Hey fellow members, First off jus want 2 say hi and whats up with everyone.... Okay, i know this question mustve been asked but couldnt find it in a search so here it is....What year ford headlight doors are used to french on a 54 Ford? I always thought it was either a 52-53, but just wanna make sure. Is the 52 headlight doors only one out of steel? or are 53's also steel and not pot metal. thank you 4 any answers -Nick
Take a look at the thread I'm running on the build-up of my '52 Victoria. I've just finished "frenching" the headlights and have posted a "how-I-did-it" post on the process. Yes, Jeff is correct. '52-'53 Ford rims are the only ones that will work on '52-'53 Fords. They are steel and can be welded to the fenders. '54 Ford rims are pot metal and cannot be welded. They are also of a completely different shape and will not fit the '52-'53 fenders properly. They can, however, be bonded to 1954 fenders using the special "metal glue" used by body shops. They can be finished the same as welded ones after that. Mercury headlight rims, while made of steel, do not have the "peak" at the top and do not fit the Ford fenders exactly. They can, however, be "peaked" during the final body work to blend with the Ford fender contour. Also... Mercury inner rings and Ford inner rings interchange, but the Mercury rings are polished stainless steel while the Ford inner rings are chromed. Just as a note of caution: The rims are of much lighter guage steel than are the fenders, so you'll need to adjust your welding procedure to adjust for this mis-match of materials. Good luck!
I just frenched mine using the original '54 rings and body panel adhesive. They look great and no need to hunt down the '52/'53 rings. I posted some pics in an album on my profile page.
Yeah, you could also braze them on, in theory. Body panel glue is a modern solution to an old time problem. If you choose yo use merc rings, you can fake the peaks, thats not a real problem. Good luck!
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