Topic: 1968 San Jose GT 390 Fastback Hood Hinges

[bullitt68]

Curious if these are the correct hood springs for my car. I am asking as I have been told they are and they are not, so time to ask the experts.

Thanks

[Bob Gaines]

I assume you are referring to the hinges and not the springs.You are probably getting the conflicting info because those hinges are typically seen on 69 and not 68's. Many people are not aware that they were also used on some 68's. The contoured hinges transitioned into use from the style used on 67 and many 68 to the ones like in the picture which is mostly associated with 69 . The date of your car is about the earliest I personally have seen with that style. Maybe not for others. They appear to have very close date codes to each other and precede the build of your car which is strong evidence that they may be original to your car. 

[bullitt68]

I assume you are referring to the hinges and not the springs.You are probably getting the conflicting info because those hinges are typically seen on 69 and not 68's. Many people are not aware that they were also used on some 68's. The contoured hinges transitioned into use from the style used on 67 and many 68 to the ones like in the picture which is mostly associated with 69 . The date of your car is about the earliest I personally have seen with that style. Maybe not for others. They appear to have very close date codes to each other and precede the build of your car which is strong evidence that they may be original to your car.

Hi Bob. Sorry yes the hinges. Thanks Bob. Glad I checked. What is the visual difference between the 68 & 69 style?

[TonyH]

This is a really good article:

http://anghelrestorations.com/uploads/3/5/1/2/35122002/hood_hinges_v1.1.pdf

[bullitt68]

This is a really good article:

http://anghelrestorations.com/uploads/3/5/1/2/35122002/hood_hinges_v1.1.pdf

Thanks Tony

[bullitt68]

I assume you are referring to the hinges and not the springs.You are probably getting the conflicting info because those hinges are typically seen on 69 and not 68's. Many people are not aware that they were also used on some 68's. The contoured hinges transitioned into use from the style used on 67 and many 68 to the ones like in the picture which is mostly associated with 69 . The date of your car is about the earliest I personally have seen with that style. Maybe not for others. They appear to have very close date codes to each other and precede the build of your car which is strong evidence that they may be original to your car.

Hi Bob just confirming that the correct phosphate finish is Manganese and not zinc. What I have read only indicates phosphate, but not which one.

Thanks

[J_Speegle]

Agree with Bob that this style of hinge would be possible on such a late built car as yours - looking at other San Jose examples but not on earlier built cars.

If your having someone else do the plating make sure that they do not use a high heat on the hinge springs. This can make them brittle when using mag or zinc.

In my experience magnesium phosphate produces a slightly darker final finish when compared to zinc phosphate and have seen both used successfully on judged cars. Don't recall a DYI kit for the magnesium but they may be out there

[bullitt68]

Agree with Bob that this style of hinge would be possible on such a late built car as yours - looking at other San Jose examples but not on earlier built cars.

If your having someone else do the plating make sure that they do not use a high heat on the hinge springs. This can make them brittle when using mag or zinc.

In my experience magnesium phosphate produces a slightly darker final finish when compared to zinc phosphate and have seen both used successfully on judged cars. Don't recall a DYI kit for the magnesium but they may be out there

Thanks Jeff. I do all of my own phosphating in house. I use 190 degrees Fahrenheit approx, which I do not consider to be high heat. I was curious which color phosphate the factory used for my car. I have even seen hinges done in zinc and springs in manganese. I am not aware of any parts on my car that would have received a zinc phosphate only manganese. If that is not correct please let me know. The problem is when you see restored cars is that you don't have any reference point for why the owner did what he did. For some it is personal preference or perhaps they are mis informed as to what would be correct on their car, even on some high end cars.

Case in point here is a high end car that I saw at MCACN with zinc phosphated parts. Not sure why as I did not see the owner to ask him, but people were very excited about the car like it was done to a very standard. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Not sure what plant it was assembled at but assuming not San Jose. Was there a difference between plants when it came to phophating and was there a difference between 1967-68.

Thanks

[J_Speegle]

Looks like you posted pictures from a couple of different cars (last one at least does not match the top three)

The upper car appears to be a NJ built car - buck tag on the engine compartment inner fender. Not here to comment or pick apart so will leave it as there are a number of items I expect the judges caught and documented. Sure the owner tried real hard.

Even though the supplying plants differed on many parts depending on the plant there were still specifications for the part. We just don't know what they specified for the plating for this particular part. As you have surely found in doing the plating yourself there are allot of variables that can make the finished part darker or lighter - sometimes related to where you bought your solutions.  Wish I had two or more hinges at home I could lay side by side to show example of how two batches (one each) of the different products turned out. Don't believe either would catch the eye from anyone looking at the part on the car. Maybe after the holidays I can go through a bunch of pictures and see if that will help with the discussion

[bullitt68]

Looks like you posted pictures from a couple of different cars (last one at least does not match the top three)

The upper car appears to be a NJ built car - buck tag on the engine compartment inner fender. Not here to comment or pick apart so will leave it as there are a number of items I expect the judges caught and documented. Sure the owner tried real hard.

Even though the supplying plants differed on many parts depending on the plant there were still specifications for the part. We just don't know what they specified for the plating for this particular part. As you have surely found in doing the plating yourself there are allot of variables that can make the finished part darker or lighter - sometimes related to where you bought your solutions.  Wish I had two or more hinges at home I could lay side by side to show example of how two batches (one each) of the different products turned out. Don't believe either would catch the eye from anyone looking at the part on the car. Maybe after the holidays I can go through a bunch of pictures and see if that will help with the discussion

Thanks Jeff. I was just using the photos as a reference showing the different finishes (Zinc Phosphate) specifically for parts that I have generally seen finished much darker or natural for lack of a better term. Clearly zinc phophating and zinc plating are 2 entirely different processes that yield a completely different result and look. Depending on the metallurgy the finish of the phosphating process will vary greatly. What I am trying to figure out and confirm is how did the factory do it on my car. Would they have used zinc phosphate or manganese phosphate. I have phosphated many hood hinges and springs and other parts over the years on other cars brands and models and on some cases I have a much greater knowledge of factory assembly line procedures and various plant differences.

[bullitt68]

Agree with Bob that this style of hinge would be possible on such a late built car as yours - looking at other San Jose examples but not on earlier built cars.

If your having someone else do the plating make sure that they do not use a high heat on the hinge springs. This can make them brittle when using mag or zinc.

In my experience magnesium phosphate produces a slightly darker final finish when compared to zinc phosphate and have seen both used successfully on judged cars. Don't recall a DYI kit for the magnesium but they may be out there

Hi Jeff I found these hood hinges today and they are in much better shape than the other ones I posted. They are rust free. I was told they came off a shelby. They are also the earlier style. How does the date line up on these ones. They appear to be stamped in January which would be 4 months before my car was built. Is that acceptable.

Thanks

[Bob Gaines]

Hi Jeff I found these hood hinges today and they are in much better shape than the other ones I posted. They are rust free. I was told they came off a shelby. They are also the earlier style. How does the date line up on these ones. They appear to be stamped in January which would be 4 months before my car was built. Is that acceptable.

Thanks

Nothing different about Shelby hinges compared to regular Mustang hinges. FYI for those reading you want the hinges with the rivets that have the X pattern tool used to set the rivet and not the rounded mushroom looking tool used to set the rivets after 1970. The backside of the rivet is not visible in your picture.

[bullitt68]

Nothing different about Shelby hinges compared to regular Mustang hinges. FYI for those reading you want the hinges with the rivets that have the X pattern tool used to set the rivet and not the rounded mushroom looking tool used to set the rivets after 1970. The backside of the rivet is not visible in your picture.

Here you go Bob sorry my bad now with X rivets