Reassembly of my 71 Cuda grille questions...Is it just THIS hard to do?

[tuff340GranCoupe]

I have a 71 Cuda grille that I just painted & its time to assemble this thing. Got the inner graters in place but what blowing my mind is how tough the inner C trims is to install! Really? When I disassembled it, I marked which one C goes where & when I try to fit in it, it hardly lines up at all! Also, which way to the clips for the C trim go, meaning which way do the small 'teeth' go? After even forcing the trim into place its does not line up! WTF! I only got one C into place & its not 100% back into place & its looks like crap!

So, what's the trick? Am I doing something wrong or are these just that tough to assemble? This is my first 71 grille & by the looks of this, its going to be my last! I have restored about 12 1970 Cuda grille & a handfull of 72-74 units. Can anyone give advise before I really either bust something on assembly or really F something up??

email: cudamaster7074@gmail.com

[anlauto]

I've done about a half dozen or so, just takes time and patience not to scratch the fresh paint. You're lucky you marked the "C" trim because all six are different and only fit in one way. Teeth to the inside if I remember correctly.

[LEMOOREACE]

I marked mine but had no issues..  a little bit of trickery but overall they all went in as expected..