I am looking for a source to provide me with a original AC 212 air filter element for a 1966. This is the LAST detail I need for my Bowtie Candidate L79 coupe. Anybody know someody who might have one for sale ? Thanks in advance
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Re: AC 212CW Air Filter Element
I think this item is in ebay auction, check # 2447633971 -
Re: AC 212CW Air Filter Element
Advertising for Bowtie parts on this forum , where most of the team leaders and a lot of bowtie judges hang out, is akin to requesting info on how to neuter oneself. seriously, i've never judged a bowtie vet that still had its orig. air cleaner element(i don't judge any bowties beyond c-2). if your c-2 has less than 2 to 3 k miles, then I MIGHT believe the $500 plus NOS element you came up with might be the cars orig. st. louis element. if its got 20 to 30 K miles on it, a nos filter might be a detriment. good luck, mikeComment
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Re: AC 212CW Air Filter Element
Warren----
The element for sale on eBay is more characteristic of early 70s elements with the square mesh, wire type screen. Mid 60s AC 212CW elements have the "squares" rotated 45 degrees for a "diamond like" appearance. The screen is still "soldered" wire, though, and not the stamped, diamond pattern of later elements.In Appreciation of John HinckleyComment
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Re: AC 212CW Air Filter Element, Joe?
Joe,
I have several 212 air filter elements. When did they do from the 45 degree angle to the square mesh? Do you have any additional hisoty on these filters? Thanks, JonComment
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Re: AC 212CW Air Filter Element, Joe?
Jon----
The "square" pattern started about 1970, or so. Previous to that the "squares" were on end. Both types used a true WIRE mesh that was "soldered" or weled in some way to form the mesh. The mesh was either galvanized or heavily zinc plated. Sometime after about the mid 70s, the screen changed to a stamped type screen with a diamond pattern. It was no longer a true wire mesh and it was much more lightly zinc plated. A believe that a few different configurations of this "stamped" type screen were used after the mid 70s.
The element material, itself, also changed. The original material was a heavily oil-impregnated material and it was a yellower color than later elements. It does yellow even more with age, so NOS elements from the 60s and early 70s are a lot more yellow today than they were originally. Still, they were more yellow originally than the current material.
The printing on the filter end seals also changed over the years, but I'm not sure of all the different scripts that were used.
That's about all I know about them.In Appreciation of John HinckleyComment
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Addendum
One more thing: I have a whole slew of these elements that I purchased in 1979. By that time, they had already gone to the stamped type, diamond mesh screen. Versions of this are still used, today, almost 25 years later. So, the true wire mesh was last used prior to 1979. Actually, I think that this style screen has been around since, at least, 1975, or so.In Appreciation of John HinckleyComment
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Re: AC 212CW Air Filter Element
Mike, you forgot that you judged my 61 fuel car for bowtie at collinsville. It had and still has the original air cleaner element.Comment
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Re: AC 212CW Air Filter Element
Thanks for refreshing my memory---neat ol vette. mikeComment
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Re: AC 212CW Air Filter Element
If I recall correctly Mike, as you put it "the most original 61 bowtie fuel car I've ever seen...other than one I built myself"Comment
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Re: AC 212CW Air Filter Element
Jon--
You may be in for a rude awakening when you go to have your car judged--Bowtie is for those parts installed on the car at St. Louis, not parts you have found/installed/cleaned and put on the car. Judging sophistication has increased dramatically in the 25+ years that I've been involved in NCRS--these guys are not easy to fool. Don't try to.Comment
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THANKS Joe NM *NM*
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Re: AC 212CW Air Filter Element, Joe?
Jon - My research has shown examples of the diagonal "chicken wire" configuration, i.e 45 degree angle, into at least the 1968 calendar year. BTW, the mesh configuration is still a square just oriented on the 45. The 1968-1969 Corvette TIM&JG states on page 43 "AC-DELCO reports production of air filters with the wire on the bias ended in calendar year 1969.' PeteComment
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Re: AC 212CW Air Filter Element, Joe?
Pete,
I have had two 70 and one 71 car judged numerous times and the NCRS judges have deducted for a "straight" as opposed to diagonal (bias) mesh. My research indicates otherwise but that is what has happened. The wording on this in the 70/72 TIM & JG is confusing to me. I'm going with the diagonal mesh w/ the BEST WAY...... etc. on the 70 during judging in 2004.Comment
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Re: AC 212CW Air Filter Element, Joe?
Dave - One way or another someone will need to find out where the 1968-1969 Corvette TIM&JG authors got the information on the discontinuation of the "production of the filters with the wire on the bias" in the calendar year 1969. Hopefully, whoever has access to that info will provide the reference and can share it. That will go a long way to resolving the issue regarding the use of that bias configuration wire mesh after "the calendar year 1969." So if the statement in the 1968-1969 TIM&JG is accurate and I add information from observations I have made on the "straight" wire mesh configuration which is based on AC A212CW SERVICE filter examples I have seen with the "straight" mesh in boxes dated '73, '74, and '77(BTW, I also seen examples with boxes dated '72), it just seems unlikely that they dropped the bias wire mesh configuration on the air filters for one year, 1969, and then brought it back for a couple of years, 1970 and 1971, and then dropped it again. You and I both know the General worked in strange ways and granted we don't have many data points from "original" filter elements used in PRODUCTION; so all things are possible; but I don't see the evolution of the filter mesh configuration going back and forth. PeteComment
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