Herald front/rear valances

[Neilriser]

Hi to all,im looking to replace front and rear valances durring my rebuild i would welcome thoughts on metal or fiberglass please.Neil

[Paudman]

Whatever suits. It's really up to personal choice. The only thing that springs to mind from experience is that sometimes the metal strips for the rubber bumpers can pull out of the fibreglass if they're only held on with self-tappers, so reinforce in behind or else go for the bumperless look.

I prefer metal as my fibreglass skills aren't great when it comes to repairing cracks or damage, but I can sand and fill metal all day long....

[Bitumen Boy]

From my own experience the fibreglass valances available aren't quite the right shape, also the fronts can be a bit of a pain to fit as you're left to form the central cutout area yourself. I found that the shape precluded use of a jigsaw so ended up using a ground-down hacksaw blade with a handle made of rags and string🙁 Also, you're pretty much left to figure out your own mounting brackets at the outer ends on the fronts.

 

However, there are advantages. The shape of both front and rear valances makes them very effective rot traps from the inside when made in steel, and proximity to the road means frequent stonechipping from the outside which makes steel ones a drag to keep looking reasonably smart. I fitted fibreglass valances front and rear several years ago now to replace rotten steel ones - couldn't afford new steel ones anyway - but I've never regretted my choice and would likely do the same again if I had another Herald.