This was addressed about 10 or so years back when I was NHJ. We took all the sheets and made them consistent across the board, mostly in section wording and points allocated, even up into 4th generation. Since I stepped down, there has been some 'creep' in the rules as they have been revised many times since then and sometimes the changes aren't propagated to all years. It's hard to reel it back in, but I think Scott is on the right track in collaborating with the Shelby ANHJ. Basically, it comes down to someone taking the time to look at the bigger picture and ensure consistency.
Unfortunately the consistency across all classes went out the window when the 65-66 guys completely re-wrote the body fit and finish section some years ago. No one else wanted to go to the line by line setup that was done for 65-66. There is resistance to changing
any rules in certain classes regardless of the new knowledge gained.
Now back to the pin finish debate... had the boss dig into the collection of low mileage original cars and here is what he found:
1st image 65 Galaxie 14 miles. Described as "slightly goldish but could be patina"
2nd image 65 Mustang 6 cyl 1800 miles. "This is the shot that almost caused me to think that the rivet was the same finish as the clamp itself."
3rd image 69 Mark III, 3500 miles
4th image 70 Mach 1 5200 miles. "Looks silver to me. Perkins had the motor out to detail, but I doubt he touched the hold down clamp pins."
5th image 70 F100 44 miles. "It has a 'hint' of goldish tone to it. But just barely a hint."
