VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1929-1932 1931 hood handles - painted or chrome

I was stripping paint off one of my hood side panels today and noticed the handle had very little paint on it and was fairly shiny. Is it supposed to be chrome plated? How about the area where the latches attach, chrome or painted?

Hook and cylinder chrome as well as the piece on the hood. The base that attaches the hook and cylinder to the fender or splash apron is painted black.

The hood handles were chromed. They were riveted onto the hood sides with chromed brass rivets. The hood latch tubes and shepherd's hook type ends (assembly called candy cane type) were also chromed as were the hook shaped brackets that were riveted to the hood. Clips that hold the rubber bumpers on the bracket bottoms were black as were the bases of the candy cane latches. Black round headed, slotted 1/4-20 machine screws held the latches to the fender or splash apron.

Export parts were black.

Chip, I beg to differ with you on the piece that holds the rubber bumper being black. I have had several NOS pieces that both pieces, the one that is attached to the hood and the piece that holds the rubber bumper were chrome plated.

This is interesting. What years had the chromed hood latches?

The parts book shows that the "hood catch bracket" used on the 1931 passenger cars was chrome plated.

:) :o

Jim,
I still have several and have had over a dozen NOS hood latch brackets for 1931. None of them had a chrome plated clip to hold the rubber bumper in place. I have a few that were obviously replated that have the clip chrome plated.

The 1931 passenger bracket is chromed except for the clip. The 1931-2 trucks (both 1/2 ton and 1 1/2 ton [series LT, M, N]) were black. The hood handles on the trucks were also black with black rivets holding them on.

The original catch brackets for the hood I have are chrome plated with the piece that holds the rubber being black as Chipper has indicated.

Thanks for the great information guys. While we are talking about hoods, is the underside of the hood painted black or body color? My color scheme for this 31 five window coupe will be maroon and black.

The entire hood is painted body color except for the mounding. It matches the firewall and cowl except for a rectangular black area at the bottom front of the cowl.