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Dec 29, 2005 | 11:21 AM

seventysixvette

Thread Starter

Burning Brakes

Joined: Oct 2005

Posts: 845

Likes: 1

From: Columbus Indiana

Header bar

While I have the front end and headlight assemblys off the '76, I need to replace the rusted out mess that used to be the header bar. It looks like it is both bolted and glued into place. Is there an easier way to remove it other than a long day with a 4" hand grinder? (I mean other than dynamite or shoving it over a cliff). I tried throwing a box full of c-notes at it like I've had to do with the rest of the car, but it's just not responding and is demanding a blood sacrifice with long hours of grinder worship invloved. Gee, I love wrenching!
John

Dec 29, 2005 | 12:39 PM

Twin_Turbo

Race Director

Joined: Dec 1999

Posts: 16,945

Likes: 9

chisel it off, it's bonded in place.

Dec 30, 2005 | 01:01 AM

LemansBlue68

Melting Slicks

Joined: May 2001

Posts: 2,131

Likes: 4

From: May help you? You can sure as hell try!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Twin_Turbo

chisel it off, it's bonded in place.

On any stubborn areas heat the metal remains of the header bar with a heat gun, The adhesive will let go of the metal immediately. Just be careful not to direct the heat directly on the fiberglass surround panel.

Dec 30, 2005 | 05:13 PM

vetteboy1976kr

Racer

Joined: Jan 2004

Posts: 294

Likes: 0

From: cincinnati oh

If it"s the one at the very front that is about 1.5" wide then there are a few (five or six) rivets that attach it to the fiberglass along with the adheasive. Drill out the rivets and seperate the metal from the fiberglass on the front and top with a putty knife and hammer. A heat gun should help too. I did mine in an hour with no heat gun. Just make sure you don't punch through the other side of the fiberglass.

Jan 2, 2006 | 05:13 PM

seventysixvette

Thread Starter

Burning Brakes

Joined: Oct 2005

Posts: 845

Likes: 1

From: Columbus Indiana

Thanks for the replys. This is the larger one between the headlight opening and the hood. When I bought the car, I checked the headlight opening and closing mechanisms (of course). I noticed the right side door 'catching' a little as it opened. Turns out, the header bar the door assembly bolts to swelled from rusting so bad it had thrown the door so far out of adjustment it no longer cleared. As common as replacement bars are in catalogs, this must be a very common thing to have happen.
John

Jan 2, 2006 | 05:24 PM

Twin_Turbo

Race Director

Joined: Dec 1999

Posts: 16,945

Likes: 9

I replaced mine, it was pretty easy but I have the entire front clip off (and bare).....I used thick epoxy adhesive, roughed up the metal where it is bonded (remove factory paint). I also repainted it w/ proper paint, the black finish is just a storage paint I think, it's not that great a quality...probably dipped. I would advise to do the same if you don't want it to rust in no time.

Jan 3, 2006 | 08:52 AM

Vette Gator

Burning Brakes

Joined: Dec 2004

Posts: 918

Likes: 5

From: Gainesville FL

Everyone here has given good advice. Here is one more suggestion from when I did mine last year. Before gluing it in, I mounted the bare headlight buckets and hinges into the aluminum U-frames and bolted it to the new header bar. I then used clamps to hold it in place and make sure that the location would allow the lights to swing up freely. I'm glad I did this, because my bar ended up flush with the lip just in front of the hood. I thought it would be aligned further forward. Once the alignment was good, I outlined the bar with a sharpie and then glued it into that position. The attachments give some ability to adjust the headlight bucket positions, but it makes life easier if you're as close as possible on the header bar location.

Jan 3, 2006 | 11:22 AM

seventysixvette

Thread Starter

Burning Brakes

Joined: Oct 2005

Posts: 845

Likes: 1

From: Columbus Indiana

Thanks to all. Several ideas here I hadn't thought of. Using the headlight frames to align the new one, so obvious, yet I hadn't given that any thought at all. Same with getting some good two part epoxy paint to use so's it doesn't become a rusted out mess again in the (near) future! I'll have to get some epoxy glue to bond the new one in with (guess elmers won't work, har har). Thanks for the hard learned hints and help!
John