FORD grill letter installation - Template Provided

[MidwestTexan]

I think the red ford grill letters really make the front end pop, so I decided to give it a try. I couldnt find a template online and after thinking about it, I thought making my own would be the easiest for me... I basically pressed the letter on a manila folder to imprint where the holes would be. I then used a leather punch to make the holes then pushed the letter on. I traced around it and cut them out.

Hole placement was my biggest concern and this worked pretty well. I drew a center line on the grill with a pencil so I could line them up and down although the mounting pegs are not centered on the letter so it didn't help much. I also drew a horizontal line on each side of each letter on the grill so I could line the templates up left and right. That helped a lot.

I then said a prayer, center punched and drilled them out!

I think they turned out pretty good. They look a little crooked in the pic due to shadows although they look perfect in person.

I've attached a scanned pdf of the templates I've made. Hopefully it'll help a fellow bronco brother/sister!

 

[Broncomt]

That is fantastic!

 

[bronkenn]

They do dress the grill up. Good tip. Ken

 

[SevenT]

Grille letters

MidwestTexan,

You mean to say that your grille did not already have the FORD letters on it with the holes for the larger letters? Is your grille factory or reproduction?

v/r,

SevenT

 

[MidwestTexan]

MidwestTexan,

You mean to say that your grille did not already have the FORD letters on it with the holes for the larger letters? Is your grille factory or reproduction?

v/r,

SevenT

Correct, it did not have the holes. I believe it’s the factory grill although there’s only a certain trim package that came with the holes pre-drilled in the grill. Unfortunately mine did not which is why I made the templates.

 

[sykanr0ng]

MidwestTexan,

You mean to say that your grille did not already have the FORD letters on it with the holes for the larger letters? Is your grille factory or reproduction?

v/r,

SevenT

All the grilles have the raised letters FORD stamped in the steel.
Only some have the chrome letters with the red.
The ones without the chrome letters do not have holes for the letters, they would not look as good if they had holes with nothing in the holes.

 

[West Tn Dawg]

I agree Texan, they look great to me. It is one of the first things I have done to all my Broncos. Put a set on Skip a while back and just put a set on Pinky! Basically did the same thing you did by making a template.
Got the F on Pinky a little crooked but didn't notice it till I was done. With Vintage Air, it's a bitch to get to the nuts on the F. I'm going to take it off soon and drill out the hole a little so I can straighten it out.

 

[D.R.Y.]

Thanks for the shove in the right direction. I got the letters and have been in a dilemma if I should put them on or not. Be concerned about getting them straight. So looks like I'll be getting them on very soon. Thanks for sharing the template. Let you know how it turns out.

 

[Jc.av8r]

Looks good! I was torn, but for now I decided to just use the vinyl stickers. I really like the look of these drill on caps thought...they pop well.

 

[AZ73]

Thanks for the excellent suggestion. I put my vinyl "FORD" on the back and it got completely screwed up. The Vinyl stretched as I pulled the paper off it and wouldn't go on without folds, crooked bottoms, and air bubbles. Made me just delay drilling holes for the front, but I think you have a great idea there. I was trying to line up the whole "Ford" before pushing through the paper, but I like your letter cut out much better.

 

[JefeAZ]

Thanks for the excellent suggestion. I put my vinyl "FORD" on the back and it got completely screwed up. The Vinyl stretched as I pulled the paper off it and wouldn't go on without folds, crooked bottoms, and air bubbles. Made me just delay drilling holes for the front, but I think you have a great idea there. I was trying to line up the whole "Ford" before pushing through the paper, but I like your letter cut out much better.

Im thinking about having the paint shop put the vinyl letters on before clearcoat but then Im stuck with that. Hmmm

 

[Tosh]

I am about to install my grill letters as well and thought I create a pdf template for everyone to use. You can print it out. There is a line with dimensions for reference, as it needs to be printed with 100% size. Please check the fit before use, don't know if all grill letters are the exact same size. Hope this helps.

 

[Ecavalino]

I think the red ford grill letters really make the front end pop, so I decided to give it a try. I couldnt find a template online and after thinking about it, I thought making my own would be the easiest for me... I basically pressed the letter on a manila folder to imprint where the holes would be. I then used a leather punch to make the holes then pushed the letter on. I traced around it and cut them out.

Hole placement was my biggest concern and this worked pretty well. I drew a center line on the grill with a pencil so I could line them up and down although the mounting pegs are not centered on the letter so it didn't help much. I also drew a horizontal line on each side of each letter on the grill so I could line the templates up left and right. That helped a lot.

I then said a prayer, center punched and drilled them out!

I think they turned out pretty good. They look a little crooked in the pic due to shadows although they look perfect in person.

I've attached a scanned pdf of the templates I've made. Hopefully it'll help a fellow bronco brother/sister!

I know hit is older port, but just got these for my ‘74 …. What size drill bit do you recommend?

 

[Jc.av8r]

I've been wanting to install these FORD grill letters for years, always held back by the fear of drilling holes into my already finished grill.

I did all the research I could, took my time, and came up with a method that worked for me. Laser level comes in handy again!

The only difficult letter was the 'F'. The rest are fairly straightforward. Very satisfied with the outcome and dare I say proud of myself for not screwing it up!

 

[reamer]

to actually get the letters to sit flat/flush, you need to grind down the original "F" and If I remember correctly the "R" too.

 

[Jc.av8r]

to actually get the letters to sit flat/flush, you need to grind down the original "F" and If I remember correctly the "R" too.

Yup, that was the only surprise. A quick job with the Dremel, they're all flush now.