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

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Ford F834

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

Administrator

Gary, how accurate do you want to be as far as matching the wiper switch panel? The black face of that area is actually recessed below the level of the printed or textured bezel face. We can thin it down all we want but it will never match. It will always look stuck on because it is... just "what if" the bezel was given a flange and rear mounted through a file-fit hole? Too complicated? It would definitely take some finesse to install it but I bet the results would be worth it. 🤔

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 - I said earlier that this exercise reminded me of the phrase "Perfecting sealing wax." And no one seemed to pick up on it. So, here's a link.

I'm not sure if anyone is really going to want to cut their instrument bezel, very precisely I might add since the lines would be visible, and push the fog lamp bezel through from the back. (If you really wanted it to match you'd have to push the fog lamp bezel through from the front, with the bead covering the cut, and the face of the bezel recessed below the instrument bezel.)

I think I'll be happy with one that centers over the switch hole. And I'll be even happier with one that pretty well matches the size and shape of the headlight/wiper bezel. Yes, it'll still look like what it is - stuck on. But, that is what Ford did, so it will be "period correct".

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

Ford F834

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

Administrator

I thought about that Gary, having the bead cover the cut, but then there would be no plastic to connect it to the face if it has to overhang. And the cut would still have to be extremely precise even if it did overhang. Done from the back the cut would have to be made with the hole overly small, and then carefully enlarged with a few fine file strokes at a time until it exactly fit. But that is not a job that many would have the patience for... at all! 🤓 Sounds like I need to try it but I won't saw off the 1/4 x 28 studs until I have a perfect fit... ~if I get a perfect fit...

Gary Lewis

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

Administrator

This is what I thought of, with the black being the instrument bezel, red being the fog lamp bezel, and green a plate to hold it in from the rear. The bead overlaps the cut so it can't be seen and doesn't have to be precise. And the face of the fog lamp bezel is even with that of the instrument bezel. And the rubber piece, not shown, would be captured between the red fog lamp bezel and the green retaining plate.

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

ArdWrknTrk

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

Administrator

The rubber piece would need to be the size of the green backer in order to clamp the bezel tightly to the dash panel.
That is, if the bezel is the same thickness as the panel, and I don't know if you could go thin enough to make it work otherwise.

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

Good point, Jim.

Oh, I forgot - Jonathan said that the face of the headlight/wiper switch area is actually below the level of the rest of the instrument bezel. To do that the backer, as shown here, would have to have a lip to hit the backside of the instrument bezel. But, we could make the backer into a collar, meaning it would have a hole in the middle that would allow it to fit around the fog lamp bezel. That is basically the same design that Ron and I used for the dash patch - lips hiding the cut and a collar to hold it in.

It could look very much like the bead and face of the instrument bezel.

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

If the bead is 0.062" in width, and you split it in half you would have an overhang of 0.031" which is at least something but it isn't much. You still gotta have that hole pretty darn close. It would be cleaner though. To really match the wiper switch panel the face of the fog light bezel should sit below the face of the instrument bezel and the plate on the back would have to be stepped in order to have contact. I think you may be right about going insane with detail here, this is probably best left as an overlay, and any insane individual who wants to integrate it into the bezel is welcome to do so at his own peril 😁

Gary Lewis

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

Administrator

Right on all counts. But, we could get this "sealing wax" perfect! Forget that no one uses it - it would be exactly "right"!

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, you should have a new member request from a guy named Alfie. He has some very interesting information about fog lights with manual transmissions 😳

Gary Lewis

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

Administrator

Day late and a dollar short: http://forum.garysgaragemahal.com/New-member-td6875.html

Alfie signed up late last night and has already posted.

Just not about fog lamps with manual transmissions.

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

I think we are starting to be "crippled by the details"..... and Way over-thinking this...
This was an OEM Ford "add on" that's why it "sits" on the dash bezel.

Why not save on the headaches and "let it look stock?"

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

Me? Overthink? That's the first time I've been accused of that today.

Ron - I don't think we are seriously considering a re-design. Just exploring what might have been.

As for keeping it stock, that's a novel idea! Let's see - why did you improve your tailgate protector?

Right back at'cha.

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

reamer

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

Me? Overthink? That's the first time I've been accused of that today.

Right back at'cha.

"first time today"? Its only Morning........

Improve the tailgate?.... IT was not ever made from Ford... nothing to say "that's different"

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

Alfie623

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

Okay guys, sorry I'm late to the show. I own a 1983 Bronco with the factory fog lights and I'm capable of taking more measurements as necessary but it sounds like you've got it all pretty well covered at this point.

Here is the bit of info you should know and watch out for: the fog light switch will conflict with the starter interrupt on manual trucks with the starter interrupt switch mounted to the clutch linkage near the cruise interrupt switch. Here is a picture of the switch on the bracket. It's the long white plastic arm.

My truck is an '83 and didn't have the switch, well it was an auto, but had it been a manual it still wouldn't have had the switch. Here is the circuit from the E&VTSM

Can't figure out why that picture is rotated. It isn't on my computer. You can still see that an auto transmission truck will have an interrupt but a manual won't.

The pedals I'm using for my ZF5 swap are from a 1986 that did have the circuit. When I installed the pedals there was no reasonable way to leave the switch and not have it hitting the fog light switch. I removed it for now until I can find a better way to install it. It may never get reinstalled.

I was able to maintain the cruise control interrupt switch without an issue.

1983 Bronco XLT being rebuilt/restored with a 5.8 HO & ZF5 and a pile of other improvements..... Serpentine drive; saginaw saw; 3G swap; manual swap with a ZF5; hydro boost swap to name a few....

Ford F834

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

Administrator

In reply to this post by reamer

reamer wrote

I think we are starting to be "crippled by the details"..... and Way over-thinking this...

Over-thunk, twice-baked and re-fried...

...but maybe Ford didn't do quite enough thinking...

...not only did they not line the bezel up with the switch in the dash, but evidently if you go to put this in a manual truck you better get ready to ditch the starter interrupt on the clutch pedal because the plastic rod tangles with the back of the switch and there isn't room for both...

Gary Lewis

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

Administrator

In reply to this post by Alfie623

Better late than never! At least you are here.

Would the interrupt switch, which my '85 didn't come with, hit a smaller switch, like a toggle, in that hole?

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 Alfie623

Welcome to the forum Alfie and thanks for sharing! I have the same problem with vertical pics. If I save them with a photo edit program it seems to fix the orientation. I'm not sure why Nabble does not recognize the orientation as it was taken by my phone or camera but it doesn't. If I'm shooting soecifically to illustrate on this forum I try to remember to shoot landscape if possible...

Gary Lewis

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

Administrator

It isn't just Nabble. I used to have the same problem with FTE. Just opening and then saving a pic with a photo editor seems to fix it.

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

Alfie623

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

In reply to this post by Gary Lewis

Gary Lewis wrote

Better late than never! At least you are here.

Would the interrupt switch, which my '85 didn't come with, hit a smaller switch, like a toggle, in that hole?

I don’t think it will. The fog light switch is kind of large. I believe the relay for the lights is contained in the switch since the harness is fairly small from the switch to the lights. A smaller switch would work if you could allow the square chrome toggle to attach to it.

Honestly I would want a relay for lights under the hood anyway I think.

I didn’t grab a picture of the conflict when I had it in place because it was too darn tight in there.

Has anyone found a source for the switch that’s close to the original?

1983 Bronco XLT being rebuilt/restored with a 5.8 HO & ZF5 and a pile of other improvements..... Serpentine drive; saginaw saw; 3G swap; manual swap with a ZF5; hydro boost swap to name a few....

Gary Lewis

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

Administrator

I think Ron found a switch that will work. And, it is smaller so should miss the clutch switch/linkage.

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

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