North American Turbocoupe Organization



Body side molding, is mine junk???????
qumanchew Offline
Member
#1
I'm in the process of a total rehab on my 87 bird. I have removed all the side molding and have a question about the stuff thats held on with the double sided tape. The pieces on the doors and quarter panels looks normal. By normal I mean it has the metal strip where the foam tape goes. However the pieces on the fenders don't have the metal strip. Is this normal? Both sides are the same, which leads me to think this is how they come from the factory. Anybody ever see this before?
87 tbird 5 speed with 3.73, 255 pump, kirban, large front mount, custom rotated upper, AC & pwr steering gone, .48 T3, ported E6, 3" DP. Shelf: T3T4
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thumper Offline
Posting Freak
#2
Mine all had metal strips.

I read that the metal strips are possibly why the darn things curl up if left to their own designs (i.e. not weighted down). I agree to this after having a set of mouldings sitting in my attic for a while.

I've been thinking about removing the metal strips from my moldings. Today's adhesive tapes are tons better than what they use to be, and you shouldn't need the metal.

With all that said, I'd say you are fine. I haven't seen that before, but they are fine. Big Grin
A.K.A. Corey Bennett

1988 TC: white, all options, 5-speed swap, K&N cone filter, "Ranger" roller camshaft, .60/.63 T3, NXS (Gillis-style) Boost Valve, Bosch BOV w/ check valve, Stinger 3" with axle dump (18" glass pack), 95A 3G

Some pictures: http://s639.photobucket.com/albums/uu111/cbennett4041/
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qumanchew Offline
Member
#3
Thanks for the reply. I guess someone else already had these off before. I bet they pulled the metal off to avoid having to removing the foam tape. I have about 4 hours into removing the tape on the rest of the molding so I know how long it can take. Anyway I think I will get other ones that have the metel strip still intact.
87 tbird 5 speed with 3.73, 255 pump, kirban, large front mount, custom rotated upper, AC & pwr steering gone, .48 T3, ported E6, 3" DP. Shelf: T3T4
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HCOR Offline
Member
#4
The problem I have found with pulling the metal off these molding are they will shrink. I have had several sets that wound up to an inch and half shorter than original and not cut.

John
only memories
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thumper Offline
Posting Freak
#5
Quote:Originally posted by HCOR:
The problem I have found with pulling the metal off these molding are they will shrink. I have had several sets that wound up to an inch and half shorter than original and not cut.

John
INTERESTING! Good to know... thanks.
A.K.A. Corey Bennett

1988 TC: white, all options, 5-speed swap, K&N cone filter, "Ranger" roller camshaft, .60/.63 T3, NXS (Gillis-style) Boost Valve, Bosch BOV w/ check valve, Stinger 3" with axle dump (18" glass pack), 95A 3G

Some pictures: http://s639.photobucket.com/albums/uu111/cbennett4041/
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Dan S Offline
Administrator
#6
When we did our '88, we removed all the metal backing from the molding. It is a long process, requiring patience and works much better using heat. A hair dryer will work, but we used a commercial heat gun. The molding was then refinished to match the color of the car and a new red stripe installed. We have not seen any signs of shrinkage on any of the molding. Also, when the molding was initialy removed from the car, we used a special tool for our impact chisel.

(See tools section).

http://natomessageboard.com/cgi-bin/ulti...3;t=000034
Dan S
Custom 88 TC, Mandarin Copper Pearl Metallic
http://natomessageboard.com/ubbthreads.p...5#comments
1972 Ford F-100 SWB Styleside
2015 Lincoln MKC 2.3 EcoBoost AWD
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thumper Offline
Posting Freak
#7
Good to hear that too Dan.

As far as removal, I used an old draw knife.. lots of effort, but good results. Next time I might have an air chisel. Wink
A.K.A. Corey Bennett

1988 TC: white, all options, 5-speed swap, K&N cone filter, "Ranger" roller camshaft, .60/.63 T3, NXS (Gillis-style) Boost Valve, Bosch BOV w/ check valve, Stinger 3" with axle dump (18" glass pack), 95A 3G

Some pictures: http://s639.photobucket.com/albums/uu111/cbennett4041/
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