Fiberglass cowl hoods

[MDc10]

I have a 3" fiberglass cowl hood on my truck, and to be honest I hate it. I like the 3" but hate the fiberglass. Do any of you guys have trouble with your hoods bouncing? Driving down the road the hood bounces with every bump I hit. When I get to 65 or 70 im afraid the thing is gona catch wind and rip off. Do any of you.guys have this problem? Is there a way to brace them or fix it, without spending an arm and a leg? Surely steel cowl hoods don't do this do they? If anyone could shed some light on the subject I would really appreciate it.
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[71maligreen]

nope, steel hoods are the bomb!!!

[Firebirdjones]

The last aftermarket cowl hood I ran was a steel from Goodmark. I wouldn't care to run fiberglass unless it was very high quality. Most of the aftermarket fiberglass I mess with here in the shop takes alot of extra work to block, and fitment issues to address. Big differences in quality.

[dieseldawg142]

Originally Posted by Firebirdjones

The last aftermarket cowl hood I ran was a steel from Goodmark. I wouldn't care to run fiberglass unless it was very high quality. Most of the aftermarket fiberglass I mess with here in the shop takes alot of extra work to block, and fitment issues to address. Big differences in quality.

totally agree! have a goodmark cowl on my k30 (8 years), fit perfectly & in mint shape. buddy put a glass cowl hood on his k30, took the better part of a day to make it look good, it too fluttered at speed,& because we do wheel our trucks, his hood is cracking around the hinges & front corners

[INSIDIOUS '86]

Depends on weather the hood was braced or not. Watch a factory six pack dodge go down the road with one lol they bounce too
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[Firebirdjones]

Originally Posted by INSIDIOUS '86

Depends on weather the hood was braced or not. Watch a factory six pack dodge go down the road with one lol they bounce too
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That's because those are pin on hoods only, and are meant to be light.

The factory fiberglass hood on my 70 formula uses factory hinges and latch, and is braced in certain areas. Doesn't move an inch going down the road. But if you lifted that thing off you'd swear it's a steel hood. That thing is heavy for a fiberglass piece

[Pyrotechnic]

Is the hood in question a race weight pin on, or a bolt on that uses the stock hinges and latch?

If it's a pin on, you need to have enough fasteners to begin with, and have them well placed so the hood is well supported.

If you could tell us what brand hood, whether it's pin on or bolt on, and maybe even post a pic or two we could be a lot more helpful.

[oldmann1967]

My GMT900 hood shook from day one!
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[thesickc10]

a cheap steel hood will do the same. I have a harwood fiberglass and it doesnt bounce at all.

[MDc10]

The fiberglass wasn't my first choice, but it was already on the truck when I bought it. Does anyone know of a way to brace it without compromising the integrity of it? I like the look of the cowl hoods. Where is a good place to buy a steel hood for a decent price?
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[71maligreen]

check local craigslist, thats where i found mine for 250

[SSC's76]

this girl that use to come in to the shop had a 4 fiberglass hood on a 79. it was about 2 years old and cracking around the hinges. it took flight on her one day down the highway. guess it started to fly up and then took full flight. not sure which brand it was I just was a nice guy gave her my old hood. I love my goodmark hood


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[ont_guy_38]

Hard to help without seeing a picture of the hood, mostly the underhood part. if it is a decent quality hood then i might possibly just need to be adjusted. The stops and the latch on the rad cradle for instance must be adjusted properly so there is the right amount of pressure to stop the hood from bouncing. Kinda like a teeter totter, if you put a shorter log under one side then it can rock, but if both logs are the same height and with a little up pressure on both sides then it can't anymore.There is also a couple of rubber bump stops on the rear on the hood that do the same thing. If the original ones can't be used find something else to cut and glue onto the back by the cowl. There is also the rubbers that are in the fenders that the hood closes against, all this stuff plays an important role to hold your hood. If it's just the center of the hood bouncing then is probably the quality of the hood itself in which case you would have to add some more bracing.

[MDc10]

Originally Posted by ont_guy_38

Hard to help without seeing a picture of the hood, mostly the underhood part. if it is a decent quality hood then i might possibly just need to be adjusted. The stops and the latch on the rad cradle for instance must be adjusted properly so there is the right amount of pressure to stop the hood from bouncing. Kinda like a teeter totter, if you put a shorter log under one side then it can rock, but if both logs are the same height and with a little up pressure on both sides then it can't anymore.There is also a couple of rubber bump stops on the rear on the hood that do the same thing. If the original ones can't be used find something else to cut and glue onto the back by the cowl. There is also the rubbers that are in the fenders that the hood closes against, all this stuff plays an important role to hold your hood. If it's just the center of the hood bouncing then is probably the quality of the hood itself in which case you would have to add some more bracing.

Its the center of the hood. The edges sit tight against the rubbers. I will post a few pics when I get home. Just didn't know if there was a way to put some braces in the center, or if anyone has had this problem and found a good way to fix it.
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[INSIDIOUS '86]

You can do braces it won't look the best but it will work. Get some square aluminum tubing and a fiber glass kit and sand the under hood place the tubing in such a way to reinforce the middle and glass the square tubing to the hood
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[MDc10]

Originally Posted by INSIDIOUS '86

You can do braces it won't look the best but it will work. Get some square aluminum tubing and a fiber glass kit and sand the under hood place the tubing in such a way to reinforce the middle and glass the square tubing to the hood
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so pretty much I should get a new hood? Can't have it looking bad. Where is a good place to get one and what brands are good?
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[INSIDIOUS '86]

Still want fiberglass? All glass hoods will wobble a bit going down the road. The way I suggested was a quick an easy but ugly way to fix. What you can also do is get some shapeable foam and make a kind of wide u \___/ and cover it in glass and when sanded and painted it will look factory
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[86dragracer]

Harwood here also. Very sturdy. No shake at all even when making 10 sec passes.

[85sierraclassic]

mines a harwood i think its got a full underside to it and is more solid that a stock steal hood almost needs a little work in a couple spots (been on a few other trucks) front corners busted up a little and a little by the hood hinge and needs blocked and repainted but it was cheap lol

[cory d]

i started making a cowl hood, havent touched it in months ha