jon69olds

Hi guys,
I have come to the part of my restoration to start ordering new trim and what not, but I am not sure who to buy from Year One (expensive), Brothers Auto Parts (Don't really know anything about them), or Fusiks (read alot of good things about them, but don't really know anything about them either). Please help. Your personal experience is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

jaunty75

Fusick and Year One have been around forever. Fusick is the gold standard in Oldsmobile restoration, but, like gold, they can be expensive. But you always get good stuff, and they sometimes have things that no one else does.

I've ordered only very occasionally from Year One, but I've never had problems.

I don't know anything about Brothers Automotive, but they cater to the 442/Cutlass audience, not the full-size cars. I've had only full-size cars.

Jamesbo

Year one is the closet to me but I never buy from them BECAUSE when you're on the phone you most likely are speaking to a Cheby guy or a Rustang guy.

When you call Fusick's your talking to someone who knows Oldsmobiles. And if there is a problem, they fix it.

Remember,

"You get what you pay for" .............if you're lucky.

cutlassgal

Dave at Fusick..... they're the best!!

Run to Rund

Another vote for Fusick whenever they have what you need. They try to pick from the best vendor if more than one make a part that they do not make themselves, saving you a hassle finding the best supplier. They are very knowledgeable about Oldsmobiles.

I have also dealt with Year One and they were very good. I did not have to get tech support from them, so can't comment on their support staff's knowledge of Olds.

rcorrigan5

Ditto on the great comments for Fusick. Check out their web site (www.fusick.com) and you can see their catalog. I did order a few parts from Brothers and Year One without any problems, but Fusick by far served me the best.

Randy C.

My442

Fusick is #1

Supercars is a close second

Parts Place is pretty good

Everyone else is worse to much worse.

OPGI and Brothers are to be avoided at all costs

Jamesbo

Tell me about it. I ended up with 2 W exhaust manifolds and some other guy ended up with 2 Z's Rather than correct the situation., they waited for the other guy to send his back. Really P. Oed me.

oldcutlass

I had really good luck with yearone and currently they have 20% of for the remainder of the day.

oldzy

I rarely order from Year One. Back like 10 years ago maybe, but not now. Too expensive I find.

The 1st time I ever ordered from Fusick, they sent me tail lights with gray overspray on the lenses. They did not apologize at all which pissed me off. Not a good first impression. Perhaps b/c it was via eBay, and some min wage kid was doing it or something. They did replace them though.

99% of the stuff I have got so far is from Inline Tube. I read all the probs with them, the lawyer crap re libel forum postings, blah blah, but gave them a chance anyway. I have got mostly bolts so far though from them, as well as brake/fuel lines. I like their online color PDF catalog whereas Fusick's is B/W. I will still buy from Fusick though if they have something I need, but I will always check ILT first. Comms with ILT have been ok so far, kinda like talking to a robot though at times (however I find most places are like that), but it is usually direct and simple to the point emails. I had an issue with them re their fuel/brake line clips (wrong colors), but the part #'s was the same as Fusick's, so more than likely Fusick would have the same issue. They sent out a few free clips that I could paint the colors I needed. Yellow brake clip, and I believe a pink fuel line clip at the rear near the tank that I needed.

Lady72nRob71

Amen.
Still waiting for my $2 door lock ferrules that they promised to have shipped back in 2007...

I never used year One due to high cost.
Used OPG once and they were okay, just not too knowledgable on Olds.
I had a big issue with one order but they took care of it just fine.

The PArts place is okay but avoid their window kits. Also pray you will not have a technical issue, unless you like participating in Monte Python type arguements...

Fusicks is great, despite the higher costs. Still less than OPG and YO. They know their stuff though - you pay for that.

Blk71SX

I wouldn't buy a bucket of water from Brothers if my hair was on fire!!

hamm36

Tamraz's for sheet metal parts.
Legendary should get an honorable mention for Interior.

67w30

Fusick Is #1!!!
In fact, Fusick sells their product to Year One!!!
Me and my father have been buying Mike Fusick's Repoped parts for over 20 years. He has been in the business since the 70's, think he said he started in '76!!! He only sells repoped parts if they are perfect! I know they spent a '**** TON' of money on the 67 442 head light doors and never got it right, so he doesn't sell them. If your not happy, he either gives you a new part or credit to another order. I really can't say enough about what Fusicks means to the Oldsmobile world. With out him, we may not have a nice repop product to still buy!!! He repops parts for full sizes, 40's n 50's cars, even dabbled w/ the 61-63 Buick n Oldsmobiles Small Cars!!! If I can't get original in really nice shape, I BUY FUSICK!! This is coming from a family that has over 5 running cars in the fleet and owned over 20!!!

OLD SKL 69

I have had good luck with Fusick's as well. Not sure why Brothers is getting a bad rap because I have ordered most of my parts through them with no problems and cheaper prices. I also recommend Legendary for interiors and Auto Custom Carpet in Alabama for carpeting.

redoldsman

I have never dealt with Brother's but I have never heard anything good about them. For me, Fusick's is the only place I use. Great folks and nothing but Oldsmobile.

spf1410

Have used:

Supercars Unlimited- Greg Rollin is outstanding!

Fusick - Great guys too!

OPGI- Not bashing them, but not "personal" like Supercars and Fusick.

If you need to ask questions and get one-on-one expert attention, I'd stick with Supercars or Fusick. They both have the very highest quality items (IMO).

Lady72nRob71

From the comments of many folfs, there were problems or bad business practices from them. You were lucky to not have had one.
They charge you immediately for everything, even for stuff on perpetual backorder. If the BO never comes in, you have to call to get your $ back. If something is not shipped, they will claim it was, and will forever claim that a replacement was sent, although it never happens. I never got a set of door lock ferrules - I bet they thought i was wanting to get a free set to resell at a huge $2 markup... Geez..........

I had issues with stuff from OPG and Fusick and Legendary, but they were corrected fast, with no arguements or hassles.

Bottom line, buyer beware...

Aron Nance

X'3 on Fusick's, been doing business w/them since 1990, and no problems. Must mention Steele Rubber Products in the same breath, they are great to deal with.

Blk71SX

Bingo!!!

O's_Car

I too have been happy with Supercars Unlimited and Fusick: several trouble-free orders from both, and both were helpful when I needed it. Brothers Automotive Products is up the interstate from me, I drove there a few years back to see them in person. Met a guy named Steve who I believe was (is) the owner, he was driving that white Hurst/Olds convertible shown on their website. Seemed friendly and helpful enough, and I've placed a couple orders with them as well. But for whatever the reason I've gotten most of my stuff from Supercars and Fusick.

jon69olds

Ok. I think I will use Fusicks since that seems to be everyones opinion, but what about bumpers? Brothers is the only place I have seen that has '69 Cutlass front and rear bumpers. Granted I could get mine straightened and rechromed, but why if I can buy new ones for a fraction of the cost of rechroming? Any opinions are appreciated and thanks for all the help so far.

cutlassgal

Check out Tamrazs parts. I believe they sell bumpers.

jaunty75

I would just follow the suggested practices that you should use whenever you order anything, whether it's online or through a paper catalog.

Always pay by credit card. That way, if the horror stories about Brothers happen to you, you can always call your credit card company and refuse the charge. You might have to write a paper letter and mail it to them to make it official.

Until the dispute is settled, you do not have to pay the money, and it is not already out of your checking account as it would be if you paid by debit card or check. Once you dispute the charge, claiming, for example, that you never received the item, the credit card company goes to the vendor to determine the problem.

Vendors do not like these "chargebacks," so there's a strong incentive for them to settle the problem.


You'll always find somebody who has had a good experience with a vendor and someone who has had a bad experience, so take all these horror stories you read with a small grain of salt. For every buyer who has a bad experience and who goes on a website or chatroom to complain about it, there's probably 100 satisfied customers whom you never hear from. So the impression left is that it's a bad vendor. A vendor who consistently gives its customers bad experiences won't be a vendor for long.

Lady72nRob71

How bad are yours?
If there is a place locally who can do them, take the bumpers there and talk with them. See what it will cost, how they will warrant them, and check to see if they have had done a lot of other similar work. See if they have any references, too.
Redoing yours will guarantee you a good fit and original metal.

Repros will have a finish that will often be just as good as a replate, and will often be made of chinesium, with the fit and final alignment being questionable. If you have an issue, I can easily predict bap will give you a hassle about it.

In both cases, paying with a credit card will give you additional peace of mind if there is a problem the vendor will not remedy.

lshlsh2

You'll always find somebody who has had a good experience with a vendor and someone who has had a bad experience, so take all these horror stories you read with a small grain of salt. For every buyer who has a bad experience and who goes on a website or chatroom to complain about it, there's probably 100 satisfied customers whom you never hear from. So the impression left is that it's a bad vendor. A vendor who consistently gives its customers bad experiences won't be a vendor for long.[/quote]

I saw an article a couple of years ago. If you do something wrong to a customer they tell on average 15 people. If you do something right they tell 3 people. Word of mouth the best and worst advertising you can get.
Larry

jon69olds

Mine aren't horrible they looked ok with the old paint, but they are probably going to look extremely bad with the new paint. I don't know if there is anyplace somewhat local or not I'll have to see what I can find. I agree that replating is going to guarantee fit, but if they want an outrageous price I may buy repops.

70 cutlass s

Have you checked this place out for bumpers.

http://www.bumperboyz.com/main.htm

jaunty75

I'm curious. What do you define as "outrageous?" I would expect to pay upwards of $500 per bumper from a reputable plating shop. If you have two bumpers to be replated, you could easily be into this for a grand. Can you find reproduction bumpers for less than that? I don't know.

jaunty75

I've heard good things about this place, and if you're looking to buy bumpers from them, no problem. But if you're looking to have them replate yours, the problem is that they're just in one place, Los Angeles. If you're in San Diego, fine, but if you're in, say, Cleveland, you've got to figure in the cost of shipping the bumpers across the country twice. That can easily be $100 per bumper each way, or an additional $400 plus the plating service itself.

This is a good reason to see what there is locally first, if you're looking to have them replated, and by locally, I'd say anything within a 100 miles or so, as you can take the bumpers there yourself and retrieve them later whenever they're done and save the shipping cost.

70 cutlass s

Bumperboyz goes to a lot of the bigger swap meets. All you have to do is click on the show dates to find out when they will be near you. Call them up before they go to the meet to make sure they will have a bumper for and to see what the price is.

On average they're in KY twice a year which is good for me. For the op they're in PA about twice a year, last time was two weeks ago. Next time will be January for PA.

Lady72nRob71

Be sure to get a set shipping price before buying the repops.
Some places like the PP and BAp will not tell you shipping UNTIl you order.
Shipping bumpers could amount to some high costs. And if there is an issue, you might have to send them back. Just a thought. Hopefully there is a place not too far from you...

jon69olds

Thanks for the replies guys! I don't think it would be very smart to ship them to California from Pennsylvania so I probably won't use the Bumper Boys. As far as local chrome shops I've found one online pretty local to me about 60 miles away. I am going to call them and see if they can give me a rough idea on price for rechrome.

Summerof84

I tried Brothers. The stories here are true. Order 10 items, get billed for 10 items, receive 8 items. One and done with them.

jon69olds

Ok guys,
I just talked to the local chrome shop last night and a rough estimate over the phone is $1,000 for the front bumper and $1,300 for the rear. Like I said that was over the phone. They told me I could bring them in and get a more solid estimate, but I'm not sure if I should even bother. Opinions please. Thanks.

vette442

Who did you talk to locally? I bought a '72 front bumper a couple years ago on Craigslist that was nicely replated at a place in Jeannette, PA (outside of Greensburg, pretty close to you down Rt. 119). I'll see if I can find their info.
Terry

jon69olds

Actually I called Pauls Chrome in Evans City. I just looked up Jeanette, PA chrome shops and came up with M & P Refinishing and emailed them for a quote.

rocketraider

Figured that was a Paul's price. They're good, but very expensive. To their credit they do potmetal better than about anyone.

Not familiar with any PA chrome platers, but Tri-City Plating in Elizabethton TN has always done a great job for me at reasonable cost.

I have no hard proof but I suspect BumperBoyz sends a lot of stuff offshore to be plated. Their work now is nowhere close to what it was in the mid 90s. I've heard a lot of complaints about peeling chrome within 6-9 months of purchase.

You get what you pay for. I'd rather pay a little extra to rechrome an original bumper that was designed and proven to fit, and is made of substantial metal.

vette442

Paul's Chrome is who I suspected you called. Nationally-known with a very good reputation for quality but not cheap. M&P sounds right - If I remember correctly, the guy I bought the bumper from said it was appx. $600 and that was 2-3 years ago. Good luck.
Terry

ROCKET VAPOR

Try Ogden Chrome. Their plating is very nice, their prices are very reasonable, and they send Fedex to your house to pick up your bumpers.

http://www.ogdenchrome.com/

When they receive your bumpers, they will call you with a exact price and if you don't like the cost, they will send the bumpers back to you free of charge.

They are great to work with, I just received my bumper guards back from them for my '70 SS and was very pleased with the cost and the "SHOW QUALITY" triple chrome plating (real copper, nickle, and chrome). They even told me if I could not brag on them to send the guards back and they would redo them for free. When is the last time you heard a vendor say that!!!

IMG_0904.jpg

They even left the factory markings, just like I requested.
IMG_0907.jpg