Ugly body dent from rear fender ???

[al's28/33]

I was wondering if the two rear fenders on my '28 phaeton are incorrect ? Whoever restored the car did not care to fit them neatly along the rear body panel and crimped both sides …. How can I determine if they are the correct ones ?

[Oldbluoval]

Full side view of fender? I’d think fenders would show damage to have bent the body that badly. Show fender meeting the splash apron and running board.

[mcgarrett]

Looks like the car was rear ended and the rear body panel wasn't repaired correctly.

[WHN]

Originally Posted by mcgarrett

Looks like the car was rear ended and the rear body panel wasn't repaired correctly.

I agree! Looks like rear end damage. What do your bumper brackets look like?

Enjoy.

[al's28/33]

No rear-end damage, no bent frame. Here are outer pics. Is there some dimensions I can take to confirm these fenders are not for a Tudor or Sedan ?? All underside brackets are straight and all seams against splash apron and running boards are true.

[Marshall V. Daut]

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If you had '30-31 rear fenders in place, there would be a noticeable gap between the fender's curve and the splash apron, if the curvature of the fender would have been compatible with the well in the body. That curve in the fender where it meets the splash apron is gentler and shallower on '28-29 fenders than on the '30-31 rear fenders. It looks to me as though the fenders are correct for your body style and year.

As already pointed out, there was some kind of accident back there in the past that probably rendered the rear fender unsavable. So, a good fender was installed without fixing the deep dent in the body. (Duh!) A dent that deep would have also left some kind of damage on the fender, too.
Marshall

[al's28/33]

Can the body dents be peened back out from inside, behind the rear seat I assume ?

[mcgarrett]

Have you looked under the rear seat to see if there are signs of an accident? From inside the car, remove the rear seat cushion and inspect closely where the floor meets the rear body panel and also have a look at where the body is buckled at the point where the fenders are attached. What do you see there?
Even if someone installed the wrong fenders, that alone wouldn't buckle the body like the photo shows - it took some force to deform the back panel like that.

[al's28/33]

I'll take a look when I can get the car outside after this next storm passes thru.


Thank you gents, I appreciate the feedback so far. I had always thought they were the incorrect fenders. I'll look for bondo and any crumpled steel panels.... stay tuned.

[ronn]

only one way to fix that and will be a good bit of work.

never seen a hit like that, but as suggested, from the back.

[CA Victoria]

It may be worth it to let a person look at it who is skilled in body fabrication (metal shaping)
If the bumper was hit hard enough it may have sheared the bumper arm bolts on the frame and the stand that connects under the body pushed the lower valance in r resting the crease.
I would not be tempted to hammer it out. Done properly that area can be restored.

[Oldbluoval]

Of course the repair would require paint match
Ugggh

[mcgarrett]

It will be interesting to hear what the owner finds when he does a close inspection under the seat and around the wheel houses where the damage is.

[Marshall V. Daut]

My guess is that not only did a previous owner not repair the damage to the back of the body before installing a replacement fender, it looks as if the body was painted WITH the dent already there. In other words, he blew off repairing the dent in favor of new paint, which of course makes the dent disappear. (Yeah, right!) The paint is obviously enamel that was not thinned properly or was sprayed at too low of an air pressure, perhaps both. No one bothered to color sand out the orange peel after spraying and then buff out the paint, assuming it had been catalyzed. The amount of orange peel in the paint would make any citrus grower in Florida proud. Had the dent been inflicted AFTER paint had been laid down, the paint most certainly would have chipped, cracked or crazed as the metal stretched from impact and its attendant heat generated by the stretching metal. None of that is present in the photos. New paint was laid over the already-present dent.
I do not mean to denigrate what appears to be an otherwise nice restoration on this Phaeton, but I do happen to know a thing or two about paint, as I have been painting Model A's, T's and Corvettes since 1981. I see an enamel paint job on this area of the body and this fender at the least, maybe the entire car. Perhaps the paint could be improved by test sanding a small area around the spare tire carrier and then buffing it out. If the orange peel goes away and the paint doesn't burn or sand off (too thin), the paint will look 100 times better afterwards and result in a deep shine. At least the colors are authentic! The car just needs a little more elbow grease to bring it up a notch or two in its cosmetics. As a fellow '28-29 Phaeton owner and avid fan, I say "Go for it, Al!"
Marshall

[Marshall V. Daut]

Not to sidetrack the issue of whether the rear fender is correct to this car or how the dent got there, but since the subject of paint improvement has been broached (by me! ), here is what an acrylic enamel paint job looks like after color sanding and buffing. It started out with orange peel in the paint, too. It's hard to spray enamel without a little orange peel. The question is: how much orange peel is acceptable before sanding and buffing are considered?
I know that I have posted this photo before, but it can help illustrate numerous areas of Model A discussion, from paint quality, to color authenticity, to over-restoration, to placement of the pin striping, etc., etc. So, you'll probably see it AGAIN in some future discussion.
O.K. Back to rear fender compatibility and dent control.
Marshall

[al's28/33]

I appreciate all the comments guys, although there are a lot of incorrect issues with the paint, orange peel being one, it is a 1928 model year (frame has the left side hole for early e-brake) it's painted with '29 color scheme.
As soon as the rains subside next week I will pull her out into daylight and remove the rear seat to see what I can find inside the back panels.

[Marshall V. Daut]

Ah, yes! Rose Beige and Seal Brown = 1929. Good catch, Al. 'Sorry. 'Still a terrific color combo on a 1928-29 Phaeton/Roadster, though, especially with an orange pinstripe. 'Really turns on those two colors. The Ford stylist department sure nailed that combo!
Marshall

[Keith True]

I think if it was my car I would be kind of glad that whoever fixed up that car decided to leave those wrinkles alone.They are rounded and smooth,and look a lot better than if somebody just started having at it with a hammer.Leave it for the next guy,but don't compound the damage he'll have to deal with.

[al's28/33]

Folks, I was able to remove the rear seat cushion and attempt to get some blurry flash pictures of the rear/quarter panels. I'm sorry these do not view properly, but if you can notice behind the pine wood block and upholstery there is the small hump in sheet metal and related shadow, that's the dent!..... otherwise there is no other evidence of rear body damage to frame, body, bumper brackets or interior seat riser. My finger tips could only determine where these two dents are but unable to get more clear photos for you. I imagine the only correct way to solve this is to remove the rear back rest and attempt some careful cosmetic surgery. ???? your thoughts ?????

[nkaminar]

To me, the dent on the starboard side looks more like it was hit with a blunt object. The one on the port side looks more like a fold due to a rear ender. It is going to take a professional body shop to fix this at some significant cost.