dmaddox
SILVER Star
- Thread starter
- #1,201
Purchased a @topnault hood because mine requires quite a bit of hours. I wanted to see them side by side and see how the fit was.
Good: It is a hood. Seems to have great primer and is heavy duty steel.
Bad: There is only one packing cushion on the bottom (rear of the hood/cowl side). This slid to one side during shipping which allowed the driver side corner to rest on the ground/take impact. The damage didn't look that bad at first, but it essentially pushed the corner in.
Second, the air cooling gills are cut/stamped with a serrated press which will require you to file each one smooth. Last, the sides/edges of the hood buldge and are not a smooth line (the line that sits on either the driver or passenger side and rests on the fender apron). OEM hoods are laser straight on both sides. I would assume this is due to having to press/work with a heavier gauge steel? The foam-like glue used on the cowl support area on the underside of the hood is sub-par and should be something like a 3M heavy bodied seam sealer.
The hinge points at the cowl are pressed down, creating a "dish".
The "pinch" at the cowl is also not uniform and has several indentations. This, when lined up with the cowl creates several noticeable "dents".
Photos below.
Overall I'd give it a 4/10. Usable....but with a lot of work...and the lines/curves are off and there are several areas of improvement that would need to occur before it could be painted and installed on a cruiser you are care about. We all have looked at FJ40's for years, and anything that is out of line sticks out - we know every curve on these things. I refuse to just paint this and slap it on my FJ40. It is more work to fix this than correct my original one.
Customer Service? A 10% discount offered that I have yet to see. Not happy. Will never purchase from them again. I have a giant 700$ paper weight. Unless someone in the NorthEast has a rusted mess of a hood and want something that LOOKS LIKE A HOOD......?
Hinge points are "Pressed down" creating a dish. OEM is perfectly flat. This photo also shows the wavy pinch points along the trailing edge:
More waves along the cowl edge. I mean.....is filler expected here?
When this painted and in clear.....this will look like the hood was flipped back and the hinges stressed. Again, sub-par.
Rear corner pinches and the buldge of the curve:
Sticks out from the cowling ON BOTH SIDES - 1/2" (I have the hood square on the truck). You can also see the serration on the gills:
Foam "glue".....?
Back to the drawing board.
Good: It is a hood. Seems to have great primer and is heavy duty steel.
Bad: There is only one packing cushion on the bottom (rear of the hood/cowl side). This slid to one side during shipping which allowed the driver side corner to rest on the ground/take impact. The damage didn't look that bad at first, but it essentially pushed the corner in.
Second, the air cooling gills are cut/stamped with a serrated press which will require you to file each one smooth. Last, the sides/edges of the hood buldge and are not a smooth line (the line that sits on either the driver or passenger side and rests on the fender apron). OEM hoods are laser straight on both sides. I would assume this is due to having to press/work with a heavier gauge steel? The foam-like glue used on the cowl support area on the underside of the hood is sub-par and should be something like a 3M heavy bodied seam sealer.
The hinge points at the cowl are pressed down, creating a "dish".
The "pinch" at the cowl is also not uniform and has several indentations. This, when lined up with the cowl creates several noticeable "dents".
Photos below.
Overall I'd give it a 4/10. Usable....but with a lot of work...and the lines/curves are off and there are several areas of improvement that would need to occur before it could be painted and installed on a cruiser you are care about. We all have looked at FJ40's for years, and anything that is out of line sticks out - we know every curve on these things. I refuse to just paint this and slap it on my FJ40. It is more work to fix this than correct my original one.
Customer Service? A 10% discount offered that I have yet to see. Not happy. Will never purchase from them again. I have a giant 700$ paper weight. Unless someone in the NorthEast has a rusted mess of a hood and want something that LOOKS LIKE A HOOD......?
Hinge points are "Pressed down" creating a dish. OEM is perfectly flat. This photo also shows the wavy pinch points along the trailing edge:
More waves along the cowl edge. I mean.....is filler expected here?
When this painted and in clear.....this will look like the hood was flipped back and the hinges stressed. Again, sub-par.
Rear corner pinches and the buldge of the curve:
Sticks out from the cowling ON BOTH SIDES - 1/2" (I have the hood square on the truck). You can also see the serration on the gills:
Foam "glue".....?
Back to the drawing board.
