Hood pin & cable kits ..questions

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bighammer

bighammer

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I'm gathering parts for my '70 340 Swinger 'clone' but I'm not too sure I can make myself drill the necessary holes in the hood for the pin kit.

Part of the problem is that I'm concerned that the cable will scuff or scratch the paint from flopping around in the wind. Is that not a problem?

Also, are the entire pin kits stainless? Or? I have had terrible results with aftermarket chrome. It doesn't last anywhere near OEM.

And how difficult is it to get the holes drilled in the correct spot?

Thanks
 
All the hoop pin sets that I ever had, the cable was plastic coated and did not scratch the hood. I cant answer the stainless part of your question but I would think you cold buy stainless just cost more up front.
Rod
 
I put a dab of silicone on the tops of the pins, then touched the hood down on them to mark the spots and drilled from the underside, but that was after I spent quite a bit of time getting the pins installed where they wanted to be.
(don't have pins on my current car)

I have also installed the pins and then used the palm of my hand to press down on the hood to "ding" where I needed to drill.

Both ways worked just fine.
 
I used exactly the same method trailbeast did, but I used a paint pen instead of silicone. Silicone would have probably worked better. Once I had that mark, I put tape all over the top of the hood near where the drill would exit, and made a 1/4" hole up. Then I came back down from the top with a step drill, and repeated on the bottom for just enough clearance to open and close. I put silicone under the pin guards and screwed them down. I would opt for a good quality metal for the guard. I used what appears to be chromed steel, because it rusts wherever the hood pins scratch it.

I made my own lanyards out of 1/8" stainless aircraft cable. They loop around the hood height adjusters on each side and then are wrapped and crimped to the cotter pins. They never move and are very stable. Each lanyard is about 2 feet long and it makes contact with the chrome lip, but never with the paint. They never move in the wind or anything and stay right where they were positioned when you set them.

 
There are stainless kits out there. There are also some kits on the market that DO NOT use lanyards at all. Hood pin kits can run from cheap to very very $$$$$$ for the lock down kits that require no lanyard. I don't have my books handy right now but check both Classic Ind. and Year One to see what they have. I have seen a couple pin kits that are down right costly for what they are.

Jim
 

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hi everyone,my question is on the hood pin plates, should you screw or rivet them on the hood
 
solid340 said:
hi everyone,my question is on the hood pin plates, should you screw or rivet them on the hood
Click to expand...

I'd screw them down so when they innevitably get all messed up, you can replace them easily. I replaced my set after a year with a bigger set. Just unscrewed and put the new pates on.
 
Drilling is easy. I didn't want the cables either so I went with the Hotchkis hood pins. I loved the look and they use spring loaded pin locks. They ain't cheap, but I love them. I had just had my scoop put on and my hood painted, and I went to drill holes in it. That was hard to do. I mounted the pins first, put a drop of nail polish on the tip and closed the hood onto them. Then I used a spring loaded punch to mark the spot and rechecked about a dozen times before I drilled. I can slam my hood and the pins clear. I ended up using a step drill bit and it worked very well.

View attachment Hood pins.jpg

View attachment Hood pin 1.jpg
 
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