I need some advice from those whom have purchased sheetmetal replacement panels from companies such as Classic Industries etc..

I'm considering doing a RS front end conversion. Since I may have buy one fender to replace the one I damaged sometime ago. I was thinking going ahead and buying new fenders, cowl and gravel panel, valence etc...


What is the experience been like for fit, quality etc.... I have heard stories from people restoring other makes of cars that have had problems with poor fitting body panels.

Thanks,

Larry

Although I am far from that stage in our project, I can add that it is important to be sure your subframe is mounted square. That will make the FESM (Front End Sheet Metal) fitment much easier :D

Might seem obvious to some, but not to other.

Joe

I wondered the same thing recently when I was in the market for a deck lid. The members of this board assured me the quality was much better. I did purchase a Goodmark lid and was very pleased with the quality and fit. It acually fit better then the original due to the fact the old one appeared to have been twisted, I couldn't get one corner down at the tailpanel. The new lid fit great. The new sheet metal has come a long way. With the price a new NOS lid sold for on E-bay, $1175, the repro was a bargin at $140.

Although I've never purchased repro fenders, I have not heard much good about them. If you're a fabricator, maybe you'll have something to work with, but I would re-think keeping your old stuff if at all possible. Problems I've seen with a repro chevelle fender were :

the actual size of the fenders incorrect

mounting points not coming close to where they needed to be.

How do you adjust that? :confused:

As a person that uses many fenders, I will say that the new retooled Goodmark 69 fenders are a good fit. Ensure that you are receiving fresh inventory because there is still many old inv fenders in circulation. The price should be higher but well worth it. Most Goodmark 67-8 fenders also fit with only minor alterations. #1 major alteration that I incurred in the removal and correct placement of the fender to door jamb brace. After I did that things went much smoother on the next ones. Only other thing people tend to forget, but you should always bolt things like the grille and trim in to ensure correct fit and trim contours are correct.

Good Luck graemlins/beers.gif

I installed fenders and a RS conversion on my blue car from Classic. From what I've read here I got lucky because both my fenders fit good with only a little tweaking needed on the left fender. I would consider the Goodmark fender as the better choice now.

I purchased full qtrs from Classic. Although the panels are GM repros, I found they still lack in quality. The rear-most edge of the driver side panel that wraps around the tail panel looks like *&^%. The passenger side has a few ares I am not happy with also. Both panels require patient metalwork to fit them into position properly. I actually have to shape, weld, and grind the rear portion to get it to fit naturally. I made the mistake of completely removing the original quarter (psngr side). I should have retained the rear most section as it wraps around the tail panel and butt-welded the new panel into place. I plan to retain this part of the original driver side qtr panel.

I should have noticed the flaws and refused to sign the delivery. However, I think I was excited to get the panels and simply did not know to look for these details.

My full-length floors through Year One fit terrific. I think you will find areas that require special attention no matter who you get the panels from.