Hood Latch

[Ranchero50]

Must have been designed by a short guy...

[Mancar1]

A real short guy I am only 5' 8 1/2" and I have fell victim to the evil Ford Bump hood latch. Maybe that is the real reason these trucks r called BUMPS
No that can not be it, my 73 nailed me also. And it was a Dent....

[iwhodat]

Mine nailed me the first time I had the hood open

[abe]

At least the bump hood opens wide. My 54 hood is a real head bumper!

[sargentrs]

I believe the technical term is the "noggin latch interface". I've had it 2 or 3 times.

[chad67]

It depends on how hard you hit your head as to whether it leaves a "bump" or a "dent.

[sargentrs]

It depends on how hard you hit your head as to whether it leaves a "bump" or a "dent.

Good one chad!

[Ranchero50]

After a thorough investigation I think most of my problem is the springs have relaxed over the years. My hood drops about 2" for every inch of spring travel and the springs are not very strong. The hood will droop a little bit on it's own and if I'm not careful to make sure it stays all the way up it'll ambush me. After the recovery I'll notice a gap between the hinge pieces that should be tight when the hood is all the way up...

Now to find some decent springs.

[chad67]

Slop in the linkages will also contribute to droop. If you move the hood up and down and look close, you can see if there is play where the linkages connect and swivel.

[68RGR]

Over the years, I've learned to duck!

But, because I generally wear a cap with white on the top and front, I did clean the latch well, lube it lightly and remove any excess. Now, if I do BUMP it, at least there's no evidence on my hat! Hey, no one try to steal the idea I just had for using the latch outline as a hat logo! I might make a zillion on that one.

AND, more importantly, whenever I park it in the garage, I open the hood and use a proper length of 3/4" CPVC pipe to prop it open at 99% of MAX. I cut small grooves in the upper end of the pipe for the edge of the opening in the underside of the hood to sit on. The lower end sits in the left front corner sort of behind the headlight. The purists out there will want matching L & R pipes but I find one works nicely.

That way, I don't have to deal with replacing the springs, etc and I am getting all I can get clearance wise. Plus, who says new springs are going to give you MAX clearance? And, for how long? Plus, my springs are happy now!

Note: I used CPVC because it was handy. However, the 3/4" CPVC does seem to be the right diameter, stiffness, etc. while 1/2" PVC might be too flimsy and 3/4" PVC might be overkill.

And, I'm thinking the pipe will snap before anything important gets damaged if someone (certainly not me!) ever tries to close the hood without removing the prop!