Reproduction Barracuda Grilles Revisited (Heads Up)

[hotrod98]

If you get it, we'll see

Be patient...don't buy that grille.

[bb71challenger]

He had already stated that he bought one so unless he can stop payment and ship it back he is stuck with it. Maybe he will get lucky 

[ragtopdodge]

all of the tooling logistics have been worked out, They already have a sample grille to scan for the mold. We might see them june julyish?? they usually can turn parts out in about 90 days for sample to verify. I am excited to see the 71 grille come to life again.

Dave, I sure hope what you're saying is true.  I'll buy a couple for spares if they do come out and they fit/look good.

[72hemi]

Dave rough idea on cost for a grille with the trim and chrome bezels?

[mopardave]

roughly, 2100.00 this would be for an injected molded grille frame in grey plastic with 6 cheese grates, top and bottom moldings, outer C's, 6 center trims with retainers, grille mounting hardware kit, chrome headlamp bezels.

this is a rough price as some pieces are not finished as with the final price on the grille frame,

[72hemi]

Thanks Dave, not too bad on the price considering what originals go for.

[ragtopdodge]

roughly, 2100.00 this would be for an injected molded grille frame in grey plastic with 6 cheese grates, top and bottom moldings, outer C's, 6 center trims with retainers, grille mounting hardware kit, chrome headlamp bezels.

this is a rough price as some pieces are not finished as with the final price on the grille frame,

That's great!  However, gonna offer for sale just the grille itself?

[Old Moparz]

Be warned that these grilles are not injection molded. No one is making the injection molded versions yet. BE&A has talked about making them, but so far...no go. The repro 71 grilles that I've seen so far are total junk. Worse yet, they don't hold their form in the heat.
I'm holding out hope that Mike at BE&A will change his mind and make the molds for the 71's. If he doesn't then Goodmark might eventually step up and make them. I'm not holding my breath.

Hey Larry,

I'll back you up on the grille losing it's shape, that's exactly what mine did. It's been stored safely in packing material & inside a sturdy box, but I suppose the non-climate controlled garage of mine allowed the heat to distort it. I do think it's usable once it's mounted in the car since the brackets & fasteners will hold it in place, but I'd bet that the trim will loosen up or pop off if it distorts too much.

I'm really glad to see a more reputable source is stepping up to make the grilles, it's long overdue. I wouldn't worry about the fact that two companies will be competing with a one year only part since Premiere Plastics is obviously not going to be competition with their inferior product & ****tier than ****ty, customer service. If I don't sell my car & get around to restoring it, I'll be buying the better reproduction grille & make a wall decoration out of the PP one. 

[hotrod98]

I have a nice looking 73 cuda grille that I bought from a guy that had stored it in the rafters of his garage for many years. That thing is so brittle that I couldn't even use it. Ever since seeing that grille, I started keeping all of my extra plastic grilles in the house.
I've been collecting a lot of parts for my 71 Cuda project. This new grille would be icing on the cake for me. I have a grille, but it needs repairs and I would just as soon pay the price and get a nice one.  Now I have to make the decision as to which driveline I want to go with. The car was originally a 340 car, but the engines long gone. I have a complete 340, a complete 440 and a 5.7 hemi setup. I would like to use the 5.7 in the Superbird clone and besides, it would be difficult to use the shaker setup with the 5.7. I've always enjoyed driving my e-bodies with the small blocks more so than with the big blocks. I'm right the opposite with my b-bodies though. I won't ever put a small block in a b-body.
Decision, decisions. I'll probably go with the 340. 

[femtnmax]

Stereolithography would produce an exact "resin" duplicate of an original grill.  The OEM grill would need to be modeled using CAD, such as Solidworks or Catia.   
The lithography resin model could then be used to make a mold, or use the part as-is though they are costly.   I have some experience with this process; the stereolithography models are perfect in every detail with accuracy to within 0.010 if I remember correctly.
Here's a quote from Hot Rod Magazine article on an LS7 "resin" intake manifold:
 
"Despite its delicate appearance, the clear-resin stereo lithography intake manifold proved very tough on the dyno, shrugging off a couple of wicked backfires from a computer-related timing glitch. We've been told that similar manifolds have even passed 24-hour in-car durability tests".


Here's pics of the LS7 intake manifold and a few other parts.  Pics of the other parts are from    http://www.metrorp.com/automotive.php

[premierplasticsucks]

I sent repoman a question on ebay about the 71 grille inserts that he said were sold separately and asked if he was associated with premier plastics and he or "it" sent back a rude and very perverted comment about having sex with my wife and children(of course e-bay did nothing about it and he kept posting the 71 grille].  I noticed many were posted and sold?.... but there were very few feedbacks.   If I could just get my hands on this guy one time.
As far as premier plastic reproductions, just google in their name and see all the rip off reports. Their website  is still there and they are still scamming people.  If you do get a reproduction grille that has kept its shape you need to reinforce it with something or it will distort and the outside chrome will no longer fit without fabrication.  Buyer Beware when it comes to anything associated with a 71 cuda grille!!!!!!

[2TAGS]

I was high bidder on one of those grilles.  Turned into a Paypal claim.  Was refunded by Paypal two months after auction ended.  Too late to leave bad feedback.  I haven't seen a new listing for a couple months now.  Sounded like some guy was selling them on ebay for the manufacturer and he got screwed.  Don't know what to believe but I'd advise NOT to bid or buy one of these repro grilles.

[72rtchallenger]

what about the 70 grille like this one
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1970-Plymouth-Cuda-Grille-Barracuda-Grille-NEW_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQhashZitem19b75db1cfQQitemZ110450553295QQptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories
are these any good ?

[hotrod98]

That looks like a Goodmark grille kit. Nice grille.

[JoltinJoe]

roughly, 2100.00 this would be for an injected molded grille frame in grey plastic with 6 cheese grates, top and bottom moldings, outer C's, 6 center trims with retainers, grille mounting hardware kit, chrome headlamp bezels.

this is a rough price as some pieces are not finished as with the final price on the grille frame,

Hey Dave, whats the word?