1936 Dodge 2nd Owner Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 I need some help/instructions on removing the tail light bezel. We were able to get the lens out, but need to remove the bezel to sand and paint. Any help would be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpage Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 The tailight bezels are crimped around the inside of the housing and were not designed to be removed. If you are careful ,you can refinish the housings with the bezels in place by covering them well with masking tape. If you need to have them replated then you'll have to remove them. I've not done this but I have a suggestion. Take a new hacksaw blade or a Dremel tool with a metal cutting blade and carefully make several slots in the inside retainer ring about 1/2 in. apart. Take an old pair of needle nose pliers, heat one tip and bend it to a 90 degree angle facing the other jaw. Form the bent end so that it will grip the inner lip of the crimped ring. Then cut the other jaw so that it will fit into the housing with the bent end clamped over the retainer. While squeezing the handles ,carefully pry the crimped portion of the bezel up and over the inside lip of the housing. After going around the perimeter the bezel should come out. Be VERY careful not to distort,tear or otherwise mutilate the bezel as they are not available new! There used to be a man who reproduced them but I think he is long gone. I was fortunate to obtain 2 sets of new bezels. Maybe someone has a better solution. When reinstalling the bezels,carefully bend the retainer lip back over the inside lip of the housing and recrimp with channellocks or you may be able to epoxy them back into position. Hope this helps! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1936 Dodge 2nd Owner Posted May 21, 2012 Author Share Posted May 21, 2012 jpage,That sounds like a lot of work!!! (isn't everything) Thank you for the suggestion. I'm hoping someone has an easier solution as I wanted to paint the housing and replate the bezel for both tail lights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1936 D2 Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 When I did mine, I had purchased a pair of re-pop rims probably from the guy jpage mentioned. That was back in about 1990. I know they are not available new out there anymore. (Somebody out there reading this that likes to make things like these? There is a ready market!)I like jpage's solution better than the other I have seen where the ring is cut one time all the way through near the bottom, and then carefully overlapped and removed from the bucket. This method invariably causes the ring to warp. Then you have the problem of silver soldering it back together while allowing for the space of the cut (the diameter is critical to the lens fit) without further warping, rechroming, and also figuring a way to put it back on! If your rings are nice, and there is not a pile of rust by them on the buckets, I would give deep consideration to the "mask in place" idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
35cz8 Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 I have seen these bezels on E-Bay a few times and even won (nos MOPAR in original package) one for my rs cp. They are not offered too often and are rare to find so if looking for new ones, have your wallet in hand when you bid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1936 D2 Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 Yea. I suppose "fmmpar" has some stashed away but they will start at $467.00 with a reserve! You wanna go there? :mad: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1930 Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 What is fmmpar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1936 D2 Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 One of the "vendors" on eBay with a bunch of Mopar stuff. His market is apparently the super high dollar "rebuilders" out in CA where the customers will pay anything to get their car done by "X Shop" and have it done in a month. His hoard sure is beyond my meager assets! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1930 Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 One of the "vendors" on eBay with a bunch of Mopar stuff. His market is apparently the super high dollar "rebuilders" out in CA where the customers will pay anything to get their car done by "X Shop" and have it done in a month. His hoard sure is beyond my meager assets! Its funny, now that you mention it I think I have seen that user I.D on e-bay. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpage Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 I believe the man who made those bezels was M. Biberstein but I think he may have passed on. I wonder what happened to the dies! The repros are close and nicely plated but still don't fit exactly like the originals. They rim sticks out from the lamp a little more than the originals. I had to grind my lenses a bit to get them in the bezel. The other dilema is how to crimp them in without damaging the bezel! But they do look good! I'll have to look at an old housing to see if I can come up with another easier method of removal which will allow for reinstalment!. The repros are made from brass which is a little easier to work and shape than steel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1936 D2 Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 I don't remember any of those problems, so mine may have come from a different source. Either way, I remember when I got mine there were like only four or five rings left and no plan to make more as I recall. They were not cheap so I did not get extras at the time. Yes, mine are made of brass too. A wise way to make them I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amigo Posted June 3, 2012 Share Posted June 3, 2012 I went through this same problem along with the price so I paid a machinist to turn to bezel's out of a 3 inch x 1/2 thick aluminum pipe with a small set screw on the inside and they came out great cost me 100 bucks each Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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