Bullnose Enthusiasts Forum

3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Classic

List

Threaded

181 messages Options

1 ... 45678910

Gary Lewis

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

Well, I got the 2nd bezel in from Shapeways. And, the lettering is much better, as is the surface texture. But, there's a pattern in it that is visible, albeit much better than the 1st pass. Perhaps it will not be noticed when painted?

Anyway, here's a side-by-side with the 1st one, and it was taken in harsh sunlight from the side to show all the warts. And, by the way, they are exactly the same size - it is just a parallax issue.

Also, there are nibs on the back and on a couple of sides, like this one. But they can be sanded or filed off pretty easily. And, the threads are slightly too large on the studs. A 1/4-28 nut gets tight and I'm afraid the stud will twist off. So I gently ran a die down it - with the die reversed, meaning with the Start From This Side showing on the backside. That way the sharp edge of the die cuts the plastic instead of just riding up on top of it and eventually binding.

Thoughts?

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

Dad's: '81 F150 Ranger XLT 4x4: Down for restomod: Full-roller "stroked 351M" w/Trick Flow heads & intake, EEC-V SEFI/E4OD/3.50 gears w/Kevlar clutches
Blue: 2015 F150 Platinum 4x4 SuperCrew wearing Blue Jeans & sporting a 3.5L EB & Max Tow
Big Blue: 1985 F250HD 4x4: 460/ZF5/3.55's, D60 w/Ox locker & 10.25 Sterling/Trutrac, Blue Top & Borgeson, & EEC-V MAF/SEFI

reamer

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Looks Better Gary,
But they done messed with the "FOG LAMPS" font, spacing and position.....

NOS one for comparison.

1986 F-150 Flareside 4x4, 351, 4-v, ZF5 speed. AC, Cruise, Tilt, Slider, Digital clock, Radio, Lariat seat, Pwr doors/locks

Gary Lewis

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

Ron - I don't think "they" did anything. It was printed w/o any changes to it. And, it looks pretty close. Here is your NOS one, cropped from an earlier pic, followed by my #2 after some cleaning on it - and it cleaned up well. I'd like to paint it with the black Jonathan suggested to see how it turns out.

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

Ford F834

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

In reply to this post by Gary Lewis

Gary that is an excellent result, much better than before. I suspect that with some very fine grit sanding and paint, the texture will disappear.

Ron, I am not quite seeing the errors in the font and position with one exception: the space between fog and lamps is too tight making it look like one word. I think it would look better with some space added there.

Did chasing the threads with a reversed die fix the tightness issue?

SHORT BED 4-DOOR DIESEL: 1986 F350 4x4 under construction-- 7.3 IDIT ZF5+GVOD

STRAIGHT SIX 4X4: 1981 F150 2wd to 4x4-- 300 I6 close ratio diesel T19, hydroboost brakes, Saginaw steering

BIG F: 1995 F-Superduty under construction— converting to 6.9L IDI diesel ZF5+DNE2

Gary Lewis

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

Jonathan - Thanks. It is much better and the sanding I've done has it in pretty good shape. And if the black paint fills a bit, then it'll be great.

As for the letters, I can add a space between FOG and LAMPS, although to be consistent then I'd need to squeeze the whole string into the same space it is in now. And that would reduce the space between the other letters even more. Do you think that needs to be done or just add the space and let the whole string get longer? Or, leave it alone?

As for the the threads, using the die backwards did the trick. But you want to start it the correct way first to ensure the threads are formed enough that you can get the die to start correctly backwards. Then turn it around and work it gently as it peels off material from the bottom of the threads, and stop frequently to get rid of that material.

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

reamer

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

In reply to this post by Ford F834

The spacing is slightly off, but my 30+ years in the printing industry is "tainting" my opinion

1986 F-150 Flareside 4x4, 351, 4-v, ZF5 speed. AC, Cruise, Tilt, Slider, Digital clock, Radio, Lariat seat, Pwr doors/locks

Ford F834

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

In reply to this post by Gary Lewis

Gary, now that I see a larger picture of it I say let's paint it and add the white, then see how the general appearance is. I would not crowd the letters any further. If a space needs to be added I would say let the chain grow and get slightly closer to the edges. You would be very hard pressed to notice that. I think we need to see it properly painted. That will change the look and that is how it will be viewed. I have to say it is looking really good just the way it is. I know we want it as close as possible, but when in use there won't be a nos example sitting next to it to compare fonts 🙂

Gary Lewis

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

Ron - I don't think we are going to achieve an exact match.

Jonathan - I agree. Let me get some of that paint and see what it looks like. Unless you want to paint it if I send it to you?

As for the "when in use there won't be a nos example sitting next to it to compare fonts" statement, you do realize what is exposed if you are checking the bezel out don't you?

Seriously though, I think we are "there" if the paint goes on well. If so, I propose that I reduce the size to match the headlight/washer switch bead, move the studs, and print another one. But, if we find other things to resolve I'd like to get them fixed before the next print.

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

reamer

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

I agree we have come up with great results

1986 F-150 Flareside 4x4, 351, 4-v, ZF5 speed. AC, Cruise, Tilt, Slider, Digital clock, Radio, Lariat seat, Pwr doors/locks

Ford F834

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

In reply to this post by Gary Lewis

Gary Lewis wrote

As for the "when in use there won't be a nos example sitting next to it to compare fonts" statement, you do realize what is exposed if you are checking the bezel out don't you?

I must be having a dense moment Gary 😐🤷‍♂️

If you want me to do the painting I can certainly do that. I used most of the SEM satin black on the 81's grille and headlight doors but I believe I have a little left and it sure won't take much... and I already have the chrome and white .

If the "corrected" version of the bezel is done, I would suggest making it thinner. As thin as practical so it does not look like a clunky add-on. The rubber flap could be added to the back side of the instrument bezel to help with this. The radius of the corners should match the headlight/wiper switch bead. I'm pretty sure the radius of the fog lamp switch is tighter and does not match.

Although this can be designed "better than Ford" as far as matching the headlight/wiper switch panel, I think there is value in both. I think the alignment of the switch and deformed rubber dust boot needs fixed, but the switch bezel itself has a bit of period correct funky charm that I like. Maybe I will change my mind when I see an improved version...

reamer

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Ahhh, Yes, the next one(s) made need the back-side recess for the rubber.....

1986 F-150 Flareside 4x4, 351, 4-v, ZF5 speed. AC, Cruise, Tilt, Slider, Digital clock, Radio, Lariat seat, Pwr doors/locks

Gary Lewis

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

In reply to this post by Ford F834

If someone is standing on the ground and bent over with their head under the steering wheel looking at the fog lamp bezel then they will have their rear exposed, wearing a proverbial "Kick Me" sign.

As for the painting, you would certainly do a better job than I would. However, the question becomes do we/you want to bother with this one? It could be used if someone wanted to drill holes to accommodate it. But it doesn't have the recess for the rubber in the rear. However, how badly does it need the rubber?

But you confused me on the "make it thinner/round the corners" vs period correct. Which way are you leaning?

I agree that thinner would make it look less like the add-on it was/is. And making it the same height up/down would help. So would making the corner radius the same as the other bead. Any or all can be done, but I agree moving the studs is a must.

So, what do you say, guys?

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

Ford F834

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

Gary that's funny. I had a one track mind on the dash, not the viewer 😂

With the changes/modifications, I guess I was suggesting that there be two versions. One "authentic" close-to-original-as-possible, and one "improved" the-way-Ford-should-have-made-it version.

As far as whether to paint/finish the one you have, that is up to you. I don't mind doing it, but if you want to refine it more my offer stands any time you are ready. I do think it would look slightly better with a little more space between "fog" and "lamps" but it may be slightly less correct, and that is just my aesthetic opinion.

I think the rubber flap is needed just so there is not a big open slot all the way through the dash. It would not be hard to make one out of a square of inner tube or similar piece of rubber. However I don't know that it has to be sandwiched between the instrument bezel and the fog lamp bezel especially if we are going for a thin version to match the wiper switch panel. I would think that you could glue it to the back of the instrument bezel. For the thicker bezel it would be more correct if there was a recess on the back side for it,but I don't know how hard that would be to add to the shape file.

Gary Lewis

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

Oh, two versions. How 'bout:

V1 - Authentic: Basically it would be what I have with the recess. And, by the way, I already have the recess created. It would have the studs where the factory put them, and would be as close to NOS as we can make. In spite of the the fact that NOS doesn't line up with the switch hole.

V2 - Improved: The studs would be moved, and other options would include that the corners are rounded, the thickness pared, and space added between G and L. (Hmmm, I think a "K" goes there. GKL, Gary Kenneth Lewis. ) We just need to decide the details.

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

Ford F834

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

That sounds like an excellent plan Gary.

I hate to pile on the wish list, but I am still hoping that I can talk you into making me a special one with the word "overdrive" in place of "fog lamps". If it is a simple substitution...

...this really isn't the place to discuss it but I have a lot more need to aesthetically integrate an overdrive switch than to add fog lights...

Gary Lewis

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

Don't worry, doing an Overdrive bezel will be easy. I've learned that I don't need to actually add the lettering, bead, or studs to the base bezel. It all gets printed the same way anyway. And, that means that it is easy to change the lettering.

So, when I re-draw the bezel using whatever dimensions, corner radii, etc that we agree on then I'll leave the letters as a separate part. That way we can change them to whatever we want. And, since we will have the printing sorted, the first pass should be a good one.

And, by the way, look at the length of the phrases:

FOG LAMPS
OVERDRIVE

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

Ford F834

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

Most excellent Gary! 😎

I can't wait! This is a very exciting opportunity and a huge bonus over trying to mold replicas! 🙌👍

Ford F834

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

Chris McGaugh sent me a pic of his factory fog light bezel. Looks like his might be even slightly "worse" than mine, but he said he will try to get a better measurement with calipers...

ArdWrknTrk

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

In reply to this post by reamer

Just like Janey saw the r right away....
The leg on the bottom of the 'L' looks too long.
This will/is throwing off the space between G & L.

Definition is much better in acrylic.
Gary, since you have it in hand, what do you think of the result?

I've got no dog in this fight because none of these will fit my bricknose dash anyhow but if it were me I would want the height and corner radii to match the dash regardless of what it was from the factory.
Concours originality would not be a reproduction in any case.

Jim,
Lil'Red is a '87 F250 HD, 4.10's, 1356 4x4, Zf-5, 3G, PMGR, Saginaw PS, desmogged with a Holley 80508 and Performer intake.
Too much other stuff to mention.

Gary Lewis

Re: 3-D printer Fog light bezel has been made and shipped!

Administrator

Jonathan - Chris' is much worse. Apparently the studs on the original fog lamp bezel are smaller than ours and his was moved to the right in the hole before the studs were melted. Yipes!

Jim - While I agree that in a blown-up pic where the letters can be studied closely that the "L" has a longer foot on ours than the NOS one. And, the space between the "G" and the "L" is less, and, and, and.

But, to answer your question, when you look at it with nothing else with which to compare it looks great. I'm happy with the letters and think we did a good job with matching the font, sizing the letters, etc.

And, thanks for your comment about it matching the rest of the dash. I agree. Now, if we could just get a few folks to measure the bead on theirs so we could ensure this next one will be the right height.....

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

1 ... 45678910