My New GRABBER Taillight Prototypes

Discussion in 'General Maverick/Comet' started by Acornridgeman, Dec 20, 2005.

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  1. Yellow72Mavrick

    Yellow72Mavrick Banned

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    Bravo...well done...you did a great job...put those bad boys to work.
     
    Yellow72Mavrick, Dec 20, 2005
    #16
  2. Earl Branham

    Earl Branham Certified Old Fart

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    Eric; very nice. Gonna be neat on the car. Take lots of pics!
     
    Earl Branham, Dec 20, 2005
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  3. fan2488

    fan2488 Member

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    very nice job eric. if mine taillights wanst already done. i would have to copy you.
     
    fan2488, Dec 20, 2005
    #18
  4. Acornridgeman

    Acornridgeman MCCI Wisconsin State Rep Moderator Supporting Member

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    Thanks all for the great feedback on the lights!

    Ron, will be using the THUNDERCAT brain box made in Canada!

    Dennis, this by far was the biggest challenge in the project. I tried about dozen different things on a bunch of scrap pieces. From simple solders and low heat brazing with special aluminum rods to gas welding with filler. Every time either it would not stick or it melted the trim in microseconds. I then tried the various epoxies like JB Weld and permatex epoxy products. I had great success with these "cold welds". What I found to be the best, was a clear epoxy from Permatex combined with a postage stamp sized piece of fiberglass cloth. Before application I would roughen up the inside of the trim with a course Dremel tool wheel. It is a very strong joint with the fiberglass cloth in the epoxy resin. It will bend way before it will break!



    Craig, that picture doesn't show the studs very well, but there are 10 of them for each side, so mounting will be solid! The weld actually runs into and around the stud, that is why the welds look all crooked from the overhead shot. Here is an angle shot.



    [​IMG]




    Thanks again for everyones comments.
    Eric J :drink:

     
    Last edited: Dec 20, 2005
    Acornridgeman, Dec 20, 2005
    #19
  5. Tim Wilmoth

    Tim Wilmoth Member

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    SWEET and very different ,yet will retain the stock look. I like em!!!!!!!
     
    Tim Wilmoth, Dec 20, 2005
    #20
  6. CornedBeef4.6L

    CornedBeef4.6L no longer here

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    pretty cool!!!!!
     
    CornedBeef4.6L, Dec 20, 2005
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  7. ratio411

    ratio411 Member

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    I crudely simulated some other options for folks that might be inclined to do this.
    Personally, I like the one with the reflector section replaced by another lighted section... IMO it gives the most bang for the buk with sequential lighting.

    [​IMG]
     
    ratio411, Dec 20, 2005
    #22
  8. NICK DOMINICK

    NICK DOMINICK MCCI Virginia State rep.

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    Eric, That is gonna look good on your car. Very nice job and a good idea. Did you just use body filler on the bezels to smooth them out?
     
    NICK DOMINICK, Dec 20, 2005
    #23
  9. Mavaholic

    Mavaholic Growing older but not up!

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    Just a suggestion: Ever think of removing the reflector next to the back up light to make the 3 red lenses more uniform in size?
     
    Mavaholic, Dec 20, 2005
    #24
  10. Mavaholic

    Mavaholic Growing older but not up!

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    Guess I should have looked at the posts on the second page before I posted that last one.
     
    Mavaholic, Dec 20, 2005
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  11. Acornridgeman

    Acornridgeman MCCI Wisconsin State Rep Moderator Supporting Member

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    Yes, I thought about. But then the thought of some idiot rear ending my car because it had no reflectors while parked at night made me decide to keep it.

    I like all the photoshops! The Johnson Taillight Company can have many variations ! :clap: :biglaugh:
     
    Acornridgeman, Dec 20, 2005
    #26
  12. ratio411

    ratio411 Member

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    That is a valid point, if you are in the habit of night parking your where it can be hit!
    I guess you could still take the reflector and put it in it's own section, rather than combining it with a lighted section. I guess that would be the trick for uniform sizing of the segments.
    Dave
    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Dec 20, 2005
    ratio411, Dec 20, 2005
    #27
  13. Acornridgeman

    Acornridgeman MCCI Wisconsin State Rep Moderator Supporting Member

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    Hi Nick, I very carefully matched all the joints and used a disc sander to square them up. The lines are very tight and I just used a small amount of JB Weld to fill them. High solids primer did the rest. They are almost invisible.

    One of the original pictures shows them right before painting with the lines all prepped.
     
    Acornridgeman, Dec 20, 2005
    #28
  14. Acornridgeman

    Acornridgeman MCCI Wisconsin State Rep Moderator Supporting Member

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    Trouble is you run out of space. These are 25" long and there is only like 27" between the gas cap and the end of the tail panels raised area. :rolleyes:
     
    Acornridgeman, Dec 20, 2005
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  15. Mavaholic

    Mavaholic Growing older but not up!

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    Time to shave off the gas filler. :D
     
    Mavaholic, Dec 20, 2005
    #30
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