OEM fenders vs AMD

[nsmall]

I have a 73 Cuda.

I have a set of AMD fenders.  I only spent $600 for them.  It seemed like a great deal so I bought them.

My OEM fenders are wavy on top and dinged up on the side so I bought the AMD fenders to save my painter time and me money. 

Should I have the OEM front fenders blasted as my media blaster recommended getting them blasted and seeing if the painter could salvage them before resorting to AMD fenders? 

I'll try to post some photos of the OEM fenders.

I researched AMD fenders and they are supposed to fit well.

Thanks.

[Cuda Cody]

Talk to your body guy first.  Most of the aftermarket fenders will need some work to make fit.  You might be surprised just how much "some" work really is.  If you have rust free original fenders it's a good idea to see if your body guy can save them.  I had an AMD front fender that I was going to use because the original had damage.  But we found it was faster and better to just section in a patch on the original then use the AMD.  If you don't have good fenders then AMD is the best option.  But really talk to the guy that will be doing your metal work first and see what he says.

[anlauto]

Is that your metal work pictured above Cody ? very nice

[Cuda Cody]

The guy who taught me metal work helped me on that patch.  He Wizard level when it come to metal work.  We could not get the AMD fender to fit very good so we decided it would be faster to fix the original fender instead. 

Is that your metal work pictured above Cody ? very nice

[Spikedog08]

WOW there is a talent that I certainly do not have!   

[anlauto]

Was the patch from the AMD fender or another original fender ?

[Cuda Cody]

Used 2 original fenders were used.  The other fender was damaged in the front and was already "scavenged" to save a 3rd fender.  So 3 original damaged fenders ended up making 2 perfect ones.

Was the patch from the AMD fender or another original fender ?

[anlauto]

That's what I thought you would have had to use...I could see the center of an AMD fender lining up that nice with an original.

[torredcuda]

Use factory panels anytime you can, aftermarket are never going to fit as good as original and back in the `70`s that wasn`t very good.

[71GranCoupe]

Use factory panels anytime you can, aftermarket are never going to fit as good as original and back in the `70`s that wasn`t very good.

Hallelujah on that statement. Bought a NOS fender from the dealer once, and it took 3 hours to drill out the headlight spot welds and then redo them. My buddy said I should have brought it back to him. Trust me, I thought about it, but had ordered a new rally hood and it took 3 times before it arrived without damage, figured it was easier to fix the factory screw up.

On see the start and end picture of what Cody did no the fender sure would have made a good how to splice in a part with pictures along the way. I have a friend who is retired from Boeing and he uses a torch on really low heat to do that kind of work, but he has been doing it for years.

[Cudakiller70]

The guy who taught me metal work helped me on that patch.  He Wizard level when it come to metal work.  We could not get the AMD fender to fit very good so we decided it would be faster to fix the original fender instead. 

Is that your metal work pictured above Cody ? very nice

Very nice work!
I have experience with metal fab and welding, but have never done body work To me this is an art. Someday I'll try it hopefully have the patience Awesome job as usual 

[fc7cuda]

Use factory panels anytime you can, aftermarket are never going to fit as good as original and back in the `70`s that wasn`t very good.

Also, try not to throw away a damaged original sheet metasl if you can, someone or you may need a piece of it down the road.  Good job on your metal usage(yield) there Cody!

[Cudakiller70]

Use factory panels anytime you can, aftermarket are never going to fit as good as original and back in the `70`s that wasn`t very good.

Also, try not to throw away a damaged original sheet metasl if you can, someone or you may need a piece of it down the road.  Good job on your metal usage(yield) there Cody!

Good point never thought of saving any original metal! You never know what you may need later.