Ventilation connector?
 

Anyone know a source for the air ventilation connector that goes between the fender and the cowl? One of mine if pretty ratty and would replace if I can find a good one. Also what do you use as the insulation that goes under the connector. The old whatever it was I do not want to use. Thanks

Re: Ventilation connector?
 

If you are talking about the flat piece of sheet metal with 90 degree bent ends that wraps around the elbow and intake duct under the top of the front fenders, those have never been reproduced to my knowledge.
But you can make your own out of 20 or 22 gage sheet metal.
1) remove old duct coupling and use a fabric tape measure to determine the width of the duct. Use a steel tape measure to determine the length.
2) You may need to go down to an auto body shop to borrow their sheet metal bending brake to bend the two 90 degree ends if you don't have your own brake.
3) Find a scrap of large diameter PVC pipe (like that used in sanitary systems). 3" and 4" are most common and will work okay. Bend your new piece of sheet metal around the pipe gradually and evenly till you get it good and round.
4) Drill three holes in the bent flanges to match the old duct coupling. Get three new speed nuts similar to the original ones from most hardware stores. Re-use three old screws if possible. I suggest cleaning them on a wire wheel and brushing on some acid etch to protect them from rust.
5) Primer and paint your new duct coupling with gloss black enamel.
6) cut out enough 1 inch thick un-faced fiberglass batt insulation to fit inside your new duct coupling, but don't glue it yet. Get an old tee-shirt and cut out enough of it to fit over the insulation with a little to spare so that the tee-shirt material will wrap around the front and back ends. Use spray-on weather-strip adhesive to attach the tee-shirt material to the insulation. Brush on some weather-strip adhesive on the inside of your new duct coupling. Lay the insulation into the duct coupling so that the bare side of the insulation is stuck to the adhesive and smash it in there good. The tee-shirt faced side should be facing out so that incoming air will not be able to draw fiberglass particles into the passenger compartment of the car. Doing this somewhat mimics the way the factory did it, except material is a little different.

Re: Ventilation connector?
 

Another way to do it is to scrap the old duct couplings altogether and replace them with a long piece of flat rubber and very large worm-gear clamps. The overlap will need to be enough that air cannot escape where the two ends of the rubber join.

Re: Ventilation connector?
 

These may be harder to find, but an old inner tube may work

Re: Ventilation connector?
 

Should have included a pic. I like the idea of a piece of rubber. I probably can find a sheet metal place to make up one but might be costly.

Re: Ventilation connector?
 

Re: Ventilation connector?
 

I blasted the original sheet metal tubes and hardware, painted them with Rustoleum and then use left over hood insulation sheeting to wrap the entire inside diameter. Worked like a charm, cheap and effective. I cannot figure out if Ford's original material was their to collect dust, act as a thick gasket because of the variances from the fixed cowl tubes to the vent ducts, or maybe as insulation. Not sure on that but option 2 gets my vote.

Re: Ventilation connector?
 

That looks good.

Re: Ventilation connector?
 

Back in the early '70's there was little repop stuff. I made some of the pieces you have circled out of light truck inner tubes. did not look to bad, and was functional.