Post by virgmeister on Mar 14, 2010 13:06:43 GMT -5
If you have ever built an AMT 40 ford kit, you know the hood just doesnt fit right. It is too wide for the body. I have a simple solution for you. You will need a razor saw, liquid, or tube glue, liquid works best, and some patience.
1) The hood as it is from the box, you can see it is wider than the body, and longer.
2) The first thing to do is carefully, and slowly use the razor saw, and cut on one side of the chrome trim that goes the length of the hood. Make sure to keep the saw at a 90 degree angle to the top of the hood, and saw from the top part of the hood straight down, staying close to the chrome strip without cutting into the strip. Once you have the chrome strip cut from both sides of the hood, this is what it looks like:
3) Lightly sand both sides of the chrome strip, and the cut edges of the hood pieces. I used 3M 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper on a sanding block. Do not sand too much, or the hood will be too narrow. Basically you are knocking off the frayed edges. With narrowing the hood, the guide pins/hinges will now be too narrow for the holes in the firewall, so i sanded on them until they fit the holes. Now i used liquid glue to glue the chrome strip to one side of the hood. Let it dry, and repeat for the other side. Make sure the lines of the chrome strip line up with the hood section before the glue dries. The chrome strip will be longer than the hood now, but dont trim until the hood is completely reassembled, and dry. I do not use ca, or super glue, because it is not as strong as liquid, or tube glue. If your cuts were straight, and even, there will be little to no putty work. Just sand the glued area, and vualla...you have a correct fitting hood.
I hope you find this helpful. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me. Here is my email addy virgil_1966@msn.com I will be happy to answer you.
Thank you,
Virgil
1) The hood as it is from the box, you can see it is wider than the body, and longer.
2) The first thing to do is carefully, and slowly use the razor saw, and cut on one side of the chrome trim that goes the length of the hood. Make sure to keep the saw at a 90 degree angle to the top of the hood, and saw from the top part of the hood straight down, staying close to the chrome strip without cutting into the strip. Once you have the chrome strip cut from both sides of the hood, this is what it looks like:
3) Lightly sand both sides of the chrome strip, and the cut edges of the hood pieces. I used 3M 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper on a sanding block. Do not sand too much, or the hood will be too narrow. Basically you are knocking off the frayed edges. With narrowing the hood, the guide pins/hinges will now be too narrow for the holes in the firewall, so i sanded on them until they fit the holes. Now i used liquid glue to glue the chrome strip to one side of the hood. Let it dry, and repeat for the other side. Make sure the lines of the chrome strip line up with the hood section before the glue dries. The chrome strip will be longer than the hood now, but dont trim until the hood is completely reassembled, and dry. I do not use ca, or super glue, because it is not as strong as liquid, or tube glue. If your cuts were straight, and even, there will be little to no putty work. Just sand the glued area, and vualla...you have a correct fitting hood.
I hope you find this helpful. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me. Here is my email addy virgil_1966@msn.com I will be happy to answer you.
Thank you,
Virgil
