87 Grand national gravel guard

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87National

G-Body Guru
Apr 15, 2009
663
689
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eastern SD
Was standard procedure back in the 80s for G-bodies. Shouldn't have any on the front of the front wheel wells on any of the cars. The gravel guard was sprayed on before the final paint. Hardly noticeable at first glance, but depending on the level of pebbling, reflections could look hazy. There are claims that some of the rear of the front wheel wells on the front fenders didn't have the guard while the rest of the rocker panels and rear of the rear wheel well was painted with it. MOST of the time it was approx. and roughly 1/2" below the body break line. But that was apparently a guideline as I've seen it ALL OVER the place. My 84 H/O had it 3/4" below the body break line and it wasn't straight, so when I had them do it, they put it 3/4" below the body break line. Should have the texture of a Sunkist orange rind. Mostly smooth-ish, but obviously some cellulite.

Pretty crappy tape lines though. The drunk monkeys at the plant didn't seem to know what they were doing half the time it seems.

Here's my 85 442 passenger front fender/door. Look at that sh*tty tape line for the rock guard. ABOVE and BELOW the body break line. SMDH. Not sure what I'm going to do when I get it repainted.
View attachment 202462
Thanks, never heard of it until now. My 88 cutlass classic has it. I had just assumed that a dealer or a previous owner did it......hard to imagine it left the factory that way.
 

spidereyes455

G-Body Guru
Mar 6, 2013
785
1,638
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Northeastern PA
Its usually a good indication (not definitive though) that the car hasn't been repainted. 9 times out of 10 when any g body was re sprayed it was omitted. Probably due to extra cost.
 

69hurstolds

Geezer
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Jan 2, 2006
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Its usually a good indication (not definitive though) that the car hasn't been repainted. 9 times out of 10 when any g body was re sprayed it was omitted. Probably due to extra cost.
True. I had it reapplied when I first did my 84 H/O. Then when the silver started to mottle in places and just wasn't right (poor workmanship done by the now defunct shop), I had another shop redo the silver. JUST THE SILVER, I said. Without even telling me, they did me a solid and repainted the whole car! They sanded/scraped off the rock guard and never put it back. I was not very happy. They didn't charge me for it, but nonetheless, that wasn't value-added service from my viewpoint.
 
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08Malibu

Royal Smart Person
Feb 9, 2014
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North Jersey
So it seems like it’s definitely original. This car is a really clean 27k original car. I had some damage on the left side, but the rest is very good. If it were mine, theres no way I’d be stripping and painting the whole car.
 
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ck80

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Feb 18, 2014
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So it seems like it’s definitely original. This car is a really clean 27k original car. I had some damage on the left side, but the rest is very good. If it were mine, theres no way I’d be stripping and painting the whole car.
My guess is they're going to flip, and, would rather represent 'complete high quality base clear' than 'left side accident damage repaired and blended with original paint'
 
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08Malibu

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Feb 9, 2014
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My guess is they're going to flip, and, would rather represent 'complete high quality base clear' than 'left side accident damage repaired and blended with original paint'
No, this job is being done at a quality shop. Pretty much whole car is being blown apart and stripped to metal. Any damage is going to be repaired, and then it will be painted.
The paint on the car is in excellent shape, but has minor imperfections here and there.
 
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abbey castro

Royal Smart Person
Oct 31, 2015
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Harker Hts TX
my 87 ss had it from the rear of the front fenders all the way to rear fender. It came right off with the paint stripper I used. Saved the places where it was applied from the Detroit winter salt rocks!
 
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08Malibu

Royal Smart Person
Feb 9, 2014
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So it was all original. Luckily the owner decided against putting it back on. I was supposed to spray the car last night after work. Unfortunately, I got tied up, so I’m on my way to do it this am.
 
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Ribbedroof

Comic Book Super Hero
Supporting Member
Jan 4, 2009
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Wellston, OK
If it was me, and the texture was objectionable, I would apply Standox's standohyde stone chip protection. Can build to desired thickness, and can be sanded smooth to remove texture, but still provides protection against chipping. Used it a lot on the front spoilers of some cars I used to be involved with, and virtually ended chipping problems, as compared to paint alone.

Of course, if it's going to continue to be wasted living in a garage, might not matter....but for cars that get driven, there's a purpose for it.
 
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