Kaiser Frazer Owners Club Forum

General Category => Darrin Forum => Topic started by: pnw_oldmags on November 19, 2013, 08:44:48 PM

Title: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: pnw_oldmags on November 19, 2013, 08:44:48 PM
If anyone can post a Darrin Data Plate, Body Tag, Serial Plate I would really appreciate it.
THANKS
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: pnw_oldmags on November 19, 2013, 08:55:17 PM
Found one on the Internet ... Amazing amount of stuff out there!
If the one you have is differenet please do post it.
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: Fid on November 19, 2013, 11:07:17 PM
Were those tags actually on a car or mounted for display?  If on a car, the fact that they are fastened on with bright new Philips screws as opposed to rivets leads me to believe they maybe repros or off a different car.  Interesting to see just the same. I guess I don't know and never really looked - were the Darrin tags originally held on with rivets or screws?
When I see tags fastened with screws I immediately become suspect.
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: DTort96646 on November 20, 2013, 05:19:30 AM
I'm the second owner of my Darrin #357, and we sold it new. My ID tags are held on with phillips head screws and a type of nylock nut. They are special flat head screws and my plates were not painted.
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: Terry T on November 20, 2013, 06:57:41 AM
The original screws were sheet metal Phillips pan-head.
The drove into pilot holes with no nuts on the back side.
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: joefrazer on November 20, 2013, 09:05:30 AM
Terry is correct, phillips head screws.

I owned car #30 and it had never been restored. All of the tags showed no evidence of ever being painted.
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: Fid on November 20, 2013, 07:03:54 PM
Thanks gentleman.  Interesting, I wondered if the car body being fiberglass had anything to do with the tags being fastened with screws. Perhaps it did.
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: Terry T on November 20, 2013, 07:33:34 PM
There are 2 locations for the body tags.
On early cars, the 3 were mounted on the horizontal shelf-part of the "fire-wall".  The location was on the right side, about 1 foot inboard.
Later, they were moved to the vertical surface of the "fire-wall", dead center.

I believe that the change was do to the heater.

The heaters were dealer installed, and they could be installed in two ways.  One had the inlet/outlet tubes pointing forward through the fire-wall.  In this fashion, one could readily see the lever to go from heater to defrost and one can see the front face of the heater with the KF decal.  Convenient somewhat but it encroached on foot room for the passenger.

The other instalation (rotate the heater 90 deg.) had the heater tubes pointing upward thru the horizontal surface of the fire-wall  just where the 3 tags are located. 
This installlation aforded more foot room, but operating the lever was a blind operation and one could no longer see the front of the heater.  Additionally, the dealer had to relocate the 3 tags.

I believe the plant relocated the tags to accomodate either heater installation.

Make sense??
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: pnw_oldmags on November 20, 2013, 08:14:47 PM
Terry - Do your tags match the ones I posted mounted on Red??
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: DTort96646 on November 20, 2013, 09:11:24 PM
The data plate screws are 10-32 x1/2 truss head cross recess part number GM-446607 and the nuts are 10-32 part number GM-120614. They are listed in the Darrin parts list combined chassis and body manual.
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: Terry T on November 21, 2013, 05:14:36 AM
That's true but early cars were sheet metal screws.
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: joefrazer on November 21, 2013, 07:42:39 AM
Car #30 has the forward pointing heater as well as the tags mounted on the horizontal section of the firewall. Sheet metal screws hold the tags in place.

I'll post a picture or two once I have access to the file where they're stored.
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: pnw_oldmags on November 21, 2013, 11:06:19 AM
Thanks Jim
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: pnw_oldmags on November 21, 2013, 10:59:57 PM
After looking at the 52-53 Dataplates, 54-55 Dataplates and Darrin Data Plates
They all appear to have the same fields. 
Just their tops are different.
52-53Ks say Kaiser-Frazer Corp
54-55Ks say Kaiser Motors Corp
Darrin says Willys Motors Inc
Anyone wish to take issue with this observation??
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: DTort96646 on November 22, 2013, 05:43:00 AM
Not me Jim.
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: Terry T on November 23, 2013, 04:10:26 PM
This is the other location on a Darrin frame that some cars (this is mine) had the serial number.

These dots were punched into the frame and were not visible on a dirty frame.

The location is below shock tower, right side.
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: pnw_oldmags on November 25, 2013, 01:48:20 AM
I would like to fix this Darrin ... but I cant read the data plates ... thanks for trying.
Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: joefrazer on November 25, 2013, 05:49:00 PM
Here are the tags from car #30. For some reason, I had already removed the larger trim tag prior to taking the pictures and of course, cannot locate a picture of all 3 in place. But, you can see where it attaches. The tags are mounted on the firewall's horizontal surface and face the passenger side of the car.

Title: Re: Darrin Body Tags
Post by: joefrazer on November 28, 2013, 02:47:24 PM
The last time I looked at Lana Turner's car, it was in Colorado.

And no, I did not make body tags for the pedal cars. It ended up being cost prohibitive.