Radiator Slats

[Guy Benson]

I have had a devil of a time fitting a replacement grill to the radiator shell. I bought a set described as "original". After glass beading I found that the slats fell into 4 approximately equal groups based on the following sizes (wide part of the slat): .575", .6", .625" and .65". The wider ones appear to be more "original" than the others based on the amount of corrosion. The difference in 2 adjacent sizes is not bad but the difference between the smallest and largest ones is quite noticeable. Does anyone know what the size should be? Guy Benson

[Chase, Jim]

Guy I don't know what width the radiator slats should be on the TC radiator grill but I can check for you once I get my grill back from the stove enameling shop. I am afraid I can only measure to 0.001" since I don't have a micrometer with a vernier scale. I must get a vernier mic so I can join in the debate on the lift the dot fastener positions. I can sympathize with the problems you have had fitting the grill to the shell. I had similar problems after my radiator shell was referubbished by Anglo Radiators who were able to replace the grill fixing studs with an accuracy of about 0.5inch. Regards, Jim Chase I have had a devil of a time fitting a replacement grill to the radiator shell. I bought a set described as "original". After glass beading I found that the slats fell into 4 approximately equal groups based on the following sizes (wide part of the slat): .575", .6", .625" and .65". The wider ones appear to be more "original" than the others based on the amount of corrosion. The difference in 2 adjacent sizes is not bad but the difference between the smallest and largest ones is quite noticeable. Does anyone know what the size should be? Guy Benson

[m.jablonski@mei.unimelb.edu.au]

Guy Sorry for the slowness in replying. I have several sets of slats and they seem to fall into two widths 9/16" (nominal) and 11/16" (nominal) (possibly TD?). In both sets the widths vary so that the smaller set varies from 9/16" to 5/8" with the majority sitting about halfway between i.e., 19/32". The same applies to the larger set. I've even noticed variations along the length of slats e.g., 0.589" - 0.6025". I think that the variation is caused by variations in the curvature of the slats (they have a cross section like an aerofoil), possibly due to accident damage causing them to flatten and widen. Some also seem to have a sharper corner between the front face and the short return. I don't think there's much point in measuring them with a micrometer, a ruler will suffice. The set that's in my roadgoing TC has slats of varying widths but you don't notice until you measure them. Their appearance seems to be affected more by the angle they are set at. Having said that, I'd still assemble the slats so that adjacent ones weren't too different in width. Incidentally I've just recently found out that the fasteners used for the slats are 1/8" x 1/4" semi tubular rivets with oval heads. See http://www.clevedon-fasteners.co.uk/semi-tubularrivets.htm for more information on the rivets. Hope this helps. Mark Jablonski Melbourne Australia

--- In mg-tabc@y..., Guy Benson wrote: > I have had a devil of a time fitting a replacement grill to the radiator > shell. I bought a set described as "original". After glass beading I > found that the slats fell into 4 approximately equal groups based on the > following sizes (wide part of the slat): .575", .6", .625" and .65". The > wider ones appear to be more "original" than the others based on the > amount of corrosion. The difference in 2 adjacent sizes is not bad but > the difference between the smallest and largest ones is quite > noticeable. > > Does anyone know what the size should be? > > Guy Benson

[Michael DeRentz]

Greetings all ! Let me put in my five cents worth(get it?-five cents worth, ha ha !) Seriously folks- the dust jacket of Chris Harvey's book [i]The Immortal T Series [/i]shows a red TC with silver slats which match the wheels. Looks nice but I don't know whether this was ever original. I painted mine red to match the body color (Ditzler 71993) and don't really like it. A picture should be in the Gallery soon. As for the "antenna bumpers", I never could figure out what good they were supposed to do. Good Luck, Michael DeRentz

[Want1937hd@aol.com]

<< As for the "antenna bumpers", I never could figure out what good they were supposed to do. >> Horn and Driving light protectors! Bob TC4956

[Roger Furneaux]

Re: [mg-tabc] radiator slats

[quote]Michael - you must have one of the original edition. The owner of that car was at Silverstone a few years back, grumbling to me that he had been replaced by Ron Gammons, who adorns the cover of my 1990 printing driving a chrome-grilled TF (supplied by his firm of course, more subliminal advertising!) oc[b]T[/b]agonally Roger Seriously folks- the dust jacket of Chris Harvey's book [i]The Immortal T Series [/i]shows a red TC with silver slats which match the wheels. Looks nice but I don't know whether this was ever original. I painted mine red to match the body color (Ditzler 71993) and don't really like it. A picture should be in the Gallery soon. As for the "antenna bumpers", I never could figure out what good they were supposed to do. Good Luck, Michael DeRentz

[/quote]

[Martin Johnson]

Hello Group I really am not trying to make a mountain out of a molehill, however I'd like to call upon the members who passionately pursue originality and use them as a resource: I'm still working on the body tub, however I'm fast approaching the paint stage. TC3586 was originally green with green, and that is the way I will finish it. In terms of original colors, I think there's conflicting information and belief about the color of the radiator slats. Restored red/red cars seem to universally have body color slats, and I've not heard any dispute there. By contrast, restored green/green cars have either body color OR the "apple" green to match the interior. Maybe there was less disparity between the interior and exterior reds so that it would be consistent for MG to paint the slats body color. As to TC3586 which has sat since 1956, I've had the opportunity to work with a car that has never been restored before. I can report that the remnants of the original interior that were folded over the side panels were definitely lighter than the green paint on the body. I'm comparing to the paint underneath the gas tank side panels. I think that's a logical area to look at since it has not seen the light of day since September 1947. Sure, half a century of aging even in the dark will change paint somewhat, but it's the most pristine sample I have to go by, plus the shades varied somewhat I'm sure- (Hey, the "Brown Book" states that you could order paint that would match exactly from the factory- do you believe that?). Unfortunately, TC3586's radiator slats were chromed by the first owner, so I don't know which green was original for my car. I can forecast that my answers will be "do what you want, it's your car" etc. That's not really helpful. Maybe someone is still around who remembers when they were new? My question is what is the consensus as to the shade of green for the radiator slats of green/green cars? I'll bet black/green cars had slats matching the upholstery, and not the dark green of the body paint of green cars. Thanks for humoring me- Martin Johnson Long Beach, CA TC3586

[Jennifer and Hugh Pite]

Hi, according to The T-Series Handbook Golden Anniversity Edition: "The radiator slats were sometimes painted to match the exterior colour, sometimes to match the upholstery. Which colour was chosen for any given car may have depended upon the exterior/interior colour combination used on that car, but no ironclad rule has been discovered." As an aside, no TC's or TD's had black upholstery. The TF did, but the slats on these were always chrome. Hugh Pite

[LKe1021587@aol.com]

My TC is green with the beige leather interior. The radiator slats were painted green instead of the beige to match the interior. I think it looks great and everyone who has seen it seems to agree. So, whatever turns you on. Mike Keeffe TC1307

[Gene Gillam]

Mike wrote:

>So, whatever turns you on.

Geesh Mike, read it again - he said he didn't want logic, he wanted originality. Sorry Martin, I couldn't resist. However, I don't think you'll find a "consensus" of opinion on this - I've seen them both ways and both paint schemes look great - although I think I've seen more slats painted body color on the TDs than on the TCs. Good luck in whichever way you decide to paint it and I'm sure it'll look great when you're finished. But then again, I've never seen an ugly TC so what do I know? Gene