crazcorkath said: I have ordered a lot of stuff from Zip as I think their quality is good and I get the parts relatively quick. The Last detail also has excellent prices. I ordered an engine wire harness from them for my '64 vette.(yeah, I know--I also own a '72)

Doc Rebuild seems to hate Zip..

and he has won some lawsuits against them. and has pics of bad designs on parts.

I just got my doc rebuild vacuum and wiper hose kits and adjuster nut.. they all showed up while i was gone.

and from paragon I got my pivot stud that broke trying to take the old adjuster nut off.

Silver69 said: Other than Mid-America,Corvette Central and Ecklers, what other parts suppliers are out there?

I have been building a reference links page..

they need to be organized .. i believe all the vendors I have are in the list above and then some.. (though Ill be stealing those links) but there are a few specialty items in this list..

http://www.direclynx.net/~cthulhu/corvette/vette_links.html

so far i have goodluck with willcox, like their prices more then ecklers ,midamerica and corvetteamerica (willcox can supply lot of the same parts)

I've found Zip to be the best and Chicago to be the worst.

I use Corvette Specialty Center in Walden, NY.
They have a catalog but it has not been updated
in awhile.
Very helpful staff (Taylor brothers).
Corvettespecialtycenter.com

I have used Willcox, Corvette Central, The Last Detail, MidAmerica... I just bought several items from Al Knoch Interiors who had a booth at Bloomington.....When was Bloomington?.. I AM STILL WAITING FOR THE ORDER!!!! DON'T USE THEM!!!!

I am renewing my suggestion for a c3vr vendor directory..

Al Knock was once the best of the best. I think they haved slipped quite a bit.

I would highly recommend that you cancel the order because the stuff from Corvette America fits better than Al Knock and can be had cheaper from Willcox with outstanding service.

However, the soft goods interior repros all stink and you will need a lot of patience trying to get them to fit correctly. They also do not match the original grain as perfectly as they would have you believe. I would recommend that you find decent originals and have them repaired and redyed. Trust me! You will save lots and lots of time and even some hair.

If you get lucky you may even find some NOS parts but be careful there too. NOS does not always mean perfect! I found most of my NOS parts on e-bay.

I would love to find someone interested in trying to produce truly correct repros. I would love to help.

As long as we all keep buying the crap being offered to C3 owners we get what we deserve.

Good luck



Bill

I thought Willcox was selling different material until I purchased outer door window seals from Zip also. I compared, and they were all made by the same manufacturer, only Willcox was 25% less.
Corvette Central corrected a manufacturing mistake for me. Once I saw it and called them up, they sent a UPS pickup tag, re-made the pieces to exact specs, called me back after I received them, and said they would satisfy me or give me my money back. Parts were perfect. I have heard that Al Knoch has slipped a little in quality, but have not seen their product. If you look at Knoch or other suppliers, and they are growing their business thru organic growth or new market share by 12 to 18% a year, raising prices when their competitors do, etc., then they may be satisfied with that. You have to understand, these guys all see each other at their trade shows, drink and have dinner together, and they all know what the other guy is doing. There is enough business there for all of them. Their service will keep anyone coming back, low prices or high prices. If you are comfortable with a supplier, then that is the way to go. I am starting to have good luck with Corvette Mack in GA. He ALWAYS answers my mail, gives advice when asked for it, ships fast in new boxes. He also has parts on e bay. Mack @ Corvettemack.com. If you are going to place a large order, $2K to $4K, Eckler's will give you a decent discount to compete with anyone. Call them up.
That is my two cents.
Boatman

Guys, I thought Al Knoch did a great job for me. I talked with Dale Robertson at the Chevy Vettefest in Chicago (I think it was January) and set the seat recovering up with him at that time for the Bloomington Gold show. When Bloomington started I dropped both my seats off in the morning and picked them up that afternoon. They did an absolutely perfect job. The style and stitching patterns were exactly as the originals, but leather. They also replaced the seat foams, boy did that make a big difference. Color was an excellent match as well. I'm sorry to hear some of you are having problems, but they rate very high in my book.