I received an e-mail asking about replacement of the four HOOD LATCHES on a Shay.

The 1928/1929 latches WILL NOT FIT as they have three mounting hols on the base.

The 1930/1931 latches WILL FIT as they are the two hole mounts.

Reggie

Has anyone replaced their hood latches with Chrome/ or SS?

And will the 2 Shay holes line up?
Or does one hole have to be redrilled?

Thanks, steve

Steve.
Reggie said they will fit. As for chrome / Stainless Steel. Chrome needs work to keep from rusting, Stainless Steel don't need all that work.

Gary M Wood
Webmaster
Shay Model A Website
www.geocities.com/shaymodela/
SOCI Membership Chairman

Steve,

I TOTALLY agree with Gary...CHROME may be a bit more "shiny" at least for a while but the STAINLESS will last longer and not pit.

I know 2 Shay owners here in town that installed the 1930/1931 2-hole STAINLESS latches and the holes line up.

I plan on installing the 1930/1931 STAINLESS latches to my Shay one of these days...Not sure if I'll change the HOOD CLIP BRACKETS (Mac's P/N A16751CLSS @ $9.30 ea )to STAINLESS as the Shay's BLACK brackets are pretty sturdy!!!

By the way, if you should search on eBay for HOOD LATCHES, you will see some new stock being sold in SETS rather than per piece.

Mac's prices are:

P/N A16750B - BLACK - $5.85 ea.
P/N A16750BS - STAINLESS STEEL - $9.95 ea.
P/N A16750BC - CHROME - $6.75 ea.

Just about any vendor has them including SPEEDWAY and SNYDER'S...Prices vary a bit but buy from who you're comfortable with...Mac's has the lowest prices on these particular parts.

Reggie

I replaced our latches with the standard black type. I was not really happy. Of all the Shay items that do not fit very well the hood and latches are my pet peeve.
Both of our Shays hoods have been tickled and primped but still not happy with the fit.
Love to see the stainless on a members Shay.

Hi Tom,

You are right about one thing...I don't think there are many, if any, hoods that fit perfectly and reading back through the FORUM on the subject, frustration abounds..

It appears to be a bone of contention concerning the way they fit...If they don't fit on the radiator shell, they don't fit on the firewall, or both....The riveted lacing isn't the problem but probably the hood itself....Many owners were able to reposition the hoods to some extent to correct a bit, but usually not all of the lopsidedness....The hoods, to my understanding, were made specifically for the Shay and Model A hoods are USUALLY not a direct replacement.

My Shay's hood fits on the drivers side pretty good, but not so good on the passenger side....It was this way when I bought it two years ago and I haven't attempted to do anything about it other than I did try and remove a screw or two but found them "stripped" by a previous owner and painted over black.

As far as replacement HOOD LATCHES, the two fellows I talked to that have put the STAINLESS LATCHES on their Shay's say they fit but two people removing and installing them made the change easier..One person on top and one under.

Also, not to forget, there are WOOD BLOCKS between the metal frame and the fiberglass strip the latches mount on so those should be looked at and replaced with plywood if necessary...Real Model A's used WOOD parts called HOOD SHELF BLOCKS but not necessary to use anything but 3/4 inch thick plywood....I'm not sure that if you buy Model A HOOD SHELF BLOCK SETS (Mac's P/N A16727S @ $5.50 or Snyder's P/N A-16727-S @ $6.95) which includes the blocks as well as the bolts, nuts & washers fit the Shay???? Anyone with the answer???

Well, let's see what other feedback and/or photos we receive from Shay owners that have made the change.

Reggie

There is also available the rubber blocks that fit on the latches.
This eliminates the hood rattles.
Chuck

Here's a photo of the RUBBER BUMPERS Chuck is referring to...Just saved myself a THOUSAND WORDS!!!!



Reggie

I purchased the stainless latches from "MACS" and I had to redrill one of the holes, it was not a perfect fit. The holes were off about 3/32.

Also the old slotted screws and nuts did not look very good with new stainless. Go to Home D and buy a package or two of stainless slotted screws, washers and nuts.Buy longer screws then you took off, no one sees them under neath and easier to get started.

Do a trial fit first, the toughest side is the drivers near the fuel pump. I did the job alone and getting your fingers in to hold the nut to start on the threads is no fun. Once it starts to thread I have needle nose vice grips to lock on the nut while you tighten the screw.

Bill V.

Thanks for the info everyone. Not really interested in having to drill a new hole, so I will probably just stay with the my originals. Maybe a fresh coat of black paint. But I am going to replace the bolts. I was thinking the same thing about going to Home Depot and purchasing Stainless Steel ones. The size of my originals are #10-24 x 2 1/2" Machine screws. They were way too long, so was going to buy 1 3/4" or 2" length.

Also, thanks to Reggie.. I didn't realize there was the "wooden blocking". On my Shay, there was 2 layers of 3 ply 3/8" raw plywood. Each plywood piece measured about 2 3/4 x 1 3/16, 2 layers for a total of 3/4" thick.

For the real handyman..guess one could make a new blocks out of oak, depending on the condition of your old ones.

Steve,

As the wood is "HIDDEN", why go through the expense and time to make the WOOD BLOCKS out of OAK or anything fancy....I guess using any type of "scrap" wood would be sufficient...They are only meant to be "SPACERS" between the HOOD SHELVES and the FRAME.

I would think that, as I mentioned, you could use 3/4 inch PLYWOOD....When I removed one of my BLOCKS, what I found were two plies of 3/8 plywood stapled together....Nothing fancy,

One other thought......There's no reason to have to make the blocks a "certain size" as you can make them longer/bigger being hidden and all...I think that more wood would (pun intended) remove the chance of splitting when they are drilled and spread the stress over a larger surface.

Reggie

Reggie,

How are these bumpers mounted on the latch? Do you have to disassemble the latch to install them?

Ron C.

Ron,

When the RUBBER BUMPERS are new, they are pliable enough to fit over the stem of the HOOD LATCHES which do not have to be disassembled....LATCHES are usually riveted to the mount bracket.

I just tried to remove on for "show and tell" but as the BUMPERS on my Shay were on the car when I bought it, they are not pliable enough to remove.

Reggie

REGGIE: Where do you obtain the Rubber Bumpers??? THANKS Dave Shank

Hi Dave,

Any Model A supplier like Mac's or Snyder's have the HOOD CLIP BUMPERS.

Mac's Part Number: A16750BU @ $4.25 per set of 4

Snyder's Part Number: A-16750-BU @ $3.25 per set of 4

As you can see, they are relatively inexpensive and can stop some of the vibrations of the hood.

Take care,

Reggie