[Loffen]

Just received one a couple of days ago, nice fit really close to the one I had, I even got it with flash rust...

And that is the problem, when I buy a new part for 30.00 Usd I actually want a part with out rust so I sent a mail to customer service, the answer I got was that all of the PYE51 had flash rust on them, but that should not be a problem just clean it with steel whool..

Right.. I thought to myself, I could actually do the same to my old one, I could also sandblast it and paint it, but (and there is a but here) I am doing an original restauration, if I did not care I could ofcourse paint my old one but I am after the original look without rust or the marks the steel whool would make on the tube, that is also the reason why I did pay 30.00 Usd for a "new" one..

So if anybody need a new nicly painted vent tube please send me a PM, it could take some time before you get an answer.. as I am really busy for the moment searching on Ebay for a NOS one..

[Ccass]

PY does not make the part. We would have made it in stainless or aluminized to avoid the 'flash' rust. However, if you are doing such a meticulous restoration, then you have to understand that most of the parts you get from anybody have to be finished to your requirements. Some people would want that part black, some would want it cad plated, some would want it polished. We can't possibly make everyone happy so many parts are unfinished for this reason. Also, most people who buy this particular part, buy it because they are missing the part not because they want it clean. Since you are quite a distance away, It's best to get as much detail about the condition of anything you order to avoid disapointment like this. I hope this helps.

[Loffen]

Well I could maybe ask for every part I order, but as for most people so would they look through your catalog, read the discription and look at the pictures and order the part they need, if PY said that they all have flash rust on them in the catalog it would have made my choice easy.

And I think most people would agree with me when I say that when you pay 30.00 Usd for a new tube you really do not recon that you would have to remove rust on it.....

But point taken, I know what I have to do before I make another order at PY, Thanks..

[Loffen]

Just have to give you an answer on this :

However, if you are doing such a meticulous restoration, then you have to understand that most of the parts you get from anybody have to be finished to your requirements.

Yes I am.
I will be meticulos when I restore my car, hopefulle yours to would be meticulos restored when you have a car it is made 50 of.

And I understand perfectly that most parts will need to be finished to meet the standar I want, BUT you should also understand that when you have to clean a part with steel whool or blast it you would change the original structure/look of the metal the part was made of.
Then it will not be possible to just coat it with a clear coat to preserve the part as I normally would do with a nos part or a part without rust.

Sorry I guess your answer pis**d me a little bit of, what you actually told me is that if you are meticulos about restoring your car PY is not the place for you.. nice to know..

[rohrt]

I just have to chucle a bit. I have ordered so much crapy aftermarket stuff over the years that I find it helps to have low expectation with all purchases.

I would tend to agree that $30 for a rusty tube is a bit much. I would have thought they would at least have some sort of coating on them. Then again it doesn't surprise me either.

[Held for Ransom]

I ordered the PYE51 (for one of my '74 Formulas), plus the PYE52 (for my '70 GTO) and the PYE82 (for a Trans Am). All are made close to originals (minor differences, to me). The "flash rust" was cleaned quickly for me. I had more tooling marks than anything else. Mine will be dressed up (marks removed as best as possible) and sent out for black zinc plating (as original look). Yes, it will eventually chalk up like the original, but I'm not painting mine. Manufacturer needs to make a regular Firebird pipe, but I suppose there are a lot of used ones out there.

[Loffen]

Would you buy a new shirt full of coffe spots for full price ? Sure they will wash off, but..

I guess I just thought better of PY and that is also the reason for my dissapointment, the 30 bucks I spent does ruin my budget on this car where I guess I will spend 6-7000 Usd just for the parts alone, but it will for sure do something to where I buy the parts.

[Ccass]

Originally Posted by Loffen

Would you buy a new shirt full of coffe spots for full price ? Sure they will wash off, but..

I guess I just thought better of PY and that is also the reason for my dissapointment, the 30 bucks I spent does ruin my budget on this car where I guess I will spend 6-7000 Usd just for the parts alone, but it will for sure do something to where I buy the parts.

Loffen, What exactly did I say that caused you to be disappointed? I replied because I'm trying to help you limit your frustration for your impending restoration. I merely was trying to help you understand the classic parts business and that there are thousands of parts available now for your car with varying quality and literally hundreds of vendors making these parts. Some are excellent, some are not so good. That means hundreds of parts that will not be up to the standards you are indicating you expect. I'm offering a heads up so you can be better prepared to make your restoration go as smooth as possible. Once again, MANY of the parts available in this hobby are 'unfinished' quality. We try and mention this in notes in the catalog and online but it is very difficult to have a note for 20,000 parts. Now PYE51 has a note. :)

[Loffen]

I guess from how you where addresing my in your first post, with what you said I am pretty sure you did think I was a newbee and then you made me feel pretty stupid since I did not know that you sold crappy parts that can not be used in a "meticulous" restauration.

I am pretty serious when it comes to the cars I restore and I have been doing this for over 30 years, I have also been working for one of the larger companies here selling US carparts, and I can promise you that if we got a part from a vendor that looked like the vent tube PY sold me it would have been returned asap, it would never have reaced our customers, but then again everything depends on the standar your shop has.

Below you have a couple of pics of my last project, just to show you what I do..

[Greg Reid]

Can't help but to chime in here.....My opinion is that there is a marked difference between new (reproduced) parts and NOS original parts, that is, original, factory parts that have never been used...
I would think that most of us know from bitter experience to have lowered expectations when it comes to reproduced parts that come from many different vendors of varying capabilities, possibly out of 40~50 year old dyes or are just made 'close to' the originals by some small company in who knows where...

I would much rather restore an original part (when possible) rather than buy a 'new' part because I KNOW it will fit right and the quality will usually be superior.

As for the reproduced products, I'm happy that they are actually made available by PY, Ames and others, for those times when they just can't be found anywhere else....for that reason, I'll accept the imperfections when the occur and work around them.

As for the meticulous restorer who demands the best....I would suggest that the only choice is NOS original equipment.

[Loffen]

Just have to point out that in this case I did never expect to get a NOS part or the quality of one, but I did belive it was rust free.

[Ccass]

Originally Posted by Loffen

I guess from how you where addresing my in your first post, with what you said I am pretty sure you did think I was a newbee and then you made me feel pretty stupid since I did not know that you sold crappy parts that can not be used in a "meticulous" restauration.

If I made you feel that way, then I appologize. I did not intend so. Those that know me, know that I have always been very open and informative about our hobby from the parts standpoint. I figure the more information about what it's like on the inside of PY, the better off both of us are. The fact is that 'meticulous' restorers are in the vast minority right now. The hobby has changed dramatically in the last 20 years. Therefore the parts being made available are much more geared to this evolution. So actually, I guess I didn't think you were a newbie but an 'oldie'! ;)

The cold steel vent tube is a minority situation but certainly not a rarity. Too me, if you are doing a meticulous restoration, a nice shiny painted tube would have been no better than the rusty one if the 'correct' tube should be silver cad plated.

Hope this helps.