Radiator Grill

[RobinLegin]

Some visiting Australians spotted that the Stag emblem on the front grill was upside down. I said it was to make them feel at home! Aside the embarrassment I took the grill off this morning and found the tabs missing and broken. I’m hoping to source a second hand grill, but I just wondered if anyone had reglued and made new tabs. It seems a shame not to try and salvage the part. if so what glue as I don’t think standard Araldite will do the job. Ideas please. Thanks.


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[JeffW]

Apparently quite a notorious weak spot on the car. My grill was loose and like you I had to source another used grill to get the tabs as most of mine were gone.

I used JB weld, which worked perfectly and really held the tabs firm: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/...e?ie=UTF8&th=1

Jeff

[DJT]

I reattached some of mine years ago using Araldite and countersunk pop rivets. Use a countersink bit to allow the rivets to sit flush with the surface, then wipe some of the remaining Araldite over the hole in the rivet. Prep and paint in the normal way.

There is a correct way up for the grille parts. If you look closely at the horizontal fins you will see that one surface has a small groove close to the leading edge. This is the underside.

[sujitroy]

I bent some scrap metal to shape and used epoxy. Granted one was missing, but others were weak so I glued them.

[FrenchStag]

Both my lower tabs had been unattached for many years. After trying and failing to glue them, I ended up drilling through them and the grill and attached them with 5 or 6 mm discrete black bolts. You have to really be looking to spot them, although if your tabs are not symmetrical it could look a bit odd.

[gbb483]

There is a correct way up for the grille parts. If you look closely at the horizontal fins you will see that one surface has a small groove close to the leading edge. This is the underside.

That's interesting - mine are the other way up. Also if you look at the gap between the top most / bottom most fins and the top / bottom you will see there is a small difference. Mine has the narrower gap at the top (judging by the badge which looks like it has been on since forever).

[RobinLegin]

A good friend has bent some aluminium bits to size. I need to drill through these so as it fits and lines up with holes on the main body of the car.
do I glue the new lugs and then drill through, or do I drill through then glue? It’s important everything is properly lined up. And I’m not an engineer obviously.

[gbb483]

I would imagine that, provided you are within 0.05" then the aluminium will be able to be tweaked to line up. Also the holes are much bigger than the shanks of the screws (but not the heads) so that will also give you a large tolerance on the location of the holes.