I am looking for a new emblem for my hood. I do not like the generic nose emblem on my truck. I want on that says ford. Alternatively, I can convert the front to a '52 look, but that is a last resort.

I have begun to wonder if I have a hood from a pre-51 truck. Does that make a difference?




https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/p...ictureid=30447

Thanks everyone! I hope I have figured out the photo issue.

Steve

 

It looks like you have a '52 hood. Yours doesn't have the center knock out like the '51. '51s have the FORD on the, in '52 Ford used the same FORD letters they used on the '48-50, many suspect they were trying to recapture some of the good looks of the earlier models. This is only a rumor but I intend to agree :





BTW, a '48-50 hood is very different, in style and how the latching system is designed.

 

It seems that it is also from a 6 cyl F1.

It sounds like I need to either find another hood or convert the front to a '52 look. I think that I like that look as well.

I guess I could also cut out that section if I get a nice nose emblem from a '51. Any caveats?

Thanks, Steve

 

It should be easy enough to swap trim onto either hood. Cutting that small section out shouldn't be a problem.

There are also differences in the hoods between 6 cylinder and 8 cylinders. The radiator sits farther forward in the 6 cylinder equipped trucks, this means the air dam mounted toward the front of the hood is also farther forward to follow the radiator.

 

That is a nice thing to consider. I am not running a stock radiator and I did not even think to see if they line up. I will add it to the list of things to check when I have the radiator back in. Thanks

 

So, tell us, what year is your truck, and what do you want it to look like?

You have a '52 hood and a '51 header panel. If you want the '51 look, simply get a '51 hood trim and it will bolt right on in place of the '52 trim you have now. It will say Ford on it, and would be the easiest thing to change if all you're concerned with is the truck saying Ford. A little spot of black rattle can paint on the hood behind the center hole on the trim piece will resemble the center hole found in the '51 hood, and no one would be the wiser. No other modifications will be necessary, and there's no need to replace the entire hood.

OTOH, if you desire the '52 look, there's 2 ways to accomplish that. You can change the header panel to the '52 style with the letters in place, or you can weld up the little holes where the V-8 emblem is now and cut new holes for the Ford letters. Unfortunately that would also require repainting the header, as well, although replacing the panel would require painting it to match, too.

On 52 models, the main trim piece is the same on the front of the hood between 6 cyl and V-8 models. The only difference is the little chrome piece in the middle, of which you have the 6 banger version. You can take that off and replace it directly with a 52 V-8 emblem. It is different from the '51 unit you already have on the header panel.

Your hood side trim is also '52, btw.

Hope this helps.


1951



1952

 

I would check for sure to see if the nose hood trim is interchangeable, I wanted to swap the old trim from my 51 F1 to the nose of my 52 F6 COE and although they look the same they turned out to be two different sizes and would not interchange, just a thought to consider, Garry

 

My plan is to have it appear as stock as possible on the exterior. I want the mechanicals to be safe and reasonable truck comfortable. I will spend most of my creative time on the interior to make it mid-fifties modern meets the jet-sons! I just thought that my nose ornament looked terrible and needed to be corrected with something. The hood is a bit beat up.

I like your idea of the spray paint. The hood needs a lot of work. The PO had it off after painting it blue waiting to have it clear coated and a big storm came up and blew it across a field. It is a bit dented and scuffed up a bit. I will need to fix all of this and have it repainted. I also want the header and lower valance painted blue to match the rest of the truck. The grill will remain white.

I will keep my eye on ebay for the nose emblem for the 51. I can buy the F-O-R-D letters and the V8 chrome bits at Sac Vintage Ford if all else fails.

Is there a quick way to determine if the hood is twisted? If it is, it might be better to find another hood in better condition. This leads to my next question...

It also seems that the rear of the hood does not line up well with the radius of the cab. Is this because of the trip through the field or is there another difference in the hood?

Thanks for the advise. Steve

 

Strangely enough, the Ford parts catalog shows the 51 hood ornament being different between conventional and cab-over hoods, while the 52 part is the same. That may have been your issue, Garry.

I have a 52 hood and a 51 hood ornament. Next chance I get, I'll check to see if they fit, unless someone else beats me to it, or already knows for sure. I must confess, I've never tried it personally, but it seems reasonable to me that they should interchange with minimal effort.

 

You will know if the hood is twisted when you put it on the truck .If it fits uniform on both side at the cab and sits down even on the fenders you are in luck . If it is off in any of these areas it is a bear to get it to fit right .

 

The 51 hood trim is taller than the 52 trim, but by not much. Both interchange on the conventional model hoods. My 52 has a 51 hood on it.

You have a 52 hood as everyone else has mentioned. If I were you, I'd keep an eye out for a 51 hood since you probably need one anyway due to the previous damage and possible warpage issue.

Here's a close up of the 51.


Here's a close up of the 52.


Note the slight visibility of the hood cut-out opening edge in the 52 above. That truck has a hood from a 51. I have two more hoods from a 52 and will put the correct 52 trim back on them to see if the opening edge is visible through the trim as in the picture. Looking at your picture, the opening should be completely covered up by the trim. This might be the difference in the size of the trims between 51 and 52.

Polarspeed, I have several 51 hood trims, including side spears, in various conditions. I'll trade you complete sets even for the 52. PM sent.

 

Not sure if anyone else has noticed, but your truck also has the 52 side trim. The 51 hood trim has the point at the front and is more squared off at the rear, with a series of "hatch" marks running along the edges, with the F-1 (etc) near the front. From what I see in the pic, yours is smooth and tapered in the rear (52). See the figures that Bob put up in the 2nd post for an example.

 

I have a Similar question, is it possible to bolt a 48-50 nose, hood, fenders & grill on a 51 frame? I'm not sure i want to do that yet, however I have really clean, dry fenders, grill, nose, & hood from a 48 and my 51's pretty rough. I just thought it would be an easy fix if they are interchangeable, even if it's not permanent. So basically if I take the front end off of my 51, can I install a 48 front end? Thanks!

 

Short answer, "yes". You have to install a complete front end in order for everything to work. However, installing a 48-50 front end on a 51-52 is like putting a SBC into a Ford, just not right. You'll be taking away value from your truck. :P

 

Actually, it's the right thing to do. You will be adding value to your truck. We have too many manure spreaders already. We need more monkey faces....