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Hood Lace Trim Revisited

I can't locate the post now but a couple of weeks ago there was a post concerning whether or not the Star "C" models used a hood lace trim strip.
Below is a pic of the front of a 1923 Star "C",
# L-34985 that was cut off and used as a power source. The lace trim looks to be an original installation. So far, this is the first instance of a "C" model using a trim strip that I have seen.
The engine is a W4 and the data plate is still attached to the firewall. A crude governor, placed at the front, lower left, has been devised to control the carb. A double sheave pulley has been attached to the clutch output shaft.

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Do You own a car built by Durant? 1923 Star Touring, 1927 Star Coupe

Re: Hood Lace Trim Revisited

About 3 years back Frank W. sent me scans from all his Star parts books concerning the beaded cowl molding, I was interested if any Stars were using the same cowl molding as the 1923 and later A-22 Durants...Possiably Frank can remember as I cannot find this info in my download file, but as I recall all models of Star including the "C" listed a part # for a Right and a Left hand cowl molding and all Star models shared the same part numbers, the Durant used a different set of numbers (the difference I believe is that the Durant molding is a little shorter)...There may have been factory differences as I have seen a model "F" Star with a one piece molding that was notched around the hood center bracket and the bead was made by twist rolling and no flutting at the radius like the one in the picture that you posted...I would suspect that it would be difficult for Durant to ship a one piece cowl molding may be the reason for the two piece replacement part...I think that we can all agree that Durant didn't use cowl molding on anything prior to 1923...Bill

Re: Hood Lace Trim Revisited

Hi there:

My 1924 Star C (Body #T-18279) has the hoodlace trim. It looks like the one in the pic you posted. It's in two pieces (left and right sides). Mine was quite bent and broken up but I was lucky enough to find a guy at a sheet metal shop who was talented and patient enough to crimp and roll me new ones that are dead ringers for the original. (Hint if you are going to try making them yourself..after you have made the bead and start trying to bend the trim around the cowl it will want to warp on you. Make a number of small cuts like on the originals and gently shape it to the contour of the cowl).

Do You own a car built by Durant? yes 1924 Star C

Re: Hood Lace Trim Revisited

Like Joe the first set of beeded cowl molding that I had made was by having strips of 1 5/8"X 40" X(.032 )or 22 gauge Aluminum sheared and edge rolled with a 1/4" beed roller...I brought them home, polished them and then found that they would not follow the contour of the corner on the cowl which has a compound tapered radius...I like joe made a series of slots at the radius and with a real struggle got them installed on my '23 Durant Touring,The cowl lacing seemed to cover up the slots that I had cut and the molding didn't look too bad but wasn't perfict...I have sence came up with a better solution, you just need to go one step further in the manufacturing process, you need to mimmic how the original molding was made...If you were to flaten out an original molding you would have a beeded strip that would look somewhat like a boom-a-rang having a 20% curve with 1" fluting/corrigating which has formed the curve for a length of 7" inside the radius in the direction that the strip does not want to bend (approximatly a 24" radius)...Now, you can make a pattern for the curve by slotting a strip then forming it to the cowl, then carfully flatening it out (not streightening it out)...After the sheet metal shop has formed the beed on the strips have them put their 1" flut rollers on the edge roller (Pexto)..Have them flute tight to the off side of the beed so the fluting won't show next to the beed, as they tighten their corrigated roller it will shrink the metal and form the radius...Remember, a 7" length of fluting centered where the molding will be bent over the corner of the cowl, Also, it is difficult to end up with the exact degree of bend, so it is desirable to go beyond the angle of your pattern, then you can fine tune the angle by laying them flat on a hard surface and gently tapping the fluting with a hardwood block, as you flatten the fluting the strips will streighten...The only difference between a right and left molding is where you form the radius on the molding strip.... I do have a few sets of molding left from a batch I made a couple of years back...More later, Bill

 

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