Hood latch mechanism - factory finish?

[uk-maxie]

Hope I have better luck with this question than a similar question i posed last week about brake calipers... :sleepy5:
Hard to know where's best to put these questions sometimes, with so many sections! :icon_confused:

Anyway... with most of our engine components being replaced or refinished, the hood catch/latch mechanism (not sure of its proper name?) is looking decidedly tatty :sad1:

I think the spring is supposed to be black (phosphate?), but not sure about the other components.

If plated, can they be plated as-is, without much dismantling, or would they bind up when operated?

Any advice gratefully received, thanks :icon_salut:

 

[welder47]

When I need a part to look gavanized or just metal colored I sand blast them in my cabinet and clear the parts. They stay rust free that way and do look good. There is also can galvanising spray you can buy but comes out kinda rough looking when done.

 

[eagleone1983]

There is a lot of conflicting information regarding the proper plating on these items. For me, and my car is a driver not a concours type car, Black zinc is what I'm going with. According to Jules Daddio the safety hook and latch have a dark brownish hue to it. Black Zinc doesn't give you this hue but i have also read in Mopar muscle that black zinc is the way to go, which is a replacement for Zinc Phosphate.

 

[uk-maxie]

There is a lot of conflicting information regarding the proper plating on these items. For me, and my car is a driver not a concours type car, Black zinc is what I'm going with. According to Jules Daddio the safety hook and latch have a dark brownish hue to it. Black Zinc doesn't give you this hue but i have also read in Mopar muscle that black zinc is the way to go, which is a replacement for Zinc Phosphate.

Thanks eagleone and welder47

Are these the parts you refer to as the 'safety hook and latch'.... i didnt have a pic to hand when I posted earlier today, ie the parts mounted on the hood?

I think the black-ish colour on these parts is just old paint. Whatever original finish was there, is long gone!

Will your black zinc come out as dark, or black, as 'chemi-black' (as is often used on non-stainless fasteners)?

Found these on Jules Daddio's website: I presume one of these is the finish to go for....


If we dont, or cant get them plated, we'll probably go the route suggested by you welder47 - bit of blasting follwed by a squirt of clear lacquer. Not correct but certainly an improvement!

 

[Meep-Meep]

These parts should be a dark color, whether it's black oxide or some other form of plating. The point is when you look at the front of the car you shouldn't see anything but the grille, or should I say the "face" of the car. Same reasoning behind the radiator support blackout. I just used a charcoal black paint for my latches.

 

[uk-maxie]

Thanks MM, I hadnt thought that they would/might be visible thru the grille area... :thinker:


EDIT: mind you, looking at my 2nd pic above, it looks like all parts except the hood release lever are hidden behind sheet metal, so we wont need to worry about that. Dunno about other models tho...

 

[jag_mopar]

If anyone would like the Black Zink or the Black Oxide finish on their latches please PM me. They will be done professionally not done by the Eastwood container. I just had mine done and they look great and will not scratch or chip off. I will offer this service and soon by exchange.

JAG

 

[CARSofComfrey]

If anyone would like the Black Zink or the Black Oxide finish on their latches please PM me. They will be done professionally not done by the Eastwood container. I just had mine done and they look great and will not scratch or chip off. I will offer this service and soon by exchange.

JAG

Pics for us???

 

[hemlock]

Here is a latch assembly from a 65 A990 Dodge that was removed from a new car back in 65 and has been in storage since. Would assume the finish would have been the same on the earlier Max cars.

 

[jag_mopar]

You requested pictures, these hood latches are done for my Road Runner in Black Oxide along with some other parts done in clear zinc. The black latches have a oil based film sprayed on them for a preservative in case you see some shading. Please PM if interested in refinishing yours. I will be posting soon some latches refinished in black zinc. they are currently being done.

 

[jag_mopar]

sorry, here are the pics.

 

[uk-maxie]

A very belated thanks to all above who replied :icon_redface:

Just resurrecting this thread as we're just about ready to look at getting these parts refinished, now everything else is almost (it's never all done is it?!) done...

Think we've decided to go with the black zinc for the part that attaches to the underside of the hood (supported by the below pic from the ICCA website , which actually shows the same latch as ours), black zinc for the spring, and clear zinc for the other parts. So basically as jag_mopar said above.

One question before we proceed tho:

Can the mechanism in my first pic at the top of this page be plated without first disassembling or is it best to strip it back to individual components for plating?
I'm concerned that if we dont disassemble it first, the plating will either flake off as soon as it gets used, or the plating will restrict its movement.

Also a bit concerned that it might not go back together correctly if we do actually manage to take it apart




Here's that pic from the ICCA site:

 

[eagleone1983]

Are you talking about the mechanism that actually pops the hood? If so I didn't take apart anything when getting it plated with the black zinc, nor did I disassemble the latches either when getting them plated with the clear zinc.

I do remember the plater telling me they had to adjust the process a little bit because the latch was not all the same metal and would ruin it if they didn't adjust the process. Sorry, I don't really remember why he said they had to tweak some things but everything turned out fantastic and I'm sure your plater knows what he is doing just as mine did.

 

[uk-maxie]

Are you talking about the mechanism that actually pops the hood? If so I didn't take apart anything when getting it plated with the black zinc, nor did I disassemble the latches either when getting them plated with the clear zinc.

I do remember the plater telling me they had to adjust the process a little bit because the latch was not all the same metal and would ruin it if they didn't adjust the process. Sorry, I don't really remember why he said they had to tweak some things but everything turned out fantastic and I'm sure your plater knows what he is doing just as mine did.

Thanks eagleone. Well i suppose the question of whether to disassemble or not refers to all the parts but I'm most concerned about the assembly in my 2nd pic at the start of this thread, which i have concluded (rightly or wrongly?) from the replies so far, should be clear zinc.

Thanks for the advice about adjusting the process, I'll check with the plater what his thoughts are regarding this.

Having thought about this more and asked a few friends over here who have had parts like this restored, I'm fairly confident that these parts will be ok without disassembly.

What's the worst that could happen? :icon_mrgreen:

 

[74DartSwinger360]

They are supposed to be anthracite

 

[eagleone1983]

Isn't anthracite a higher quality type of coal? I've never heard of anybody plating with coal. Is that just the color name you are referring to?

 

[mr. b]

when i blasted mine i used high temp cast coat iron color looks great

 

[74DartSwinger360]

Isn't anthracite a higher quality type of coal? I've never heard of anybody plating with coal. Is that just the color name you are referring to?

Yes just the color not the material