Firewall insulation material

[rg171352]

I am working on restoring a non Ford car which requires firewall insulation. It is a composite of a black paper board and a tan fibrous material. The closest thing I have been able to find is the material used on this 1932 Ford pictured on this site: http://myplace.frontier.com/~wgmumaw...nsulation.html

It doesn't seem like any vendors have this configuration of insulation available, so I don't know who to contact to try to get the part made for my car.

Any help is greatly appreciated in figuring out what the materials are and who may be able to make the part for me.

Thanks!

[51 MERC-CT]

In the past I have used Jute carpet padding/backing to achieve the same thing, it is virtually identical.
Seem to recall buying it at Home Depot off of a big roll. Just cut to shape and glue in place.

[rotorwrench]

I know of both ABS plastic and fiberglass replica firewall insulators for certain old Ford Motors cars & trucks but I don't know about other brands. The ABS is slick & shiny so it has to be scuffed to look like the cardboard that was used back in the day. The fiberglass looks better right out of the box since it it painted with a lusterless type paint. They don't look too out of place if done correctly.

The originals were a water resistant treated card board that was likely steamed & pressed in molds to fit the contour of the cars firewall. I don't know of anyone who attempts to fabricate these.

I looked again at the Quiet Ride products and they make some of the ABS plastic types for other makes. Here is a link to the on-line catalog.
https://www.quietride.com/online_order.html

[fordor41]

Dynamat, jute padding and carpet. done!

[Terranova]

They make drum cases out if vulcanized cardboard. Check a company called Humes and Berg.
https://humesandberg.com/product-cat...re-drum-cases/

Or google vulcanized fiber

[Kahuna]

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You might try a company called Concourse Parts.
They sell parts for 50's Fords.
I bought from them a firewall insulator for my 56
Ford that is made like the 32 pics you provided.
They might be able to put you in touch with
whoever makes their stuff for your application.
Just a thought
Jim

[G.M.]

I used the modern aluminum covered material in
addition to the original type. This keeps the heat
out of the cab and you get good cool air in through
the vent. G.M.

[Robz51]

I used this place for my Merc. I was impressed with their quality.
http://www.remautoinc.com
Rob

[V12Bill]

I used house insulation cut down to be thinner. Could have used styroform cut to size and maybe heated to take the shape of the firewall. Outer side towards the cabin was cardboard used by upholstry shops that do cars.

[19Fordy]

If the piece shown is the original of what you need, you can carefully cover it with fiberglass matt and resin. I did this to my 40 Ford many years ago and it worked fine. Still using it.

[rotorwrench]

Using it as the mold will make the part a bit larger but it could be made to work as a basic cover. Making a plaster mold would get details of the surface but it would show any imperfections in the original part too.


It just depends on how much trouble a person wants to go through to fab something like this and how accurate they want the end result to be. Folks that do accurate reproductions are few and far between and generally they concentrate on the higher end cars that make it worth the trouble.

[rg171352]

Originally Posted by Kahuna

You might try a company called Concourse Parts.
They sell parts for 50's Fords.
I bought from them a firewall insulator for my 56
Ford that is made like the 32 pics you provided.
They might be able to put you in touch with
whoever makes their stuff for your application.
Just a thought
Jim

Hi Jim, Is this the place you were talking about? https://www.parts123.com/parts123/yb...Z5Z5Z50000051e

Thanks!

[rg171352]

Originally Posted by Robz51

I used this place for my Merc. I was impressed with their quality.
http://www.remautoinc.com
Rob

Rob,

Thank you for the heads up. They don't have a lot on their site, but this sounds promising: "FIRE WALL PADS - Assembled using heavy fiberboard with thick fiberglass insulation or jute adhered to the back. All holes are pre-cut providing easy installation."

https://www.remautoinc.com/products.php

Thanks!

[rg171352]

Thank you all very much for your thoughts. Apparently, these are not necessary when the cars are being judged years ago. I'm still interested in pursuing the idea. Thankfully the one I need to reproduce is flat, so it shouldn't be to difficult to form the shape. It seems to be a matter of finding the correct materials or willing vendor. I'll try the companies each of you suggested.

Thanks again!