I'll have to look at what exact size socket is correct, but I use a 1/4 inch drive socket in the gap to tell. If memory serves me,it's 9/32 or 1/4 inch.. Yes, they seem rightf....at fingers and all...lol
I am trying George, but you really aren't asking a question. Are you asking if your fenders need to be fixed? I know the information is here on V8 somewhere. That is the only thread I found so far. Duane commented on this somewhere. George N has this, http://www.buickperformanceclub.com/badfenders.htm
I am a mechanic, not a body man, but I have put together many cars in the last 40+ years. From my experience it's rare to have body panels to line up perfect with perfect gaps. You usually have to hammer, bend, grind, maybe drill out some spot welds, or weld something. These cars were assembled on an assembly line as daily drivers. I know that most people don't want to hear this, but it can be very difficult to line up body panels after the car is painted. There will always be a chance that the paint will get damaged.
Pat- no, my fingers ARE fat! LOL. I want to make sure I have the "correct" fenders for my 70 GS... And not the ones that need to be cut and rewelded... Trying to keep my welding to a minimum.
Yep, the build quality on early cars was so so, even shimming doesn’t help sometimes, nor do the humongous bolt holes
If "narrow gap" fenders are not fixed or addressed in any way, the problem is glaringly obvious. No amount of adjustment will work. They are too flat on the top in the middle of the hood, and line up great at the front and rear edges. You can always tell when someone has replacement fenders on their car if the issue wasn't fixed prior to paint.
Exactly. It's not an alignment issue. No amount of shimming fixes the problem. The fender simply does not have the same shape as the hood. It's very obvious. So imagine what a disappointment it would be to paint a GSX and the stripes and then install the hood only to learn that the NOS fender has this issue. Ask me how I know what a bummer this would be.... That occured back in 1989 before we had the internet to learn this from other guys. We learned the hard way.
