Dumb Question? ('58 & '59 grille)

[jam-bo383]

Ok, so after looking at hundreds of pics of '58s & '59s, I've decided to keep the front end on my '59. I figured out that if you just focus on the grille by itself, it's kinda ugly. You have to look at the sum of the parts. The whole front end looks great, if done right! Now to my question: My truck had no grille at all, so I found a great deal on a very good condition grille on ebay. The problem? No mounting brackets. I can't seem to find any anywhere. Maybe I'm not searching the correct term. What are they called, and where can i find them???

[Denee007]

Hi jam-Bo! The brackets are riveted on, mine were. I did have to drill out the heavy rivets to straighten them out the brackets, then I used my very large riveter to put them back onto the grill with 1/4" rivets. I'd have to call them a grill bracket I'd guess. I would think they'd be remanufactured? I checked a couple sites, but didn't see the brackets listed separately. Maybe someone on here will have an old grill.; )
Dne'

The bracket closest to the viewer, was welded. I cut that loose and as said riveted it back on after beating and bending it.

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[_Ogre]

oh for shame... i always thought they were sexy

[jam-bo383]

Yeah, when I got the grille in, I noticed that there were cut rivets on the back. Thanks for posting the pic, Denee! At least I now know what I'm looking for. Wouldn't you know, I had a friend send a '59 dump truck to get scrapped out yesterday. It had the grille on it, but I found out too late. Bummer.

[Denee007]

I think like Ogre, it's a pretty nice looking grill once it's all put together! I found on eBay some parts. One grill bracket, nos, for about 35.00, one wouldn't do a whole lot of good. What shape is yor grill in?? Maybe just be patient and shop for a complete grill in decent usable condition? Chrome or not? I bought mine from a guy off of Craigslist out of California. I didn't get the best deal,if I had it to do over again, I would have been more patient!! After all, it's a part that goes on near the end of a restoration. Kind of like carpet, my husband was asking me about carpet, it will be the last thing that I need! ; ).
Dne'

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from...vy+grill&rt=nc


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[jam-bo383]

My grille is in very good shape. No dents at all. Has the expected surface rust; nothing a good media blast won't fix. I'll probably have to just fab something up if I can 't find anything. OR... I can try to find a grille that's cheap and in horrible shape, and just harvest the brackets. Man, I wish I could've grabbed that one off of that dump truck before they scrapped it!!!!

[jam-bo383]

By the way, Denee and Ogre, both of your trucks served in my decision to keep the four-eyed look. Nice trucks, you two! Mine will be torn down real soon. I've got parts coming in, and my entire drive line is new/rebuilt. I'll start posting progress pics as soon as there IS progress!!

[Denee007]

Thanks! you may as well start a build thread so we can tag along with your adventure! ; ) Look out check book and credit cards!!
oh, I had to look up where Slaton is~ looks like a nice little town!

Originally Posted by jam-bo383

By the way, Denee and Ogre, both of your trucks served in my decision to keep the four-eyed look. Nice trucks, you two! Mine will be torn down real soon. I've got parts coming in, and my entire drive line is new/rebuilt. I'll start posting progress pics as soon as there IS progress!!

[jam-bo383]

No doubt about the money!! Luckily, I have a lot of resources. I will definitely post a build thread for sure. Yeah... Slaton is in the middle of the cotton fields of the South Plains. Not a lot to look at, but the people are great, the cost of living is good, and the weather allows for good cruising at least 70% of the time!!

[Kabwe]

Hey Jam-bo383,

I have a of 58-59 grille that I'm not using. I could cut off the mounting brackets and send them to you. Free of charge, you just pay for shipping. Its just sitting in my yard in the way.

Let me know.

[_Ogre]

good move bam, gotta like the way these forums work

[Denee007]

Originally Posted by _Ogre

good move bam, gotta like the way these forums work

[jam-bo383]

Wow, Kabwe, that would be great! I would gladly pay for them, no problem. I just really appreciate the gesture! Send me your info, and I can do a PayPal today. Have I mentioned how much this forum rules??!!

[Kabwe]

Originally Posted by _Ogre

good move bam, gotta like the way these forums work

No biggie bro, thats what these forums are all about or at least they should be. Networking is what its all about.

Originally Posted by jam-bo383

Wow, Kabwe, that would be great! I would gladly pay for them, no problem. I just really appreciate the gesture! Send me your info, and I can do a PayPal today. Have I mentioned how much this forum rules??!!

Okay I cut them off, pm me where you want them sent and all that you have to pay is the shipping. Man I'm not going to charge you for something that I might have trashed anyway. The grill is not in good condition but it does have the mounts.

Is this all you need? Do you need the center piece?

[jam-bo383]

What is the center piece? My grille is bare on the back, so if you think I need it... Lol! Sorry for my ignorance. I've never worked on one of these trucks before!

[Kabwe]

I'll just send it anyway. I will not be able to send it until Monday.

[jam-bo383]

No problem. Just let me know how you want me to pay for it! Why do I have a feeling that it would be great to sit around the garage and have a beer with a lot of the forum guys?! I've had nothing but good experiences, great advice and suggestions, and NEVER a rude or degrading comment about me or my trucks. It's what a forum should be. Thanks again, Kabwe!

[Denee007]

Hi, I found some photos form my build that could be informative. The first shows that little bracket in the middle that you may be wondering about. Next in the top photo shows the closest bracket to the viewer, being welded and bent in. I imagine folks from back then pushed other cars and wound up bending in the grill and the grill brackets. So you'll probably be doing some straightening on your newly found brackets, but they're not difficult to bend back into shape.



This just shows the bracket "unwelded", then straightned back and pop riveted back into place using a rather large pop rivet installer. Well, that's all i have to say about that! dne'

On another note, I wish I had installed bolts to affix the grill to the body, at least two, so that installing the grill would have been much easier to bolt up.

[_Ogre]

Originally Posted by jam-bo383

Why do I have a feeling that it would be great to sit around the garage and have a beer with a lot of the forum guys?!

do we count denee as one of the ''guys''???
sorry denee, he's new

Originally Posted by Denee007

I imagine folks from back then pushed other cars and wound up bending in the grill and the grill brackets.

oh that hurts to think about
though i have to include myself in that group

[Denee007]

haha, since I dable n play in a "man's" world, I don't mind just being one of the "guys", and I'd for sure have a beer or two to boot! or I should say I'd rather have a glass of Merlot! ; )

[jam-bo383]

Heck, most of my girl-friends are "one of the guys"! My wife is, too! Thanks for the pics. My next question was going to be about how the parking lights mount up, but you answered that question, too. I'm reeeeeeally hoping the weather starts cooperating so I can get started on the tear down. I have some great friends who volunteered to lend a hand when it comes time. Chance of snow tonight, so we'll see about the rest of the week. I was at the shop yesterday going over the what-to-dos on the truck. Funny how something can look so terrible, yet we look past that and can see what it's going to look like in the end!

[OrrieG]

Any body who races a crotch rocket is "one of the guys" in my book!

[62lwbc10]

I Dunno....mighty fine lookin front end in my opinion. I dig the four eyes. Not just that, but the hood and fenders for the 58-59, and the way it all comes together...just does it for me. Good luck with your truck.

Mark

[jam-bo383]

Exactly. You gotta look at the whole picture. I've seen some VERY nice '58-'59s both here on the forum and just searching the pics on Google. I settled on a paint scheme that will save me money and look great, in my opinion. I really can't wait to get into it!!!

[spinned]

The 58 front end does it for me as well. It looks a little more refined then earlier models (IMHO).