Do bumper guards really fit this badly???

[davepl]

So I first bought a set of NOS chrome bumper guards for my '70. Didn't have the brackets or template, though.

Then I bought a painted pair on eBay so I could get the brackets and template that would have originally come with them.

When I went to start mounting them, they don't fit very well. And yes I've confirmed I have them on the right sides (they're not the same part left to right). But they sure don't fit the bumper profile well, and this is indeed my original, factory GM bumper. So far as I know anyway. It's not LMC or anything.

Here are some pics. Can someone compare to see if I'm just being too picky or is this about as tight as they ever did fit to the bumper?

The top photo is just to show you where it is horizontally (used the original GM template). I had assumed they went where the bumper bolt was, but it's about 7 inches outboard of that.

The bottom two photos show you how poorly it fits the profile of my bumper. And just to be thorough, I tried the one from the other side (way wrong) to rule out maybe having them reversed.

Now if I have them upside down, please PM me so I can run back and delete this thread before I look stupid. Otherwise I don't know what I could be doing wrong.

I could grind on them, but the flash chrome on the NOS ones wouldn't survive the heat and I'd wind up re-chroming this white pair, but want to avoid all of that if I can.

Thanks,
Dave

[undertaker72]

do you know what year bumper you have , 67-68 are different , and it might have been switched , they do fit better than what you are showing , not sure but the contours are probably diff in earlier years

[Andy4639]

I had a set of NOS 71's on my 71 when I first bought it. I got them out of Abernethy Chevrolet in Lincolnton NC from the parts manger who I had worked for back in high school. They where still in the orignal box off the shelf and I ran them until I redid the truck. I sold them to a member on here years ago. They looked like these. They used the center top bolts to attach. And as you stated they didn't match my bumper very well either. Back in the 70's they didn't really care about fit and gaps and such on nothing. Point being you more than likely could buy several sets and never get a good matching set.

These are off E Bay

[hugger6933]

Dave I remember the bumper guards not fitting worth a hoot. But a lot of the guys were gonna use them to push other trucks and cars with them so they didn't really care about the fit. Could the Gmc profile of the bumper be different from that of a Chevrolet? Could the box be marked wrong? Just trying to help. Jim

[GOPAPA]

Does the 1970 not use rubber behind the edges of the guard between it and the bumper for a filler? My 71 has the rubber filler and it takes up the space and looks ok to me ..

[leddzepp]

Rubber welting around the edges will minimize the gaps.

[davepl]

Mine's a 70, I think the ones with the rubber strip on the front were 71-72 but can't claim to know for sure. Anyone?

So if I opt to insert rubber welting, any suggestions? I was thinking I could slit open the small size of windshield washer hose, but it'd be hard to get a straight cut that would look right, I fear. I'm sure someone somewhere makes something perfect, but who and where I can't even venture a guess.

That straight, uninterrupted horizontal line of the bumper is starting to look better and better...

I do know I'm not eager to drill a hole in my minty bumper for these things. I need to come up with a solution that "pulls" the bottom end in and the top is retained by the supplied bracket but without drilling the hole. I even bought a set of rare earth magnets to ideally prevent drilling the guards as well. But haven't achieved engineering excellence yet (meaning I have only a rough idea of how I want to do it).

I'm just not certain enough about these things to drill a hole. The rubber welting would also protect the bumper finish while I decide.

Many of us are driven by the "more is better" approach on factory options and accessories (is there a '57 Chevy in the world without a tissue dispenser or red light viewer?), but they gotta be right or I won't do it.

[undertaker72]

they also make a crome door edge protected , that the parts store have you might could put some of that on

[davischevy]

I don't know about the 68-70 bumper guards, but the 71-72 had a black welt between the bumper and guard. I use door edge guard/protector for the welt. I've never used the chrome protector, but it might show less.

the son in law just put guards on the Blazer and on of them didn't fit very well and the other was pretty good.

[Joesjunk]

Original GM bumper guards don't fit on a repo bumper very good. I had the same issue you have. I had the same NOS painted guards you have. Try them up against an original GM bumper and see how they fit.

[sboris]

This a pic of the original truck mine came off of. Mounted on my bumper, they fit very similar. I have them mounted covering the bolt that goes in the frame snout. Correct, i dont know. But thats where i thought they looked best. I did try sliding them towards the outside and it seemed to "snug" them up. But I didn't like them spread out that far. Hope this helps.

[sboris]

Like Joesjunk says, betting with the gap mine shows its after market. Got it used. Just figured thats as good as it was gonna get. Good luck on yours

[davepl]

Originally Posted by Joesjunk

Original GM bumper guards don't fit on a repo bumper very good. I had the same issue you have. I had the same NOS painted guards you have. Try them up against an original GM bumper and see how they fit.

I think I already stated it's an original OEM bumper, I just rechromed it. Not a repop. If someone knows where the part number is stamped, I can double check it (unless it's under a mount, I'm not going crazy).

The fit of the original truck looks no better than mine though.

The original picture shows them in the correct location; the way Shawn installed them in the second pic is "incorrect" but saves drilling the hole.

[davepl]

Originally Posted by davischevy

I don't know about the 68-70 bumper guards, but the 71-72 had a black welt between the bumper and guard. I use door edge guard/protector for the welt. I've never used the chrome protector, but it might show less.

the son in law just put guards on the Blazer and on of them didn't fit very well and the other was pretty good.

Door edge protector! That's it! I even have a couple of tubes of those laying around the shop -somewhere- because I knew it'd be a handy plastic edging for something. Used it on my Corvette blower intake too. Thanks so much for jogging the old memory! Now I remember where I had them in the last house 15 years ago, they can't be hard to find...

And many thanks to Shawn for the original photos; I could not ask for more help than that (unless someone stops by and make's em fit I suppose!).

[sboris]

Yeah i guess my point is i think its a bad fit from day one. Will follow along to see what you come up with.

[Joesjunk]

Originally Posted by davepl

I think I already stated it's an original OEM bumper, I just rechromed it. Not a repop. If someone knows where the part number is stamped, I can double check it (unless it's under a mount, I'm not going crazy).

The fit of the original truck looks no better than mine though.

The original picture shows them in the correct location; the way Shawn installed them in the second pic is "incorrect" but saves drilling the hole.

Sorry Dave, I didn't catch that you had the oem bumper still. The set I had were nos and fit on a GM bumper better than my repo. Looks like they just didn't fit good from day one.

[Acorn]

I have the style that Andy posted in post #3. On my '70.
A little grinding and a lot of patience will make them fit "better"
Won't be show quality, But I'm a redneck that uses my truck as a work truck and actually push thing with them.

[71 super]

Your best option is, if you are going to use them still, grind the edges of the painted ones to fit correctly and then have them chromed. I have a couple of nos sets and there is very little difference from set to set on the fit without doing this. They,as joe said, actually fit better on oem bumpers but as you have already found out that is poor at best. Repop bumpers are even worse.

[special-K]

These were designed to fit the "wide" locations but I always mounted in line with frame in bumper bolt location for better looks and more strength/less chance of bumper damage. "There is no correct" with these since the truck was yours to put where you please. These aren't factory and are an add-on. Since day-1 owners have put them where it pleases them best. So, I have always ground the guards to fit. Now with repro you have to no matter where you mount. I always assumed they would fit right in the location the directions suggest. Never had an issue with the 71/72 style.