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Mscdman
Samba Member
Joined: June 12, 2014
Posts: 562
Location: Denver, CO
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 Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2014 10:43 am Post subject: Oops! I screwed up and filled in the side bumper blade holes |
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Okay - I screwed up on this. My car is at the body shop now getting re-painted. The PO did not have bolts in the side holes on each of the 4 corners of my car which would have attached to the bumper blades.
Me being the stupid newbie I am and thinking these were just aftermarket holes drilled in the body asked the body shop to fill them in, which they did.
OOPS! Now after research, I know there is some kind of bolt that was supposed to go through there (I presume from the back side) that attaches to the blade of the bumper.
The car s still being prepped, so I can get this fixed before painting (hopefully). Here is the question:
I think it may have been primed already  - how difficult will it be for me to ask the body shop to relocate and re-drill out the correct location for these holes?
I also need to check and see if I have the part on my bumper blade that secures the bolt to the body. |
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c21darrel
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Joined: January 22, 2009
Posts: 8211
Location: San Dimas
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Mscdman
Samba Member
Joined: June 12, 2014
Posts: 562
Location: Denver, CO
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2014 11:42 am Post subject: |
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The hole was small. So it was bondoed over.
I'll have to have them take a look at it. I'm not sure how it even attaches to the bumper which make it difficult. |
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c21darrel
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Joined: January 22, 2009
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Location: San Dimas
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Mscdman
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Joined: June 12, 2014
Posts: 562
Location: Denver, CO
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2014 1:16 pm Post subject: |
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| Thanks Darrell. That's EXACTLY what I wanted to know |
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Mscdman
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Joined: June 12, 2014
Posts: 562
Location: Denver, CO
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2014 8:53 am Post subject: |
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Hi Darrell --
Ok so I went over to the body shop today to take a look at my bumpers I see in the rear bumper a hole, but it is not threaded to accept a bolt. Should it be?
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dcombs
Samba Member
Joined: November 03, 2012
Posts: 89
Location: Denver, CO
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2014 9:08 am Post subject: |
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So, a buddy of mine purposely filled those holes and left those bolts off when he put his bumpers back on. He was/is under the impression if he got into an accident those bolts would tear the body and make a bigger mess. He was actually lightly hit in the back after he put his back bumper back on and it seemed his theory worked. Saved a lot of work for him and kept the car in better shape. So you might be able to get away with it the way it is. He tried to get me to do the same but I didn't.
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www.dannycombs.com |
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Mscdman
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Joined: June 12, 2014
Posts: 562
Location: Denver, CO
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2014 9:26 am Post subject: |
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That's my dilemma - leave them or fill them up. KGPR told me that if you don't have the bolts going into your bumper, the rear bumper and chassis may get twisted up.
On the other hand it looks cleaner without the holes.
It's something I will have to decide. I would be curious about other Ghia owners opinions.
Also should my bumper hole be threaded or does a small bolt just go through the hole and attach with a nut?
Last edited by Mscdman on Tue Aug 26, 2014 9:35 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Brassneck
Samba Member
Joined: November 17, 2012
Posts: 420
Location: Seattle
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2014 9:34 am Post subject: |
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| dcombs wrote: |
| So, a buddy of mine purposely filled those holes and left those bolts off when he put his bumpers back on. He was/is under the impression if he got into an accident those bolts would tear the body and make a bigger mess. He was actually lightly hit in the back after he put his back bumper back on and it seemed his theory worked. Saved a lot of work for him and kept the car in better shape. So you might be able to get away with it the way it is. He tried to get me to do the same but I didn't. |
Interesting theory... I was rear-ended last December really hard, and the rear quarter panel was definitely crunched... Now thinking about it, I bet the quarter panel wouldn't have been as bad had it not been bolted up... Then again, I wonder if that saved the rear end from collapsing even further and having engine damage? As it was, the engine was spared, but everything else was crunched. I'm guessing having the bolts on the ends in a major accident would help distribute the impact over the entire rear section... just a theory, but would seem to make some sense. |
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retrofive
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Joined: February 16, 2014
Posts: 88
Location: So.Or.
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2014 11:49 am Post subject: |
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| I plan on filling mine and not using the bolts. Given the weight of the rear bumper I can't see how it would hurt anything. Suppose if the wing bolts that connect at the center were loose they could sag maybe. |
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iowegian 
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Joined: February 16, 2005
Posts: 9829
Location: Somewhere between Dubuque and Keokuk
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2014 2:44 pm Post subject: |
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| Mscdman wrote: |
Hi Darrell --
Ok so I went over to the body shop today to take a look at my bumpers I see in the rear bumper a hole, but it is not threaded to accept a bolt. Should it be?
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Your bumper blade is incorrect for a '63. It is for a '67 or newer. Notice the very short distance from the mounting point (and, yes, there should be a weld-nut there) to the tip of the blade? Up through '66 that dimension would be approx. 2 inches greater because in '67 the rear wheel cut-out swept rearward a bit creating a feeling of motion when the car was at rest. The shorter blade will work however-----it will just fall short of the wheel cut-out assuming the cut-out is done correctly. I have "short blades" on my '61 and they look fine.
In any event, I certainly would fasten the ends of the front and rear blades to the body or they will flap in the breeze at hiway speeds. |
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c21darrel
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Joined: January 22, 2009
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Location: San Dimas
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iowegian
Samba Curmudgeon
Joined: February 16, 2005
Posts: 9829
Location: Somewhere between Dubuque and Keokuk
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2014 3:51 pm Post subject: |
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| As a follow up--------looking at a picture in the gallery of the subject car it becomes obvious what I was talking about as far as the "short blade" situation. You have a '67-'69 bumper, but that is okay. Looks fine. And the side mounting location is the same for early and later blades. So you can change the blades if you wish at a later date. Just leave the opening at its current width so "long blades" don't lap into the opening. |
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Mscdman
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Joined: June 12, 2014
Posts: 562
Location: Denver, CO
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2014 4:47 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks IO - thinking about this. I can't decide what to do, but am leaning towards re-establishing the bumper holes vs. not. Issues with this:
1) I'd have to fix the bumper missing weld nut - should be easy though
2) I'm starting to be concerned that the portion of the body where the hole was in each of the 4 corners might be mostly bondo vs. metal. I am basing this off the way the holes looked before I filled them and when I used a magnet it wouldn't stick near the holes.
This means either I order new rust panels for these sections or else I am assuming no way even with a metal plate behind the fender area will it support the bumper blades and it might rip away the body in those areas.
I am probably fixing that area anyway but still - its an added expense to the ever expanding fund.
I've already added new convertible canvas top to my xmas list, guess I will add new blades too 
PS - Are my front bumpers 63 from what you can tell? And can I order just the 63 blades to make it original or will a whole new bumper be needed? |
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iowegian
Samba Curmudgeon
Joined: February 16, 2005
Posts: 9829
Location: Somewhere between Dubuque and Keokuk
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2014 6:42 pm Post subject: |
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| Mscdman wrote: |
Thanks IO - thinking about this. I can't decide what to do, but am leaning towards re-establishing the bumper holes vs. not. Issues with this:
1) I'd have to fix the bumper missing weld nut - should be easy though
2) I'm starting to be concerned that the portion of the body where the hole was in each of the 4 corners might be mostly bondo vs. metal. I am basing this off the way the holes looked before I filled them and when I used a magnet it wouldn't stick near the holes.
This means either I order new rust panels for these sections or else I am assuming no way even with a metal plate behind the fender area will it support the bumper blades and it might rip away the body in those areas.
I am probably fixing that area anyway but still - its an added expense to the ever expanding fund.
I've already added new convertible canvas top to my xmas list, guess I will add new blades too
PS - Are my front bumpers 63 from what you can tell? And can I order just the 63 blades to make it original or will a whole new bumper be needed? |
Front bumpers were the same all the way through 1971. And if your rear corner blades are in good shape, I'd run with them. Other rear parts all interchange. I was merely cautioning you that there are some differences with the corners. When I did my '61 in 2001 I was lucky enough to find N.O.S. corner blades. It was not until sometime after I put the car together that I learned that they are actually too new ('69) for the car. They are still on the car. They still look great. Over the years I picked up near-perfect early pieces, but never changed them out. In fact I sold them to a fellow in Hawaii just a few days ago for his '63. |
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