Correct finish for air box clips, Air box clip finish Options

[TonyA]

What is the correct finish on the AIR box clips? Cad plated or black paint?

[wonkipop]

@TonyA - cold wet saturday down here so i did a bit of a trawl through all the L jet data i have to my misfortune compiled concerning 74 MY cars.

this could be a rabbit hole. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

what i think i am finding is that early on the 74 cars in the main have cadmium.
i have a couple of examples i can definitely trust.

this was an amazing well preserved 2.0 L and highly original and unrestored.
you can just make out the clips are cadmium plated. a little deteriorated and aged.
production date = oct 73. its a 2.0



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i took another look at my 74 1.8. yep definitely once was cadmium. looks silver now, like just metal, but you can see its oxidised cadmium. i suspect @StarBear 's is too.
his car is super sano. so he has probably cleaned the oxidised material off??? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/stirthepot.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)
an entirely worthy activity as its filling up his wine cellar with tasty beverages.
mine is jan 25th 74 build. starbears is a nov 73 build.

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but i got these two examples on file which were very original cars.
both 74 1.8s.

this one is may 74 build. and its definitely painted black clips.
and i reckon its trustworthy.




this one is june 74 build. same again, black painted.
and its also trustworthy.



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i have discovered down the rabbit hole of L jet research that the progressive changes start in earnest for 74 MY about the time the L jets start coming down the production line from Nov 73. and there is quite a few changes but they do not happen at one time.
its a sequence right through to the end of production. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

i'm wondering.
ok one theory is they randomly use black clips and cadmium.
is that a rigorous observation? ie you wreck or see enough 914s you see both but are the dates being noted down.
or the other theory is they stop using cadmium clips and go to black painted some time between jan 25 74 and may 74.
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)
they certainly do a change on the airbox during that period when they switch from a carboard hose out of the air box to a black plastic hose. i do have that date approximately pegged somewhere in the L jet files. and its i think during the LE production run so some LEs might have cardboard and some black plastic.

for instance i notice when you look in the factory workshop manual they illustrations are of a very early car. probably 1970. and they don't even use clips. its screwed together by the looks of it. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

@JeffBowlsby would know maybe about this one on LE cars.

its real nut case minutia stuff. i guess how accurate do you want to be?

but it could be another one of those oh o moments for 74s maybe?
did they actually do a change from cadmium to black paint somewhere in there during or around the time of the LE production run.
or was heinrich reaching for the cadmium box when the black paint box was empty???

i dunno. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beer.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

right. i'm just going to go outside now and kill myself.
cause this is the nut case stuff that 356 guys got into.
except......... my sense of humour is still intact. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)