rkrattli

Hey guys. 2 months ago, my recently bought 75 stingray met its end with a tree, and banged up the right side of the front end pretty bad. i've looked at pricing for the body work, and getting just the fender panel and using it to patch the broken area turns out to be pretty expensive, so i've been looking at the replacement front ends ecklers sells. im no master in fiberglass, so I have to ask you this: whats the difference between regular fiberglass, and press molded?

The 75-79 stock replacement door-to-door front end is only a thousand bucks, while the press molded is $3,800??? is there something far better about the press molded front end? is the "stock replacement" they sell exactly the same as the original, and only needs to be painted? thanks for the input.

MYBAD79

Hand laid fiberglass is a lot cheaper because they don't have to spend the $$ for the machine/mold and maintenance... hand laid fiberglass looks different inside the panel (or hood, door) , it's rougher, not as smooth as the press molded fiberglass.

I'd fix the corner only and leave the original front on the car.... if the damage is too excessive then I'd get the front end... maybe the Daytona front ??

rkrattli

so other than the inner look, the hand laid has the same, smooth, unflawed exterior? or does it not look quite as good there either?

MYBAD79

The exterior looks fine. For example, my front bumper is Eckler's hand laid 'glass and the quality is very good.

The gaps around the hood may be an issue, fiberglass parts never really fit without some re-work.... I'd try to safe the damaged front clip if possible - do you have photos ??

vetteboy1976kr

Saving the remaining panels and patching in a new or used (even better) fender is a lot easier than replacing a front end. Also a hand laid panel screams "THIS CAR WAS WRECKED" to a future buyer. I found an original front end when I replaced mine just for that reason. Post some pics for us!