well. But plastic doesn't. Some old timers never quit using the brass, even though it wasn't a good application anymore. The problem solver, in one article I read, was to actually TIN the brazed area, as if you were doing lead. ( SEE! A good reason to know how to do lead work, as in the other discussion!) This would isolate the brass from the plastic, and prevent problems. Of course, you had to neutralize, clean, and acid etch the area after tinning, so it would be clean enough to plastic over. I may do this on my Olds when I restore it, so I don't have to redo the extensive welding/bodywork on it. In a similar vein, I had thought that if tinning would solve the problem, then coating the brazed/brass area with epoxy primer would also isolate the brass from the oxidizer in bondo. And epoxy primer takes bondo satisfactorily, too, so you could do your bodywork on top of it. Sounds like a good solution to using brass parts on your car, or doing brazing repairs, with plastic on top of it.
[ QUOTE ] are the steel ones really steel? Or are they some sort of alloy? Also, what about putting a filler over brazing? Any ill effects? [/ QUOTE ] Could be Steel,or Stainless.Some Stainless is Non-magnetic,some is mildly magnetic. I wouldn't use Brass filler,Bronze would be a better choice. And make sure you remove ALL the flux,or it will come back to haunt you. The factories use Bronze now instead of Lead.
I've wondered about the reason for the brass myself. Some of my inner window frames were made from brass. I've asked old timers and these are the theories I've heard: 1-Those brass parts are from a pre production run. Brass was used because the harder production tooling for steel wasn't ready yet. 2-There was still a material shortage (copper)remaining from WW2 at the time, so parts made from brass could be chromed without copper plating them. I took these explanations with a grain of salt, though they don't seem too far fetched. The one about the WW2 shortage is odd, a 50 Merc or Chevy would have been built 5 years after the end of the war. Anyone know the real story?
Brass was often base metal under nickel chrome. It doesn't have the corrosion problems of steel and is an easier plating process, not requiring copper. There was a shortage on brass during the war too, shell casings. So the war theory doesn't hold up, but it did affect many things. Basically I reckon it gives a better finish cheaper and lasts longer.
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