jpage Posted September 15, 2013 Share Posted September 15, 2013 I just saw on E-bay a handmade tail pan kit for the '36 Dodge/Ply. touring sedan. I have come across this part and the body sills on other websites . I need both of these parts and because they're "handmade" I was a little hesitant to buy. Here's my question, has anyone out there ever bought and used any of the reproduction sheet metal? Is it correct , does it fit(within reason) and is it worth the money. I don't like buying parts that I can't inspect beforehand, especially parts that are nonreturnable!. Any input would be appreciated. These repairs are holding up my restoration and there is no one in my area who will tackle these parts and they're a bit beyond my abilities with metal. Thanks Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1930 Posted September 15, 2013 Share Posted September 15, 2013 It would depend on whom made them, what is the e-bay seller. I have purchased sheetmetal for my 29 that were beautifully made from E-bay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpage Posted September 16, 2013 Author Share Posted September 16, 2013 Looked again but could no longer find the listing. I think his user name was hotrodplymouth or something like that. The part looked good in the photo and had both corner sections also. He did not list a business name that I could see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JACK M Posted September 16, 2013 Share Posted September 16, 2013 I think you can search expired listings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest asb9606 Posted September 16, 2013 Share Posted September 16, 2013 Check out ( The Plymouth doctor) Perry Mich. Look for there web site. I bought Quarter patch panel rocker panel rear panel under trunk for my 35 dodge business coupe.they fit with some adjustments. not bad. I spent more time looking at the pieces and measuring before I cut measure twice cut once these are not cheap parts.Good luckAngelo Asb9606 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1936 D2 Posted September 18, 2013 Share Posted September 18, 2013 I bought 1936 floor pans from the guy in Perry MI also. I have not opened the delivery box yet so not sure on the fit. The price was pretty stiff but should save a lot of time for the body man so all in all should be an OK deal.The only problem with the deal was that these parts were not "in stock" and took almost four months to get delivered. I did not hear much from the seller during this time also. I had to contact him a couple times to check up on the progress. But in the end I got the parts.He did have the rear pan below the trunk lid also but after speaking to my body man he thought he could work the original parts for less than the fairly high price of the rear panels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpage Posted September 21, 2013 Author Share Posted September 21, 2013 Been pouring over the E-bay home page and cannot find any reference to expired posts. Also can't find any other listings for the seller. I'd like to ask a few questions about his product because he's about $100 cheaper than the other suppliers on this part. Got to do something or I'll never get this car done! 1936D2.. how's your floor pans look? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomP Posted September 21, 2013 Share Posted September 21, 2013 Hi Gents, I think this is what you are talking about http://members.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewUserPage&userid=plymouthdoctor they do panels from 1935 onwards, if you want earlier go to http://www.rileyreproductions.com/ 1933/34.Hope it helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JACK M Posted September 21, 2013 Share Posted September 21, 2013 The ended listing tab is in the advanced search I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dbehnke Posted September 21, 2013 Share Posted September 21, 2013 I see postings from time to time from hotrodderplymouth on ebay as well.Doug Behnke Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpage Posted September 22, 2013 Author Share Posted September 22, 2013 I finally remembered my Ebay ID info( after about 8 years) and was able to contact the seller . I'm waiting for a reply. Thanks for the input. I was hoping to find someone who has actually used one of these products in their restoration to glean their thoughts. Guess I'll have to take a chance! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpage Posted September 29, 2013 Author Share Posted September 29, 2013 Assured by the seller that his part will fit and that he's sold several with no complaints ,I purchased one of his sets. Unfortunately ,while nicely made, it is made with the wrong radius and is curved too much to fit. I don't even think that it can be changed without damaging the part. Two emails to him with no response yet! Guess I just threw away 300 dollars! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomP Posted September 30, 2013 Share Posted September 30, 2013 I finally remembered my Ebay ID info( after about 8 years) and was able to contact the seller . I'm waiting for a reply. Thanks for the input. I was hoping to find someone who has actually used one of these products in their restoration to glean their thoughts. Guess I'll have to take a chance!If this seller has been trading for more than 8 years I find it unbelievable that he doesn't have a returns policy, I'm not defending him, I'm the other side of the pond. Is there anyway that you have been supplied with the wrong parts, I say this because these parts aren't easy to make. I just hope it's not one of the suppliers I mentioned above, at this stage I wouldn't think you have thrown good money away. I am in need of the same part for my 33 PD but I will probably make it, just done the bottom rear quarters and patched the rear panel on my R/S Coupe. Keep us posted Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpage Posted September 30, 2013 Author Share Posted September 30, 2013 The parts seem to be the correct ones and are nicely made, but the lengthwise curve is too tight causing the piece to gap about 1 3/4 inches in the center and making the part too short. If it doesn't fit this car it wouldn't fit any other '36 Dodge or Plymouth either. Just surprised that if he did sell other units someone else didn't have a problem! I just hope we can work something out. Maybe the person making the part just made a mistake. If the contour was correct I think it would work just fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomP Posted September 30, 2013 Share Posted September 30, 2013 Any chance you could post a photo, someone that knows the parts may have an opinion on what it might fit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpage Posted October 2, 2013 Author Share Posted October 2, 2013 I have sent photos to the seller but have had no reply as of yet. Upon closer inspection I have found several " errors " in the manufacture that would result in reworking the part anyway. I found out that he may have tried to copy a '35 tailpan which I think may be a little smaller ; I think '35 and '36 bodies are similar but not the same. This might be a battle! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1936 D2 Posted October 2, 2013 Share Posted October 2, 2013 I finally remembered my Ebay ID info( after about 8 years) and was able to contact the seller . I'm waiting for a reply. Thanks for the input. I was hoping to find someone who has actually used one of these products in their restoration to glean their thoughts. Guess I'll have to take a chance! Sorry for the delay 'jpage'. I was finally able to bring the floor pans I purchased from "The Plymouth Doctor" in MI over to the body shop and check out the fit. They are actually pans for '36 Plymouth apparently but said to fit the '36 Dodge also. They seem to be a good fit except for a few things. The left side pan looks quite good except for the rear outbound corner. On the original floor pan there is a "lift" bent into the outer edge along the rear so the pan fits tightly against the frame at it starts to make the rear kick up. This little "bend" is not present on neither the right nor left side floorboard. You will have to add it just as I will. The right side floor pan also fits well around the perimeter (except for the aforementioned outer rear corner "bend"). The only thing I see may be that some of the holes near the front seat area may be in the wrong locations. But the rest seems fine. My Body Man was happy with them. The main thing he commented on was the flex or twist in the pans which developed from the rolled beads. But those will flatten out once all the spot welds around the perimeters are in place. That's all I can comment about the floor pans from "The Plymouth Doctor" as of now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1936 D2 Posted October 2, 2013 Share Posted October 2, 2013 I have sent photos to the seller but have had no reply as of yet. Upon closer inspection I have found several " errors " in the manufacture that would result in reworking the part anyway. I found out that he may have tried to copy a '35 tail pan which I think may be a little smaller ; I think '35 and '36 bodies are similar but not the same. This might be a battle! The '35 rear end IS a bit different than the '36 EXCEPT for the '36 2Dr Sedans. It is strange, but the '36 2Dr Sedans seem to have the rear trunk area of their bodies grafted from the '35's styling. I have not measured them for specifics but looking at photos indicates that the '36's 2Dr Sedan's rear IS a '35's shape. Even the tail lamp locations, on the fenders and not on the trunk as the other '36 models, indicate this. This MAY have something to do with the fit of your remanufactured tail pan. If the manufacturer was copying a '36 2Dr Sedan's tail pan, found it was the same as a '35, may have then assumed all '36's were the same and now is advertising that erroneous opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpage Posted October 2, 2013 Author Share Posted October 2, 2013 Thanks for the info 1936D2. I hope he will do something for me but who knows. He grilled me to find out if my car was actually a '36. I assured him it was. I knew the 2 door cars are different but I've never seen a 2 door touring sedan. Matter of fact ,I've never seen a restored 4 door touring sedan up close either! I have some photos that show how badly it fits but they were to large to post here! I've been checking with another forum user to see if he could manufacture the right thing. I don't know if the parts sold by the Plymouth Doctor would be any better as I don't know who made this part to begin with! Im not sure I want to take another chance sight unseen. I would hope the other seller has enough scruples to make it right. Does your car's tailpan have a channel on the top for the weatherstrip. This new one does and I don't see any evidence of one on any 3 of my cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ply33 Posted October 2, 2013 Share Posted October 2, 2013 . . .. I don't know if the parts sold by the Plymouth Doctor would be any better as I don't know who made this part to begin with! . . .You might want to call Wayne Brandon (the Plymouth Doctor) and ask if his parts are also sold through other people. From what I've heard through people in the Plymouth club it seems like he is a pretty straight shooter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1936 D2 Posted October 2, 2013 Share Posted October 2, 2013 Thanks for the info 1936D2.... Does your car's tail pan have a channel on the top for the weatherstrip. This new one does and I don't see any evidence of one on any 3 of my cars. That is kind of typical. If the rear quarter windows leaked at all the water would go down into the trunk and then to the lip you were asking about.Here are some photos of the finished tail pan on my '36. you can see the metal lip that holds the gasket in the shots. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpage Posted October 3, 2013 Author Share Posted October 3, 2013 I can't quite make out the channel probably because I'm not sure what to look for. Is that the original tailpan or was it rebuilt? The channel on this repro part is extremely wide and much larger than the channel around the trunk opening and the weatherstrip gets "lost " in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1936 D2 Posted October 3, 2013 Share Posted October 3, 2013 (edited) - Original tail pan.- Not rebuilt.- Channel for the tail pan piece is the same size as the channel in the sides of the trunk opening. Same gasket material all the way around.Here is a shot of the top of the tail pan looking down at the left (driver's side - Domestic) corner of the tail pan. This shows both the side trunk opening and the tail pan where they come together. They are actually sealed in that corner before the body paint is done. (Sure am having trouble getting these focused! Sorry.)(You should be able to click on or tap on these photos to make them much larger.) Edited October 3, 2013 by 1936 D2 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpage Posted October 4, 2013 Author Share Posted October 4, 2013 I can clearly see the channel now. On all my cars it's been missing but I can see remains of spot welds on the upper part of the inner panel. Thanks for the pics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpage Posted October 4, 2013 Author Share Posted October 4, 2013 Got a message from the seller today and it looks as if he's going to take back the part. I thank him for his help in this situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now