CUTLASS The Parts Place Purchase of Oldsmobile REPRO Parts for Comparison

[69hurstolds]

Here's my list of junk I bought from TPP. I've never bought anything from them before, so this will be an adventure. I'm going to see how long it takes for them to ship it to me, the shipping charges (their business model on shipping charges for in-stock parts seems retarded- JMO) Mystery charges.... what a crock. You have to buy it to find out what's in it. Where have I heard that before? Lessee, this can all fit in a 5 x 7 x 2 box, and should be able to first class ship because it's less than a pound total. I'll bet dime to donuts it will go the most expensive route possible. Or at least I'll get charged that.

I said I was going to check out these repro parts compared to NOS OEM parts. See how they measure up to size, finish, construction, etc. So tonight I got around to ordering them. We'll see how this whole escapade goes. I honestly don't have my hopes up. Nearly every repro parts place I've ever dealt with has had some issues of some sort. So I won't be shocked if something goes sideways or the chinesium parts end up being junk. But we shall see.

I ordered the 198 A/C compressor decal. I just want to see if it's worth a flip. If it is, I won't have to make my own. I already made a 622 for the 87 442s since nobody makes one. But the 198 used on the 84-86 should be ok. I hope.

Again, we shall see.

Stay tuned...

 

[69hurstolds]

If that A/C compressor decal is going to be the one I'm getting, I can tell it's already not exactly like the factory piece I have. For whatever reason, my original 85 442 compressor has the 198 decal but it doesn't have a code number stamped on it. I know they did that for many different ones, but my car for sure doesn't have that. I'll try and get a pic of it when I do the comparo.

 

[fleming442]

This sounds familiar for some reason....

 

[69hurstolds]

This sounds familiar for some reason....

Why? Has someone else already done it? I said before I was planning on doing it but never got a "round tuit" until last night. Now the waiting game starts.

 

[fleming442]

Why? Has someone else already done it? I said before I was planning on doing it but never got a "round tuit" until last night. Now the waiting game starts.

No, it was you, I thought. Something about the black background or something like that...

 

[69hurstolds]

No, it was you, I thought. Something about the black background or something like that...

That was the front bumper reproduction Oldsmobile emblems. Those emblems seem to be fair, and I guess they're better than nothing. NO idea about longevity or weather/washing durability. I have a slew of NOS ones, so I'll never need them, but the pictures I've seen of the bumper emblems were the only thing I was evaluating.

Point is, I don't know if the pictures shown with these latest emblems are actual repro emblems or pictures of NOS emblems. They're cheap enough to buy and see for myself. We'll see how close those chinesium parts are. Because if they're coming from GBodyparts, I strongly suspect there was Asian influence. But with that, comes great responsibility to keep them from just making "close enough" examples.

 

[69hurstolds]

Welp, got my first update a short while ago from TPP. Apparently the Nose Rocket is on backorder. I guess the Chinese folks won't make them due to the tariff fights? Anyway, they "shipped" the dash emblem and the decal. $8.00 shipping. Which isn't unreasonable, sort of, but is about twice what it really should be. Shipping turns out to be a hair over 18% extra for those little parts.

Typical fare, so far, GRADE= D+. Would have been a C+ but they still allow you to add and purchase a $59.00 emblem they know already is on back order, If I knew that, I would have waited. They blocked the entire order and 20% for shipping estimates on my credit card. So it went from $123 and change blocked on my credit card to $52 total. Needlessly.

They need to work on their mystery shipping charges for in-stock parts that fit inside standard boxes. If they've been doing it long enough, they should know what is what on shipping. I can understand the big stuff like wheel houses or repro fenders, etc. But little piddly parts? Kinda lame.

Now, if they charge me AGAIN for shipping a back ordered item, I'm going to be really pissed off. That's not how it works. They should give me an option to cancel before they do something like that. But we shall see.

 

[CrammerGram69]

Guess I'm lucky to still have my factory A/C Comp Decal. But it is slightly painted ontop of... I'll have to look at it again tomorrow. Might order a spare. I plan on repainting my eng bay anyway.
Oh & I found a Door Jamb "Decal" I'm going to order as well get that back on there with the specs. TPP actually has a lot of decent stuff. Ordered a pair of Fisher body aluminum decal stickers from them earlier this year and was a exact match & fit. All the others I found online was only Vinyl stickers and not aluminum like factory.

 

[69hurstolds]

After bouncing around in Atlanta for 3 days, USPS FINALLY delivered today. Just as I thought, TPP put the decal and the emblem in a flat cardboard mailer. Smart move. Just RISKING damaging the emblem.

But miraculously, it survived. The decal looks to be made of decent material, and 3M scotchcal tape, but the fonts a bit off, and it looks a tad hoky. Do-able, but you can tell it's a repro from 5 feet away. But, that's another review at the moment.

I did check the emblem against NOS. The emblem appears to be the correct overall size and thickness, but the lettering is not chrome, it's a bright silver paint. Also, the black plastic looks shinier, like it was polished or coated or something. Once installed I don't think it would matter. The chroming on the NOS emblem makes the fronts of the letters appear thicker. Interesting to note the thinner lettering fronts appear neater than the NOS one.

Two construction-wise things that I noticed right away. The mounting pins are slightly smaller on the repro. Also, the openings on the repro inside the O's and D are slightly smaller on the backside of the emblem.

Overall, it's a nicely done repro, but could easily be spotted as such. If yours is worn down, broken, or missing, it's a nice part at a halfway decent price point. But it's still not as bright and chromey as the GM one.

PICS:

Repro on top, obviously.

Repro on the left:

Repro on bottom:

 

[Gonzo1970]

Nice.. Ive probably offered this before, but my 86 GP is stock, and as far as I can tell the stickers are all still there if you need me to snap some pics, Id be more than willing..

-Gonz