What is the best after market sheet metal?

[GI JOE]

Can anyone suggest what is the best fitting and technically correct sheet metal for a 68 Camaro?  Any help at all is greatly appreciated.... I really need to get my cars done and time is a ticking...   Thanks GI JOE

[BlackoutSteve]

Apparently it's the USA made stuff from Heartbeat City..

From my own experience, OER/Dynacorn is NOT.

[tmodel66]

AMD is best and  it's thicker than all the rest.

[Sauron327]

 Find NOS, good or repairable used GM. I've used D.corn, CHL, Goodmark, Legion and AMD. AMD quarters are the best of the bunch. They're not without isssues and I expected that. AMD requires a minor one at the quarter window. Other RH quarters have multiple issues that require more mods.  D.corn roof skin went on with only a minor A-pillar mod. Goodmark fenders poorly stamped around headlight and have voids, LH fender bow wrong. Goodmark quarters have multiple issues shared with D.corn and Legion and CHL. Goodmark door hem bad. Decklids run narrow. Some tailpanel bodylines in wrong place, AMD is correct. AMD quarters line up well with their tailpanel. Beware of driprail bead inconsistencies between sailpanels and roof skins. All repro tin varies and requires mods no matter what. Expect more and you will be disappointed.

What does Heartbeat City make on this dirt and where is their facility?

[BlackoutSteve]

What does Heartbeat City make on this dirt and where is their facility?

Don't know and have wondered the same.
http://www.heartbeatcitycamaro.com/store/category/1/390/Front-Fenders/

[Sauron327]

The answer is on their site. Now I need to find out if anyone else shares this fender tooling. Presently, Matt's Classic Bowties offers the best price on AMD quarters. AMD used to supply low and high grade quarters. They've discontinued the low grade.

[BlackoutSteve]

The location is yes. Manufacturer too?

[Sauron327]

No, only states Michigan. I called and they are not yet available and no known ETA. This holds true for other cars as well. I'm waiting indefinately for GTO quarters. Some Mopar tin is on hold. Companies are not dumping money into manufacturing and production if there is not sufficient demand.

[Mike S]

Sauron,

 Aside from quarters which have more involved contours and bends, have you used any of these brand door skins? I'm looking to replace a skin and being it's basically a flat surface with miniman bends I would hope the repos would fit nice.

Thanks,
mike

[L22K19]

OER and AMD both appear to be licensed by GM. Whats the difference or are they both made from the same tooling. I need to replace both rear quarters on my convertible. There was a thread here some time ago questioning wether they had the correct door pillar stampings that look like an old telephone hand piece. Are either correct in this respect these days?

[68camaroz28]

I have a 68 NOS fender and extension along with a 67 fender and extension that I do not need. Sent you a PM....
Oh some of the things seen to make aftermarket fenders and panels fit.

[joesauer]

I like AMD for fenders.  Put a Dynacorn SS hood on my 68 & it was excellent.  Saw a Dynacorn 69 complete body shell ($13,000 +) being installed & it looked pretty good too.  Assume any vendor brand will need some tweaking & some body work it make it perfect.  If you buy AMD panels because they are thicker, be sure to check the "roll" on the edges.

[bertfam]

What does Heartbeat City make on this dirt and where is their facility?

I could be wrong, but I don't believe Heartbeat City actually manufactures sheet metal. They're just one of many vendors selling reproduction parts. For instance, you can get the same fenders from CLASSIC INDUSTRIES as well as others. They're not cheap, but they ARE very nice. I had to replace the passenger side on my 68 several months ago and HERE'S my take on them (post #5).

Ed

[Sauron327]

I like AMD for fenders.  Put a Dynacorn SS hood on my 68 & it was excellent.  Saw a Dynacorn 69 complete body shell ($13,000 +) being installed & it looked pretty good too.  Assume any vendor brand will need some tweaking & some body work it make it perfect.  If you buy AMD panels because they are thicker, be sure to check the "roll" on the edges.

AMD, Legion, Goodmark, CHL all have larger edge radii. AMD quarters are nice but still have issues. If you know what a GM panel looks like, AMD and other repros require mods in various places to replicate a factory panel. I'm just finishing two qrts and a tailpanel. Maybe Dcorn has perfected their manufacturing; I know someone who had extensive mods to make on the shell.

[L22K19]

I think I might start looking at repairing what I have got. The price of the panel isn't the issue and I would be happy to pay the money if the thing had all the right profiles and only needed minor adjustments to suit the car. When I need to add freight to Australia they become expensive if the quality is poor. By the look at some of the photo's posted, there will be less work to make sections and weld them in and file them up.
I don't understand why as consumers we allow manufacturers of these and a lot of other parts to make them to such poor specifications and standards  and then simply complain about them. We should stop buying their parts until they manage to get them right. I know that EVERY panel will need some work before they are fitted including NOS ones, for a multitude of reasons, mainly they are 40+ year old mass produced cars that didin't have the processes and techniques they do today. I fthese parts are licensed by GM then I would think that they have examined them to asses the quality of them before giving their approval.
Never the less WE choose to own them and restore them, and have opinions of what should happen.
Maybe a pair of NOS ones will turn up at a realistic price.