1956 replacement arm rests

[Hiedi]

I purchased Fibreglass replacement arm rests to re-do the door panels for my 56, and I feel they are sub-par. The originals are in pretty bad shape, so unusable. Wondered if anyone else has purchased these items, and from whom? Might want to re-purchase, depending on feedback

[Haz567]

I suspect that all the major T-Bird vendors sell the same piece. I have purchased these and the quality seemed Ok but, more than likely, they are foreign made and sometimes you get OK, sometimes not.

Are your old ones broken, maybe at the skinniest area, or maybe screw holes wallowed out, or are they rotten ? If they are just broken or wallowed they can be repaired w/ a fiberglass repair kit. If they are rotten and you can break the fiberglass with your hands they are goners.

Can you describe whats wrong w/ the replacements; twisted, wrong dimensions, etc?

[paul2748]

Hills, CASCO and Prestige do restoration work - might want to check with them for originals.

If your on Facebook, there are a number of early Bird sites and asking there might bring up some originals. Check e-bay too. You never know what you may find there

[Hiedi]

Are your old ones broken, maybe at the skinniest area, or maybe screw holes wallowed out, or are they rotten ? If they are just broken or wallowed they can be repaired w/ a fiberglass repair kit. If they are rotten and you can break the fiberglass with your hands they are goners.

Can you describe whats wrong w/ the replacements; twisted, wrong dimensions, etc?

Thanks for the reply, the left side is broken at the narrow end, and has many cracks. Beyond A comfortable repair. They just don’t make things like they used to. The area for the screw holes are misaligned and seem fairly brittle.

Probably going to look for an original, otherwise work with what I bought.

[Hiedi]

Hills, CASCO and Prestige do restoration work - might want to check with them for originals.

If your on Facebook, there are a number of early Bird sites and asking there might bring up some originals. Check e-bay too. You never know what you may find there

Thanks for the info. Will probably look for an original for the left/driver side only. The passenger side feels okay. Will confirm tomorrow.

[eboose7]

In 1956 no one could have predicted that these cars would still be desirable and around 64 years later. It was anticipated that a '56 Thunderbird would be traded for a newer model in two to three years. Ford built them with that thought in mind. Many of today's reproduction parts are superior to the technology used to manufacture the original parts. This is particularly true of the interior pieces. For instance, Ford had problems with the longevity of the Ford emblem embossment on the '56 seat. The replacement seat embossment uses a new process which is superior to the original and eliminates the associated problem. I used all reproduction parts on my interior, when my '56 was restored 8 years ago, and I have not experienced any problems related to durability.

[ranchbird]

This subject got me thinking, when ford designed the 55-57 birds how did they think you were suppose to shut the door when your sitting inside the car especially with the window up there's nothing to get a hold of other than the inside door handle, sometimes you really have to give it a pretty hefty slam. That cant be good on the handle over the years.

[ICON 1956]

I thought the same, How do you shut the door with out a handle?..I usually do is roll down the window, then using my arm p outside the door to close it. I do not use any of the handles inside to pull the door shut....

[ranchbird]

There is a guy on the ford barn website in the Swap meet late V8 for sale section that has a pair of t-bird arm rest for sale for $75.

[ron56]

I also bought new arm rest and then returned them because they weren't the same shape as my originals. I made repairs on my old ones using JB Weld made for plastics/fiberglass. I filled the old screw holes, glued the broken pieces, and filled the cracks. I did buy new replacement foam pieces for the inserts. If you can find good ones for $75 I would say do it because repairing your old ones if they were like mine would save a lot of hours.

[Hiedi]

Thank you for all the feedback. Still working on a plan. The attached photo is a comparison of the old vs. new. The holes don’t line up, nor is there much to screw into, and the sizes are different.

[Haz567]

Hiedi:
Those do look bad! When I zoom into the new ones I don't even see the bosses for the screws; are they there? These don't look anything like the ones I have purchased from one of the better known vendors. If the bosses are not there I would definitely send these back and ask for new ones.

[cwwaddell]

I am also in the need for a left side armrest. I was thinking about one of the aftermarket companies. Just wondering which one you had bought from in your photo above?

[eboose7]

I purchased all of my interior pieces from Concours Parts. The restorer had the interior professionally installed.

[cscolastico]

If I could shift gears a little bit, I need to replace the arm rest covering on my 57. I have the arm rest off as I am doing some other work on the door. Is replacing the cover a DIY job, or should I bring it to an upholstery shop? Thanks