34 P/U Radiator Cowl

[Al K.]

Hi,
Not sure cowl is the right name, but for now..... Mine has 3 of the 4 mounting holes broken off. Have any of you replaced these and maybe have a trick? Bending sheet metal is not my speciality. Is there somewhere that sells universal insert type pieces I could weld in? I'll be out of town the next few days so thanks and responses might be delayed a little. Al K.

 

[Al K.]

And as a follwo up, are all 4 of these support brackets the same, or are they different lengths? Are these what attach to the cowl points that are missing? The radiator is then the only support for the cowl.

 

[More Dust than Rust]

I cut out a small rectangle around the mounting holes and tacked in a small piece of sheet metal to take its place. I probably could have done a better job finishing out with the grinder. It might help to clamp a small piece of copper along with it as a backer. I'm a pretty lousy welder and only have a cheap flux core machine from Harbor Freight. Good enough for the "farm truck look" I've settle on after coming to terms with how bad I am at this restoration thing. Only one of my original holes was left. I still have to drill the repair out.

 

[Jack 34pu]

These radiator shells are getting scarce. I would take this one to an expert metal guy and save it. I've seen some in the $800.00 range.

No, the two brackets are not the same. The top two are slightly longer.

 

[Al K.]

Thanks, Got home last night. Away longer than I thought. That might not be a bad idea Jack, couldn't be too much $ I hope. It might be something I always look at and wish it was better.