Suppliers

[alhewitt]

It appears that Ecklers in Florida is a catalog part supplier for these cars. Who else does this? Who have you found is a quality supplier? I live on the west coast so anyone out here do tri-fives?
Thanks
Al

[chevynut]

Welcome Al. There's a plethora of suppliers for parts for tri5s. I don't think Ecklers makes any parts, they're just a distributor and IMO their prices tend to be too high. Danchuk is another good company to buy from and they also manufacture a lot of their own parts. I've had good luck with Danchuk.

[Rick_L]

Actually Danchuk's customer service, pricing, and shipping pricing policies are not the best. They do have a very large number of independent dealers. Often you can get better service and pricing on Danchuk parts through one of these dealers. Many have a large inventory.

One thing though, it's a good idea to get an Ecklers and a Danchuk catalog because they have good photos and info - so you know what parts are available.

With any supplier, particularly when shopping online, watch to see if your order has backordered items. These tend to grown into problems or unwanted surprises if you don't pay attention.

Also, the big hot rod suppliers like Summit, Jegs, and Speedway have lots of 55-57 parts - as well as good pricing and good customer service.

[BamaNomad]

Another source for TriFive parts which most consider to be among the better ones is 'Ol 55' (or East Coast Chevys)... the same fellas you talk to today on the phone have been doing the same thing for 25 or more years, and they also have a shop where they USE these parts.

[rockytopper R.I.P 5-13-2017]

I'm buying every thing oem related from OL 55 as Bama has suggested. I am modern and like to be able to hit buy now and they only do over the phone but as Bama stated they know their stuff and will not sell you any thing on back order. I have their catalog now. I plan what I need and make an email of the parts and send them a request then call and get exactly what I need. If I don't find it I simply ask and they instantly know what I want. Very happy with service so far.
Rocky

[Rick_L]

East Coast is a good bunch. While they are not really a manufacturer, they identify needs for restoration products and find manufacturers to make them. There are many items in the Ecklers and Danchuk catalogs that are sourced from East Coast. As well as the independent dealers. They are kind of old school, as they didn't have an online catalog or ordering for a long time. They are really good for fasteners, trim clips, and similar hardware.

[busterwivell]

A West Coast supplier I've used a lot is the Truck and Car Shop in Orange, Ca. Watch out for back ordered stuff. Their catalog is extensive. Pricing is good, by comparison.

[chevynut]

For any given reproduction part out there, there's only one or two manufacturers. Grilles are made by Danchuk or Gene Smith Reproduction Parts, stainless grilles only by Gene Smith. Trim Parts and Danchuk are the main manufacturers of die cast parts like emblems and hood bars. Rubber parts are typically made by Danchuk, T&N and SoffSeal. Sheetmetal is either made by Sherman or GoldStar. Some are better than others, imo. The dealers all sell the same stuff. So I often just go to ebay to buy my parts and there's a few good dealers selling there at good prices. Examples are Muttonhollow, Mike's Chevy Parts, and Oldedays all of which I've bought parts from. I've bought from Oldedays off of ebay and they're good folks too and are located in WA.

http://shop.oldedaysclassiccarparts.com/main.sc;jsessionid=2557F9F034B0F8BCEBB8DE3FF7040B8 3.p3plqscsfapp003

I've also bought from L&T Reproductions on and off ebay. They're good folks too.

http://www.landtreproductions.com/

All of these guys sell good parts so imo you can't go wrong price-shopping. Danchuk sells seconds every now and then at much reduced prices, if you're not too picky and want parts for a driver.

Sometimes I find brand new parts on ebay still in boxes that someone bought and decided to sell for one reason or other. For example, I recently bought a new in box 56 instrument cluster bezel kit for $275 shipped that normally costs more like $325-340. The guy bought the parts and decided he needed the money for something else so he sold them. They're in perfect condition as far as I can tell.

The point is, no matter who you buy from you're going to get the same parts. So shop around and get the best prices with shipping. Eckler's is usually in the higher price range, from my experience, and I don't usually buy from them unless I find a good deal there.