1969 Barracuda Fastback
Repairing the front grills:
The front grills on the 69 barracuda tend to brake at the area where they are bent in a shallow angle. My driver's side grill was no exemption, it was broken and badly bent. There are many ways to repair it - soldering, gluing, welding, etc.
More than 20 years ago I finished an apprenticeship and became a professional tinsmith. Later I changed my career, but since I still enjoy working with metal, I decided to give it a try and repair it.
On all 4 grills I have, I found at least one broken panel, so the worst looking became a donor. I build a simple tool that matches the angle on the grills. Then I sawed 3 deep grooves in it, to push out the broken panels. Those panels are very fragile and aluminum tends to "smear", therefore I sprayed first some cooking oil on the grills. With some patience, equal and gentle tapping, I could remove and install the panels.
Timeconsuming, but the result was quite satisfying - might bead blast them later.
Repairing the front grills:
The front grills on the 69 barracuda tend to brake at the area where they are bent in a shallow angle. My driver's side grill was no exemption, it was broken and badly bent. There are many ways to repair it - soldering, gluing, welding, etc.
More than 20 years ago I finished an apprenticeship and became a professional tinsmith. Later I changed my career, but since I still enjoy working with metal, I decided to give it a try and repair it.
On all 4 grills I have, I found at least one broken panel, so the worst looking became a donor. I build a simple tool that matches the angle on the grills. Then I sawed 3 deep grooves in it, to push out the broken panels. Those panels are very fragile and aluminum tends to "smear", therefore I sprayed first some cooking oil on the grills. With some patience, equal and gentle tapping, I could remove and install the panels.
Timeconsuming, but the result was quite satisfying - might bead blast them later.