74 Charger: are new repro $499 bumpers worth the money? Or is rechroming the way to go?

[74ChargerSE440]

So, I want to restore my bumpers front and rear or may get some reproduction ones. So I could use some advice on this.

- And if repro's are considered, where to get them and where not for any reason. Do the repro ones fit well and ar all the holes and slots in the right place? Who has seen that and been there? What to expect?

 

[493 Mike]

Lots of variables here. Have you priced rechroming? What will shipping cost? Quality? Warrantee? Time factor?
Mike

 

[74ChargerSE440]

Lots of variables here. Have you priced rechroming? What will shipping cost? Quality? Warrantee? Time factor?
Mike

My first concern for now is the quality. Rechroming is much more expensive, but I need expert 'seen that been there' experience to see what's the way to go for me.

 

[69hemibeep]

I've done both ways. May runner bumpers were re-chromed and have a better finish and are thicker gauge steel than the AMD bumpers on my Valiant. I would say the finish on the AMD parts is close to a factory finish.

 

[WileERobby]

MY opinion: Rechrome your originals. Period.

 

[74ChargerSE440]

MY opinion: Rechrome your originals. Period.

Have you got and installed a reproduction?

 

[71RRHI]

I put a AMD rear bumper on my 71 Road Runner. Very happy with the fit and finish. Recently received a front bumper for the same car, looks really nice, but have not installed it yet

 

[WileERobby]

Have you got and installed a reproduction?

Nope. And I wouldn't. A friend got repro bumpers for his Cuda not too long ago. Fit was not good, and they were NOT as heavy as his originals.

 

[T2R9]

This is an AMD repro. Fit is dead on. As mentioned its a bit lighter then original. When I got hit in April the original was sent to Tri-City but the turn around would have made me miss Carlisle so we put an AMD on. It is still on the car and my recromed one is in the box, I will swap them at some point but it looks and fits great so no hurry. The bill from Tri-City was $900 plus shipping so there is that factor.

 

[74ChargerSE440]

Nope. And I wouldn't. A friend got repro bumpers for his Cuda not too long ago. Fit was not good, and they were NOT as heavy as his originals.

Where did he got the bumpers from? What was the exact problem with the fit?

 

[chargervert]

This is an AMD repro. Fit is dead on. As mentioned its a bit lighter then original. When I got hit in April the original was sent to Tri-City but the turn around would have made me miss Carlisle so we put an AMD on. It is still on the car and my recromed one is in the box, I will swap them at some point but it looks and fits great so no hurry. The bill from Tri-City was $900 plus shipping so there is that factor.

View attachment 1540624

My friend painstakingly test fitted those bumpers for AMD,they fit very nice.

 

[bandit67]

I have done both and been satisfied with both. Rechroming in my area is about double the cost of repops. Wait time on rechrome is 6 to 10 months. My deciding factor is "how original do I want to keep this car." Of course I am very close to the AMD warehouse and have no shipping cost in sheet metal repop parts. Had a member here give me his original rear bumper for his 73 as he went repop, all that cost me was $100 bucks for the ride here, and then rechrome. Good, rechromable cores for 2nd gens getting much harder to find these days.

 

[74ChargerSE440]

Is there a difference in quality among the different suppliers or do they just come in one and the same container from China?

 

[Fm3 Dart]

I installed a new AMD rear bumper on my 71 Charger. I was happy with the fit and chrome finish. Looked like the same gauge metal as the original. I do restorations, and have used many AMD bumpers. I have been happy with all of them