Is there a source of the more authentic rounded door top garnish as seen in the above pic, to replace the squared off tops you usually see on replicas? I want to replace the squared off tops on my Beck doors.
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That looks like a CMC door. CMC supplies rounded fiberglass outer shell pieces and you fill with epoxy body filler for the 2 mounting posts. I've noticed the VS door tops are very square too. It would be easy to cut wood pieces to make the rounded backing and cover them with matching (or contrasting) vinyl.
It looks like real ones have a slightly wider top piece than CMC.
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My el' cheapo method: Run a 1 - 3/8" wood closet pole through a table saw, cut the forward end to match the angle of the door and have it covered in matching vinyl..my interior guy charges me $35 to cover each piece.
With the correct blade, you might be able to split a piece of pvc pipe, on a table saw? Or a larger wooden dowel.
I always thought those CMC door top bumpers were kind-of hokey, even though I did what they told me to do. Doing something out of wood makes a lot of sense - a Closet pole is 1-5/8" diameter, and Lowe's can get you wood poles all the way out to 2" diameter. Then just rip it to a half-round, or you could get something the right dimensions made of rubber, like a CACD300 from here:
http://www.acmerubber.com/round.htm
With either material, you cover it with the interior vinyl then staple the vinyl to the bumper on the back side. Make a trim bead piece of the same vinyl (or different if you want a contrasting color) to run a bead along the top between the bumper and door and anchor the bumper the same as shown in Wolfie's diagram.
Or, you might just contact Greg at Vintage Motorcars (Hawaiian Gardens).
It looks like his standard install is now a rounded piece as in this photo of @Speedster 's new build.
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VS will cost you 100 times the cost of a simple DIY job...
The one's at Vintage MotorSports (Hawaiian Gardens) - are reasonable at $71.50 each covered with choice of 4 colors but still looks squared off.
VMC aka Greg Leach they are rounded I recently bought a set
Alan Merklin posted:VMC aka Greg Leach they are rounded I recently bought a set
Yes - He does rounded ones now
I made molds off my original Speedster top rails and while I haven't ever advertised them as a part, we have them too.
I’m not trying to be nit picky but the way the dash vinyl stops and squares off and leaves a gap to the door top always bothers me worse than the shape of the molding.
The CMC build manual show the edge trim beading being used at the door top and end seams. The OEM panel show has similar edge beading used at the bottom where top rail meets the door card.
I don't recall my CMC door being indented like the build manual diagram - mine is just straight outer door panel and the straight up inner liner - but could be wrong. I think mine is more like this below:
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The original dash padding was different than you see in most replicas anyway, and the addition of a positive door seal (at least in a Beck) doesn't allow for the dash pad to be done 100% authentic regardless. We changed from the fiberglass covered piece a few years ago (also copied from my original) to a covered and backed pad like the original, but again, you cannot wrap this piece all the way through the door jamb due to the door seal, so it's 95% of what it should be... which is the closest I've seen form any replica...
I made mine out of sheet metal to replicate the originals. I found them to be very uncomfortable, so I trimmed them back a bit.
The dash bugged me as well, so I fixed it...