1940 deluxe grille question.

raisinhel

Member
I see 2 metal staples in each vented side panel. Wondering what Henry put between the chrome grille and each vented side panel on this 40 deluxe grille. Fender welt?
 
I see 2 metal staples in each vented side panel. Wondering what Henry put between the chrome grille and each vented side panel on this 40 deluxe grille. Fender welt?



you could try bob drake i think he makes a special hard welting for that and i think he has a sale going on through december....gump
 
When I got my 40 from my dad my grandfather put black welt between the front grill and the side grill. I have put what I believe is a hard stainless welt pieces but had problems keeping them tight to the grills. They have a vinyl strip but the metal seems to have a mind of its own and eventually vibrate their way loose. Could use a solution to keep them in because they look better than the black welting.
 
I bought the chrome grille strip piece in the photo from BoB Drake in 1988. The grille bolts hold it in place and the ends of each strip are folded back over each other to make a nice appearance.
 

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I see 2 metal staples in each vented side panel. Wondering what Henry put between the chrome grille and each vented side panel on this 40 deluxe grille. Fender welt?
The reproduction trim that Drake sells for this is pretty decent. Not exactly like Henry made but darn close.
These were originally stapled to the metal louvers for assembly purposes. ROUND staples were used.
 
Thanks for all the info.
A 40 deluxe grill sure has a lot of pieces. much more complicated than say a 32-37 pickup.
Having nice straight 40 Deluxe side panels makes life more enjoyable. I blasted mine last night about 2.5 hours total time in them sealed and primed and are about paint ready.
I have straightened others before with cracks and dings they can be a lot of work.
 
Thanks for all the info.
A 40 deluxe grill sure has a lot of pieces. much more complicated than say a 32-37 pickup.
Having nice straight 40 Deluxe side panels makes life more enjoyable. I blasted mine last night about 2.5 hours total time in them sealed and primed and are about paint ready.
I have straightened others before with cracks and dings they can be a lot of work.
You might like to know that the number of louvres in the side panels varies, depending on whether your 40 Ford was an early or later production car. Make sure both your louvred side panels are the same. also, if you use 1/4 in dia bolts and nuts to secure the side panels to the grille it's easier to adjust the pieces. I am not sure if 1/4 in. bolts are OEM.
 
I used Bob Drake's stainless welting that fit into a hole at the top of the painted side grilles.The colored welting that fits between the the fender and the side grills need to be bent 90 degrees at the top and stapled to itself.
 
I've seen 4 versions of the 40 DLX side panels and the Drake folks tell me the've seen five! In addition to a variance of how many louvers (usually in the lower group) there is also a difference in the width of the area separating the groups. This is the place where the horizontal trims are. The most common and typical one is narrow, but there are some wide ones too. When buying, I always count each side, sometimes they are different! RPM:D
 
Does anyone have photos of this difference? This is something I never new. Thanks for the tip.

Here ya go. I posted this May 2010 on HAMB. At that time I had both original grilles. The black one is in my avatar car. It came with and has early production vented panels and the ashtrays that push in and then up behind the dash. The later production cars had dashes with the pull out ashtrays that were hinged at the bottom..
The vented side panels Bob Drake makes are the later production side panels. You can count the vents in his June 2010 catalog on page 72.. So , if you need a replacement panel make sure to check your other good one as you may need to buy two. Hope this helps.
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=471930&highlight=1940+ford+grille
 
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I've seen 4 versions of the 40 DLX side panels and the Drake folks tell me the've seen five! In addition to a variance of how many louvers (usually in the lower group) there is also a difference in the width of the area separating the groups. This is the place where the horizontal trims are. The most common and typical one is narrow, but there are some wide ones too. When buying, I always count each side, sometimes they are different! RPM:D

4 versions and 'Drakes is their own 5th version i bet. :)

-- i see the stuff im looking for beside the grill in the new Drake catalog $30.00 pr. i have a few catalogs and seem to always grab that 2009 catalog. im up to date now!
 
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