1974 Carrera Coupe - RHD, UK car

[Ferry Man]

Having decided that I didn't like the rather sculptural affair that was serving duty as a rear spoiler I found myself requiring a ducktail.

It was always going to be difficult to find a genuine ducktail.
It’s a rare part.

The Porsche ducktail was only used on the ’73 RS and the ’74 Carrera.
And every RS owner wants an original tail for their cars.
And RS owners can afford to pay big money to get details like that correct.
So it was never going to be easy or cheap.

[Ferry Man]

I did considerable research on identifying genuine Porsche ducktails and I’m pretty confident I know my way around the minefield.
That insight is largely thanks to various informative threads on Pelican/Early911S/IB/DDK, etc.
So I set about trying to find one.

Well, a likely candidate eventually surfaced on a well know internet auction site and I set about bidding (this was quite a few years ago).
The pictures and descriptive seemed promising enough but it was difficult to confidently determine it was a period correct Porsche part.
I made sure I won the auction and the tail duly arrived.

Well, it wasn’t good (you could hear that coming couldn’t you?).
Or rather it was good & genuine but bad & rusty.

I feel the ducktail had been sold with an element of deception in the listing.
That appraisal may be unfair on the seller but all the photos showed the good parts and none of the photos (or text) told how badly corroded the frame was.
The vendor would have known the tail was pretty much scrap in that condition and they were a Porsche specialist (albeit one that concentrates on the later cars).
I was a little aggrieved but such are the pitfalls of buying blind on the web.

[Ferry Man]

Once cleaned up a little the duck looked like this:

[Ferry Man]

However, once I’d shrugged my shoulders and lamented that the world is not full of good guys I realised I did have a proper, 1973 Porsche manufactured ducktail (I’d say 1973 because it had the cut-outs for number plate lights).

The shape was correct, the fibreglassing just right, the weave of the matting good, the latch return and many other details as per others I’d seen.
I was happy it was real. But it was very rusty.

The steel frame had crumbled away along the bottom edge and a patch repair was not going to be possible.
Also there were numerous holes in the fibreglass (after years of various drilling to install badges or lights), chips in the gel coat edges and broken tabs around the open aperture.

[Ferry Man]

[Ferry Man]

[Ferry Man]

And here is where the help of Andy Haas (‘haasad’ on the forum) became so valuable.
Andy had previously split a ‘glass duck from its frame and I asked him to help.
He did some great work.

In the spirit of DDK camaraderie we traded skills and it cost me nothing (I designed and printed the graphics for his wonderful ‘Larousse’ style car).
Andy got the old frame ground off and prepped for a replacement:

[Ferry Man]

I was then able to purchase a reproduction frame from Germany.
They are beautifully made, an excellent copy.

[Ferry Man]

I purchased an aluminium version. It really is featherweight, wonderfully light.

You'll note it's correct for the 1974 model year cars (no cut-outs for number plate lights - they'd moved to the bumper overriders by then).

[Highfield]

I thought for one moment that Andy was going to pop it in to that washing machine in the photo with some magic powder and voila - good as new.

However the thread is moving nicely. I think Yoda was asking for a source of ducktails the other day on a separate thread ?

Ian

[210bhp]

That's going to work out quite well Paul. That's a 73 production duck all right but word is that a few found their way onto 74MY cars so retro fitting a 74MY frame to a 73MY duck is possibly what they might even have done at the factory for such an early chassis number as yours. Result!

Regards
Mike

[Ferry Man]

That's a 73 production duck all right

retro fitting a 74MY frame to a 73MY duck is possibly what they might even have done at the factory for such an early chassis number as yours.

Thanks Mike. I was chuffed to find a real Porsche ducktail and more so once I discovered the repro frames being manufactured.
They really are excellent quality.

[Ferry Man]

[Guy]

That's going to work out quite well Paul. That's a 73 production duck all right but word is that a few found their way onto 74MY cars so retro fitting a 74MY frame to a 73MY duck is possibly what they might even have done at the factory for such an early chassis number as yours. Result!

Regards
Mike

Not for Paul's they didn't as it was silver and the ducktail was not fitted with metallic colours.

[Mitch]

I'm enjoying the way this thread is being woven... great stories along the way and I'm learning a lot.

I admire your commitment Paul and it'll lead to a wonderful result, keep going!

Thought I'd look up the definition of committed, it all seems to apply!

com·mitted

[kuh-mit] verb, com·mit, com·mit·ting.
verb (used with object)
1. to consign for preservation: to commit to memory.
2. bound or obligated, as under a pledge to a particular cause, action, or attitude
3. Paul Madden