So I have everything as close as it gets using factory holes. I am going to have to slot the frame crossmember for the radiator some to get everything aligned, other than that the rest is sheet metal.

The hood gaps are pretty good, the front passenger side is turned in and will require some surgery. As will the ups and downs as neither side is flush with the hood. EVERY single hole on the fenders near the cab is going to have to be slotted to slide them forward to get them even with the nose of the hood. None of the holes line up with the cowl holes nor the inner cowl brace. IS THAT PRETTY NORMAL? DID YOU GUYS END UP SLOTTING HOLES TO GET IT TO LINE UP?





As far as the cowl goes, I have about an 1/8" gap on the drivers side. Passenger is about 1/4". Do I need to cut the fenders here and massage them over to the cab? or will the welt/seals cover that?

 

Is it safe to assume these are new, aftermarket fenders? How is your hood gap against the cowl? At the front of the fenders you're tight on one side and have a gap on the other. That says your core support should move over a bit to even that up before attempting surgery. Do you have room to do that at the core support mount? Have you checked your frame to make sure it's straight and square?

 

New inner and outer fenders, cowl patches and cowl braces.

Frame is square.

The hood cowl gap is good.

Fender gap is good until the last 6" (that's why I said surgery). You can see the curve it takes in person better.

I have already slotted the frame crossmember to move the radiator support.

 

I had problems with the aftermarket fenders also. The alignment on the hood side to fender was half to 5/8 inch of a gap.Some members have built side alignment rods to push the side of the hood to close the gap. I would have had to slot every hole there was, and was not confident it would have worked.( that also was a 1/2 inch or so short of the hood) The front of the fender to hood gap was really bad.. So i put on original fenders on and it was a much better fit.The after market inner fenders worked out good

 

Not sure about using new aftermarket body parts with OEM. Seems if you use all aftermarket the fitment is good. but mix and match alignment is poor. My aftermarket inner fenders are a good.fitment with OEM front fenders. Maybe somebody else has a better idea?

 

I used all oem parts up front. My fit was not good either. I extended one fender to make the front edge (where the fender and hood meet) align better. After paint, I wish I did the other side.

However, I assembled the front multiple (!!) times. Every time it was a little different. So shooting for perfection is probably not worth it.

 

So it sounds like the consensus is slotting holes is a must?

Any experience with the aftermarket radiator air deflector panels? How is there fitment?

 

I used the aftermarket air deflectors and fitment is good. My new running boards to the new front fenders was really bad. The running boards to the rear fiberglass fenders was horrible So I am glad I switched back to the OEM front fenders and fitment was perfect for the front of the fender and rear fiberglass fenders