Re: Ambassador Fender troughs WANTED!

[farna@xxxxxxx]

When I cut my wrecked car up, I measured several key components with a gauge tool. Even the frame rails were 18 gauge -- the whole darned car was made up of 18 gauge, even the skins. Grade of metal makes a difference, but I got a small sheet of plain 18 gauges steel from Lowe's. Note that if it's galvanized it would be at least one gauge number thicker to be the same strnegth due to the zinc coating. Uncoated 18 gauge steel is 0.0478" thick, 2 pounds per square foot. 16 gauge is 2.5 pounds per square foot, 0.0598" thick. 17 gauge is 2.25 lbs per square foot. Big difference in weight for one gauge number! 18 gauge galvanized is 0.0516" thick though, a 0.038" difference (don't have a weight). There were a few 10 gauge reinforcements iinside the frame rails, but those were relatively small and just where something screwed into the frame. Hardtops and convertibles would have used thicker material in the rockers than four doors and wagons due to less "truss" structure (door posts!
  and roof). 

Mark, you have the idea I was presenting on the making new ones. If you go up to 16 gauge (which is just under 1/16") it won't hurt a thing. I've seen one repaired with a piece of conduit with the ends flattened then bent and welded into place. It worked, and no where to collect dirt and trash. 

--
Frank Swygert
Publisher, "American Independent 
Magazine" (AIM)
For all AMC enthusiasts
http://farna.home.att.net/AIM.html
(free download available!)

original message --------------------------------------

Date: Fri, 27 Jan 2006 22:30:38 -0500
To: mail@xxxxxxxxxxxx
From: Matt Haas <mhaas@xxxxxxx>
Subject: Re: Ambassador Fender troughs WANTED!

I don't think 18 gauge is anywhere near thick enough. I used 18 gauge on 
the rocker reinforcement on my American and it's much thinner than the 
metal used on the inner fenders. There's a chart at 
http://www.americanmetalsupplyco.com/ that will convert thickness measure 
with a micrometer to the gauge measurement.

As far as used metal goes, I've been very happy with the parts I gotten 
from South Texas AMC (http://southtexasamc.tripod.com).

Matt

At 03:18 PM 1/27/2006 -0500, you wrote:
>Frank, 18 gauge? Do you think that is heavy enough? Seems thicker to me.
>I've got a guy checking on cutting me off a pair. Hopfully that will pan out.
>If not I will look into getting something formed up to replace them.
>Do you have  a link to your pics? I looked and didnt see it.
>   I'm thinking if I have to make them I may try it in  this fashion
>  \__
>       \_
>That way nothing gets trapped. Not to scale! Keep enough clearance so I 
>can get a hose up in there and spray it out now and again. Anyway it 
>happens to work out I want to try and keep the metal the same gauge or 
>heavier.