arkus

Does anyone know if there is anyone who restores the heavy metal grills on the front of the 70 to 72 corvettes ?

68/70Vette

They are cast aluminum. I've essentially asked this question also. Mine are slightly pitted. I suppose someone skilled could heli-arc in a blob of aluminum and then grind and polish it to restore the surface. I've never seen anyone advertise they could do this.

rvazquez

I understand it is a very labor intensive (expensive) proceedure, with a lot of masking and painting and scraping the paint off of the chrome leading edges. Richard Fortier, who advertises in the NCRS driveline publication provides such a service.( I believe he is one of the founders of Paragon reproductions) he is in Michigan and his number is 810 750-1472, I personally haven't had any work done by him, but he has a very good reputation over on the NCRS board. He is even repro'ing the exhaust tips for the 70-72. hope this helps.

JimT

Do them yourself. It takes a while, but I stripped my '72 grilles (paint remover) filed down the rough edges, masked the chrome parts and used several coats of etching primer, then painted them with semi-gloss black. They turned out great. And, I painted the center grille to match the car (red) and moved it forward with spacers even with the side/front grilles. Looks good.

vettebuyer6369

Tough to do the chrome yourself.

I have a good driver-quality RH available with lens.

Frogday

I cleaned mine up and repainted them over the winter. I used the Krylon Fusion paint that has some texture in it and like the color and the feel. I only masked off the outside edge and used a razor blade to scrape the paint off the chrome in the grille area. Mine had very little pitting, mostly just old paint. NCRS may poo-poo what I used, but I am pleased with the results.

GPGG70

Thanks for posting the fusion paint and the pic of the front grill.
Thats exactly the color I'm looking for.
Thank you.

7T1vette

The original color of gray is closer to a "cast iron" color of paint. That is a very nice job you did on the grilles.

avner

How much money do you think to spend on sending them to a shop for restoring your original?
I'm sure it will be cost $300-400$ each.
The best and cheapest way is to restore them by your self if they are not broken or cracked.
Other way is to buy new NOS $500-$700 each, you can find them on ebay.
I restore my front grilles by my self and I think they come very nice.

Avner

GD70

Very nice indeed!
Glenn

71white

If you need new chrome, my last 3 quotes I got were $475 each and then I would have to paint them.

Frogday

You guys are right about the color being a little light in the shade. I just really liked the slight sparkle and texture that was in that paint.

Lakecreature

Is the center section behind the license plate restored the same as the outer grilles with the charcoal grey paint and chrome edges? I just pulled it off of my '70 and have not gotten a close look yet, and the NCRS judging manual does not specifically refer to the center section grille, but speaks mostly about the outer ones. Also, Rustoleum makes this 'Hammered finish' spray paint that I painted some file cabinets a while back with that looks like a dark steel grey with the sort of pebbled finish. I am going to check that out. And, the NCRS restorer did an article on restoring these a while back. I cannot locate the issue though.

7T1vette

The original color of the center grill section is a 'matte' black...close to a flat black, but not quite. There is no chrome on the center section; it is not finished the same as the side sections.

This was true on the piece in my car [which I am convinced came with the car], and another center section that I purchased in a swap meet. Most black surfaces on the C3 are semi-flat or satin black. The center piece is somewhere between flat black and semi-flat black...very dull in sheen.

If you bring that center section forward to blend properly with the side pieces, it also needs to be finished the same to look right: gray color (cast iron or the 'shimmer' stuff) on the sides of the 'egg-crate' slats and chrome color on the front edges.

boat196

I used Richard Fortier. To restore my 1970 grills. Excellent job.
Bob

STL Zombie Hunter

I did the exact same thing to mine. I made some brackets to pull the center grill forward to be flush with the side grilles, but kept it black. Also painstakingly repainted the side grilles as well. Looks great!

Goin70

I have looked for an egg-crate style Center Grille for my 1970, but the catalogs only show those available for 1968-69. In Paragon, for example, there's no part number for 1970-72. Will the 1968-69 Center Grille and Mounting Brackets they sell work on a 1970? Appreciate your help ...

Easy Mike

69 center grille and brackets might fit but are not correct for 70-72. 68 center grille is the same as 69, but the brackets are one year only.

redrdstr72

FWIW, I see used center grilles for '70-'72 cars on ebay every 2 months or so. You can also find them at the bigger swap meets such as Bloomington or Carlisle.

You could also call Gail Gee in Middlebury, PA. I'll bet he has some nice used ones on hand. Gail's phone number is (570) 376-3421. Good guy, nice stuff, fair pricing.

Hope this helps!

birdsmith

I emailed Paul's Chrome Plating about this a few days ago after I saw their ad on "My Classic Car"....$300 a side to restore the chrome; after that I would mask them and repaint the eggcrate part with some gunmetal-colored spray paint. I later discovered that there are still a number of platers operating in Southern CA and am presently in the process of getting quotes...more to come.