Repro suppliers, who is the best?

[Skibb]

We have been upgrading a '31 and doing a frame off restoration on a '30. The best service has been from Bratton's and Bill's Model A Acres and the worst svc from Macs and Mike's.

[hotrodalley]

I have ordered from Berts, Snyders, Brattons, Mikes, and A&L with good results for the most part. I have to say that Snyders Catalog drives me nuts because it does not have an index. I like Brattons catalog a lot. I have ordered the same part from different suppliers and have found significant differences in quality and design. It would be great if there was a listing somewhere showing the manufacturing source for each part.

[glenn in camino]

I mostly buy from Brattons but there are at least 3 or 4 good suppliers.

[Pmsqrd]

If you ever have a question about the quality of a reproduction part you need to buy call Steve at Bert's . He knows what excellent , good and not good.

[JackA]

I ordered a catalog from Bratton's and have yet to receive it. Its been a long time.

[5window]

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

Originally Posted by Mitch//pa

everyone has there specialties that others don't carry such as snyders ceramic coated exhaust manifolds. these things you learn over time but the main players have been mentioned. tams model A in MA is also great to deal with, joe is very knowledgable and usually answers the phone. his prices are usually cheaper for the same items from other places.
bills model A acres bought out renningers stock last year when they closed up.

I hadn't known Bill had bought out Renninger's, but he's a fine guy who will stop work to help you understand how to fix your problem. He's got barns full of stuff and it's worth a visit just to walk through them. He knows his stuff and I have found his prices to be fair. I am fortunate he's only 20 minutes away.

[Mike V. Florida]

As you can see there is no one answer to your question. I also find a lot has to do with your definition of restoration. While you can get parts that work there are some vendors that deal in parts that look closer to the original then others.

My suggestion is to get catalogs from all the vendors mentioned here and look at them to see what parts they have to offer that fits your needs and price.

[pat in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by hotrodalley

....... I have to say that Snyders Catalog drives me nuts because it does not have an index....

sure they do. Its in front, right after the T index. page 14 ( not numbered tho')

[Mort]

Originally Posted by jmeckel

I just downloaded a PDF of A&L's catalog, does anyone know if they have a WEB site? I can't find one.

A&L is awesome but they do not have a web site (yet?)

[Brian T]

I am fairly new to the hobby, I soon found out about the junk parts that are sold, even those that were Ford approved, I asked the 2 vendors I purchased from about refunds for parts that I modified to make work but could not use, my first vendor seem to evade the issue, reluctant to dip his finders in the till, that cost him $4-5000 over the last 5 years.
Very happy with Snyders, Berts and Brattons.

[Mikeinnj]

Does "Bill's Model A Acres" have a web site or a hard copy parts catalog ?

[denis4x4]

Mac's is now owned by Eckler's, a giant in the Chevy aftermarket business. If they run Mac's like they run the Chevy business, it should be good for everybody.

[figment]

Snyders Index is in the front of the catalogue , Snyders has both Model T and Model A parts and the index is in front of the Model T section. Brattons index is in the back.

[Hioridge]

I have found both Bratton's and TAM'S to be very helpful, knowledgeable, and excellent to deal with. They even understand my right hand drive problems!

[Skibb]

Originally Posted by Mikeinnj

Does "Bill's Model A Acres" have a web site or a hard copy parts catalog ?

Not to be short, but NO. Yet, some of us think he's great. He's One man Band, so give him lots of time to fill you order.

[Mike V. Florida]

Originally Posted by denis4x4

Mac's is now owned by Eckler's, a giant in the Chevy aftermarket business. If they run Mac's like they run the Chevy business, it should be good for everybody.

They must not be. Do a search on this Forum and you will find more problems then successes listed. I'm waiting for a part from December, next two weeks, next two weeks, next two weeks, is all I hear.

[Mike V. Florida]

Originally Posted by Brian T

I am fairly new to the hobby, I soon found out about the junk parts that are sold, even those that were Ford approved, I asked the 2 vendors I purchased from about refunds for parts that I modified to make work but could not use, my first vendor seem to evade the issue, reluctant to dip his finders in the till, that cost him $4-5000 over the last 5 years.
Very happy with Snyders, Berts and Brattons.

Ford approved only means the part either has the ford script or the ford part number, nothing more. It has nothing to do with fit and finish and everything to do with royalties. This is why Brattons started with their own part numbers in 2003.

[jmeckel]

For those who have asked here is the url for the PDF I found of the A&L catalog.
http://www.scvcma.org/documents/bull...talog-2012.pdf

[John LaVoy]

Over the years I have traveled to and interviewed most of the above mentioned parts vendors. They all are quite good to deal with. I like the suggestion that was made about buying from a local guy, it is always good to deal with someone in your area. In the last issue I had an article about Arizona Model A this is another vendor located in the Phoenix area that has lots of new and used stuff.

[burnzy]

I have just ordered 56 bucks worth of parts through snyders this week to be shipped to New Zealand. Fan belt, radiator cap, set of hoses and clamps. Get the invoice yesterday and they are stinging me 99 bucks for freight.

Got a 40s motorcycle helmet the other week on ebay. Arrived in a huge box(probably twice the size of the box needed for my A Parts) and shipping was only 50 bucks!

Lesson: Get a shipping quote before you buy with snyders...