Couple of Questions for you.

1.What is the best way to take off a grill on a 68, 360cid. I saw some bolts underneath but there kinda hard to get too.
2.Can i sandblast this, then paint it with some special paint when i remove it. It looks to be hard steal. Is it reccomended?

 

Not hard at all to pull that grill off.It's easiest to pull it off with the upper 'shelf' with center brace and hood latch bracket attached. There are bolts up the front of each fender and one each side under the headlight doors plus a few others at various places you'll see. Be careful with the sandblasting as not to pit it too badly. If you want durability, you might think about powdercoating.

 

I just want it too look good and last a long time. I want it to be very chromy. I would i go about powercoating?

 

Powdercoating is a special process that needs to be done at a shop. It's not something you can do at home. But it is very durable.

 

Have any of you ever painted a grill before. If so what type of paint and how did u prep it.

 

>Have any of you ever painted a grill before
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Here is mine painted black on my 68...
http://www.island.net/~gjones/grill.jpg

the back end looks like this:
http://www.island.net/~gjones/back.jpg

I had to lighten the scans a bit to show the black grill but it shows kinda what it looks like

Gary

 

Do you need some help finding the cropping tool on your scanner ?

We can help.

Dennis

Oh....Please Don't Ask Me Any Tough Questions As:
"I'm Saving Up MY Memory For When I Develop Alzheimer's"






78 F-150 429CJ C6 ,Silver w/Explorer Pkge
641/2 Mustang,Pre-World's Fair Car #8092
64 Fairlane S/C waiting for a 390-4spd.
68-Mustang.Sunlit Gold 80,000 miles

 

yea thats cool, how did u prep it.. sandblast.. sanding... I would paint my chrome. what type of paint / primer would i use for somethinglike this. tahnks

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 16-Jan-02 AT 09:32 PM (EST)]heres a pic of my grill to give u an idea.

http://C:\unzipped\DCP_0151_1\DCP_0154.JPG .......it didnt work, how do i put pics on here.

 

>yea thats cool, how did u prep it.. sandblast.. sanding... I
>would paint my chrome. what type of paint / primer would i
>use for somethinglike this. tahnks
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The black grill is a painted grill that replaced a chrome grill. If you cant find a painted grill probably sandblasting and using a good enamel paint would work.

Gary

 

I like what you did with the minor exception
that I might go with a less glossy (i.e.
flat or matte) black.

I am under the impression, though, that
the stock steel (non-chrome, painted)
grilles are usually if not always white.

So, presuming you started with a white
grille, what specific steps did it take
or would one recommend to get to a final
black?

Starting with a white grille with
a little surface rust, I could take
a wild guess (and it is only a guess):

* sandblast to the metal, both sides.

* apply black primer

* apply N coats of black paint
(where N>= 2)

Can anyone comment? Thanks,

Steve

 

CRJ, Ford didn't offer a chrome grille in 1968. They only offered painted steel and bright aluminum grilles. The aluminum grille emulated a chrome grille’s appearance. You asked about taking your grille off. There are about 20 bolts that hold it in place, some are very difficult to reach and chances are most pretty corroded from time. I found an air driven ratchet wrench invaluable in removal and reassembly of mine.

Now to refurbishing your grille, if you want “chrome” I wouldn’t paint with a chrome color paint, you’ll probably be disappointed with the results, especially considering the amount of work involved in removal and reinstallation. If you must have chrome, take it to a plating company and have it triple plated. It’ll cost you about $250-$300, but should last for 20 or 30 more years. If you just want to paint your grille, take it off, sand it with various grits of sandpaper, you might want to sandblast in tight places, but I wouldn’t sandblast the flat areas. Then prime with an epoxy primer and topcoat with polyurethane acrylic enamel. I’d try to stay away from spray paint, just from a durability standpoint.

Good luck.

 

what color primer and enamel?

 

Doesn't matter what color primer you use, just make sure it is not the same color as your top coat. If I were restoring the grille, I'd paint it the factory color...white. Although my if I really had my druthers, I'd have it chrome plated.