Roundie Grilles - Which NOS finish is "most correct"

[oh2ryan]

Trying to get this one sorted out, and maybe there is no true right answer. I have 3 NOS grilles and 1 NOS kidney. I grabbed the L and R grilles and photographed them below. One grille has deep, mirror-like shine and came from a later run of grilles based on the packaging of the BMW box and the stickers. The other grille is much duller in luster, and probably a 20-30 year old NOS grille that was wrapped in a paper cocoon and in an old BMW box with part number stickers clearly from a different time. My kidney grille is from a more recent run of parts, and also lacks deep shine in its finish.

 

Obviously I need the set to match very closely - but what finish do I trust. Seeing as these parts came from different periods in time and all vary, which does one settle on? Before I bond on new black slats, I'd like to hear that the experts think.

 

I removed the lens on the p/s grille and will likely remove the other and replace both with the new lenses I have from BMW to ensure they match. 

 

Thank you,

 

-R

 

 

[Mark92131]

The duller finish looks more period correct for the NOS grills I have seen.  What is your plan for the one you don't use or the set you are replacing?

 

Mark92131

 

 

[oh2ryan]

Thanks Mark. From the PMs I am receiving on this also, it appears the duller version is the more correct finish.

 

Now to find the best way to reduce the shine on the d/s grille... feels wrong to do that to such a nice piece but originality always wins for this '71 2002tii.

 

Thank you all!

[joysterm]

I agree with @Mark92131 the duller of the two is more period correct , although  I prefer the deeper shine.  
 

To try to match them up you may want try wet sanding with something like 800+ to knock down the shine in an area that is less conspicuous,  like the area for the reflectors. 

 

my 2cents

[Conserv]

I disagree with everyone! ? Well, kind of... ?

 

The day these cars were delivered, the anodized aluminum was quite shiny, certainly not as shiny as the right grille, but certainly not as dull as the left grille. Within 5-10 years, they may have dulled down to the level of the left grille, depending on climate, storage habits, and cleaning habits. The “as-delivered” finish was probably between your two NOS examples.

 

I guess that means that while you may never have seen an original grille as chrome-like as the right grille, it would take years to achieve the patina on the left grille.

 

I had the same mis-match issue with three NOS front grilles — left, right, and center — for the tii. Each grille, no doubt, despite not having been previously installed, had its own history (the lone orange-label example probably having 40 years of history). I ended up having the King of Trim re-anodize all three. Painful, but they match perfectly. Uh-oh, they’ve been wrapped in paper, and stuffed in a box for 4 or 5 years — they probably look like your left grille by now! ?

But consistency among the three grilles, at whatever level of sheen you choose, is, in my opinion, more critical than deciding whether you want your car to look (a.) as it did the day it left the factory, or (b.) like a well-loved car some time after leaving the factory.

 

Regards,

 

Steve

 

Edited April 9, 2020 by Conserv

[Mike Self]

Steve and I are gonna disagree just this once.  The grilles on my '69 weren't very shiny when I took delivery on the car, definitely not as shiny as the newer NOS one in Ryan's picture, more like the older NOS one.  See the picture below, taken on 5 May 1969 when I picked the car up from the dealership.  And my '73, which has the shallow grilles, had even a more frosted finish, although it was 5 years old when I bought it.  I don't remember any roundie grilles being as highly polished as the newer ones being supplied by BMW Classic.  

 

mike

 

Edited April 7, 2020 by mike

[Conserv]

7 hours ago, mike said:

Steve and I are gonna disagree just this once.  The grilles on my '69 weren't very shiny when I took delivery on the car, definitely not as shiny as the newer NOS one in Ryan's picture, more like the older NOS one.  See the picture below, taken on 5 May 1969 when I picked the car up from the dealership.  And my '73, which has the shallow grilles, had even a more frosted finish, although it was 5 years old when I bought it.  I don't remember any roundie grilles being as highly polished as the newer ones being supplied by BMW Classic.  

 

mike

 

And I’m not certain we entirely disagree, even this once, Mike! ?

 

With your wonderful “day-of-delivery” photograph as my evidence, it looks to me like your grilles were neither as shiny as Ryan’s right grille nor as dull as Ryans’s left grille...

The position I attempted to articulate in my prior post was that “day-of-delivery“ condition was somewhere between Ryan’s two NOS samples. Even in 1975, even in under-exposed photographs, my ‘67 1600-2’s grilles provided a decent reflection, second and third photos below — but, no, never the full chrome appearance of Ryan’s shinier example. (Original hub caps and trim rings replaced with full wheel covers from the tii I parted in 1974. I was still in my “resto-mod” phase!)

 

Best regards,

 

Steve

 

 

 

Edited April 7, 2020 by Conserv

[esty]

if you are going to attempt to "age" the bright grill, use steel wool 

[Slavs]

If you plan on using those grilles on a 2002, they are not "correct" if that is what you are trying to achieve. Those grilles were only used on the 1600. The 1600ti and 2002s had some of the slats blacked out with thin black aluminum covers glued over them.

 

Slavs

[Conserv]

7 minutes ago, Slavs said:

... The 1600ti and 2002s had some of the slats blacked out with thin black aluminum covers glued over them....

 

He mentions near the end of his second paragraph, Slavs, that he’ll be installing the black slat covers.

 

Best regards,

 

Steve

 

 

 

Edited April 7, 2020 by Conserv

[oh2ryan]

Well now I truly am in a pickle. Maybe I will stumble upon a few more NOS grilles and can find the "prefect" pair.

[jgerock]

If you can buy new - do it.

New grills purchased from BLUNT March 2012

[Slavs]

6 hours ago, Conserv said:

He mentions near the end of his second paragraph, Slavs, that he’ll be installing the black slat covers.

 

Ahh, thanks for reminding me. I missed that.

[oh2ryan]

I'll send out another inquiry. I'd pick up a new passenger side if someone has it available, I struck out for months so I began looking elsewhere. Thank you @jgerock

[oh2ryan]

Ok, to sum things up... I checked around again and noticed that the p/s grille was still NLA, and many places were backordered with no date for when a center grille could be shipped.

 

getbmwparts claims to have both in stock - placed an order so we shall see what comes if anything. Hopefully they will match the d/s and this problem can be put to rest. 

 

Thanks all!