I need help!!

[AlanCasida]

Well, I only thought I was about ready for paint. I stuck my fenders on tonight and laid the hood(Crites) on and the curve of the hood front to back does not even come close to matching the curve of the fender. It rises about 3/8" above the fender in the center. I don't know if it's the hood or these crappy aftermarket fenders but at any rate I am not sure what to do about it. I already pitched to old stock hood so I have nothing to compare with. I have to say, I am REALLY bummed out right now.

[My427stang]

'glass can be tough.  First thing is to know sometimes you have to split the difference, adjust everywhere you can, and accept a little mismatch.  Even the Shelbys had hood line issues.

However, if it's real bad, you'll likely have to work the hood if the door gaps are good and the engine compartment lines are square.  If you still have a stock hood, it wouldn't be bad to adjust everything with that then remove it and fit the 'glass hood

I have had to cut, fill, shape etc, every fiberglass piece I have ever put on anything.  It can be a pain, but the good thing is, once something is all the same color, assuming the gaps are straight, it will fool the eye a little, but you will always know it's there

[jayb]

Fiberglass is always problematic in terms of fit.  If you are not willing to live with the mismatch I think you're going to have to un-bow the back of that hood, with added fiberglass at the back on the underside. 

If you are going to do this I would start by figuring out how much weight is required on the back of that hood, in the center, to bend it down to fit the curve of the other panel.  Take the bolts out of the hood hinges first so the hood can slide around on them if necessary.  Once you know the weight, pull the hood off and set it on some stands, upside down. Support the center of the hood at the back and add half the total amount of weight, plus about 50%, to each back corner to get the hood to over-bend.  Figure out where you can add fiberglass at the back without hitting anything in the engine compartment, extending as far across the hood as possible.  You will want to add a fiberglass beam to this area, so something like 1" X 1" balsa wood would be a good framework.  When you have the wood in place lay up a thick layer of fiberglass matte and/or cloth over the wood, to give you a fiberglass beam.  This will provide support to keep the hood straight.  When it is cured it will spring back a little, but hopefully your over-weighting of the corners will let it spring back into the correct position.

I know, its a huge PITA.  Not much you can do if you want it right...

[AlanCasida]

Fiberglass is always problematic in terms of fit.  If you are not willing to live with the mismatch I think you're going to have to un-bow the back of that hood, with added fiberglass at the back on the underside. 

If you are going to do this I would start by figuring out how much weight is required on the back of that hood, in the center, to bend it down to fit the curve of the other panel.  Take the bolts out of the hood hinges first so the hood can slide around on them if necessary.  Once you know the weight, pull the hood off and set it on some stands, upside down. Support the center of the hood at the back and add half the total amount of weight, plus about 50%, to each back corner to get the hood to over-bend.  Figure out where you can add fiberglass at the back without hitting anything in the engine compartment, extending as far across the hood as possible.  You will want to add a fiberglass beam to this area, so something like 1" X 1" balsa wood would be a good framework.  When you have the wood in place lay up a thick layer of fiberglass matte and/or cloth over the wood, to give you a fiberglass beam.  This will provide support to keep the hood straight.  When it is cured it will spring back a little, but hopefully your over-weighting of the corners will let it spring back into the correct position.

I know, its a huge PITA.  Not much you can do if you want it right...

That's kind of what I was thinking it would take something like that. I just had no idea how to go about it. Thanks, Jay! My original plan had been to leave a stock on it and use a bolt on Boss 429 scoop. I am REALLY wanting to get this thing back together so I may go back to that and deal with this hood at a later time. 

[cjshaker]

Probably a combination of the fiberglass hood AND the aftermarket fenders, but I'd try to figure out for sure where the true problem is, or if it is both. If it's just the hood, maybe you could send it back for another? Seems like every fiberglass part is different, even if from the same manufacturer.

 I've seen a lot of steel aftermarket fenders, hoods and doors that just don't follow the factory curves either. Quality has been going down also. A friend who is restoring my old GT CJ car has been sending repro parts back on a regular basis because they're just unusable. You could try minimizing the mismatch by raising the center of the fenders some with fender washers, but you have to watch that you aren't pulling in the bottoms too far which will suck in the sides when you try to pull them back out to match the doors and headlight bezels. Good luck, Alan.

[Heo]

I Have a friend that run a fiberglass company.
He make all the parts on order. Because he says
You cant store them on the shelf because they
change shape .He is always a couple of months
behind with the orders but he prefer to sell fresh
from the moulds. Best is to order parts when you
need them and mount them on the car when you
get them
I know this is not helping you now Alan. But just
some info about fiberglass panels

[turbohunter]

To back up what the guys are saying, my fiberglass hood has flattened out on my '66. I'm going to have to make a few relief cuts and some reglassing to get an arch in it again.

[Heo]

Alan is it a hood with the inner strukture like a stock hood?

[AlanCasida]

Alan is it a hood with the inner strukture like a stock hood?

It has the perimeter bracing of a stock hood but since it is a teardrop hood there is no X bracing. Also, it is a Crites Hood and they build them as the orders come in and don't have a lot of stuff on the shelf. I talked with a friend who said he has had good luck applying heat to the back side of fiberglass parts and weight to hold them in place. He said it kind of relaxes the fiberglass. I tried this today using electric heaters and a couple sand bags on the hood to hold it in place for 2hrs. I'll let it set over night and see what happens. If it is still bowed I am going to get a steel hood and put a Boss 429 scoop on it and move on. Then I'll revisit the teardrop hood this fall. I really want to get the car painted before bug season and I am running out of time!   

[Heo]

Yes that was one off the suggestions that i had to
weight it down and heat it but i think you have to
spend more than 2 hours heating it
If you have a steel hood you can fit it to the fenders
then remove the outer skin and glass the fiberglass
shell to the steel bracing.
My friend do that a lot. And he uses a ...I think is called
a firette mat on the underside of the fibreglass hoods
because it make them more resistant to the heat from
the engine without changing shape

[cjshaker]

Hmm, that makes me wonder. Do you know anyone with a paint booth that has a baking system in it? some of them can get to 200* and can hold that temperature. My friend has one in his body shop and it'll warp plastic panels if they're not careful. Only professional shops have them though because of the expense.

[Heo]

Do you have the stock springs in the hinges?
That could explain the low rear corners and the
bow in the middle stock springs are to  stiff

[AlanCasida]

Do you have the stock springs in the hinges?
That could explain the low rear corners and the
bow in the middle stock springs are to  stiff

I am not using springs and when I took the photos the hood was just laying there, not bolted to anything. I went out this morning and took my sand bags off and the humps were gone! Now how long it stays that way remains to be seen.

[rcodecj]

Do you have the stock springs in the hinges?
That could explain the low rear corners and the
bow in the middle stock springs are to  stiff

I am not using springs and when I took the photos the hood was just laying there, not bolted to anything. I went out this morning and took my sand bags off and the humps were gone! Now how long it stays that way remains to be seen.

Sadly the two fiberglass hoods that I had both bowed in the middle like yours.
I took it off and put weights on it to flatten it out. It worked but the bow came back within a short amount of time.
IIRC it was within a few weeks.