 One
of the coolest
hood-hinge assemblies we’ve seen
is offered by
Tri-C Engineering.
This design allows the hood to open from
the front, and it’s commonly known
among the street rod ranks as an “alligator
hood,” for obvious reasons. This
hinge is different, very strong, and looks
great when it’s detailed to perfection. |
'HOW
TO INSTALL THE TRI-C ENGINEERING HOOD
KIT'
The Tri-C hood hinge
is available in kit form for a wide
variety of cars, and here we show
you how it was installed on a ’32
Ford. If you are an experienced street
rod builder with an adequate supply
of tools in your shop, you should
be able to install this hood hinge
on your street rod. If you are a novice,
you may want to contact a hot rod
shop to do it for you. This installation
required a MIG or TIG welder, a metal
band saw (a chop saw would probably
work fine) and ordinary hand tools.
The hinge comes with end brackets,
but in this case the brackets were
fabricated to work even better.
This nice hinge will help your car
stand out at a car show.
Follow along to see how
Tri-C Engineering installed the hinge
on a ’32 Ford roadster. Rootlieb
in Turlock, California, built the
sheetmetal hood pieces and designed
them so they would work with the Tri-C
Engineering hinge mechanism. |
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1)
(Above) This is the universal hood hinge
prior to installation. It includes the upper
and lower hood braces, the parts required
to raise the hood, and the small gas shock
that will hold the hood open. What’s
nice about this mechanism is that all the
important brackets and latch mechanisms
are already installed. If you are careful
when installing this hood, everything should
line up perfectly.
|
4)
After the length was determined, the square-tube
sections were marked with a black felt-tip
pen for cutting. |
2)
Using a long straightedge, the location
of the lower hood brace was determined.
With the bodyline as a guide, the location
of the hood should be slightly lower to
allow room for the upper hood section.
3)
The lower hood brace was then held up against
the body and the required length was determined.
All the hood braces are delivered longer
than necessary because it’s designed
to work on many different models.
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5)
The square tubing was cut to size
with a metal band saw. This provides a nice,
clean and precise cut. |
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