16 replies to this topic

[BusheyTrader]

.........doorstep panel and outer sill attached to the car?

The flitch panel / floor panels / inner sills have been repaired and are strong. There's a 4mm bar (but not an L profile ) acting as a brace between the A & B posts.

I reckon if I keep the driver's door is kept closed so it's weight is taken by both posts, I can position the doorstep panel for proper alignment relative to the door. It's one of those combined doorstep and lower repair panel. http://www.minispare....aspx?pid=35243

Thanks in advance

Adam

[Ethel]

It should do, you'll get an idea from how well the latch lines up with the striker. it'd be better to go off the door gap around the rest of the frame.

[BusheyTrader]

Hi,

I need the benefit of your experience please.

I've just refitted the driver's door (on its original hinges) so I could position the combined doorstep / quarter repair panel in the right place for welding. But the door is a tight fit .In basic terms it's a bit too big for the hole. There's next to no clearance at the rear of the door.



The door lock hits the striker plate on the door frame and needs some effort to close it. The striker plate has to be at the bottom of its adjustment or the door won't close.

When I originally took the door off to start work on the floor and flitch panel it had 4 shims on the top hinge and none on the bottom one.


I tried not to cut too much metal out and move the reference points when repairing the driver's floorpan, flitch panel, both sills and door step panel. There's a brace about 3 inches above the doorstep panel. The shell could have moved but would the door aperture have moved equally top and bottom? (IIRC the door was a tight fit when I removed it and the hinges were seized up)

There's no evidence of accident damage but Spike's sills were highly perforated when I bought him.

It looks like I need to raise the door up and move it forward. I can slot the hinge holes in the A post to raise the hinges but how do I move the door forward by about 3 - 4mm?


I'm off to Minispares in the morning for a new pair of hinges. Any ideas as I was hoping to position the doorstep panel tomorrow?

Thanks,

Adam

Edited by BusheyTrader, 25 October 2011 - 07:08 PM.

[panelbeaterpeter]

Wouldn't bother with new hinges, if there were 4 shims at the top and none at the bottom then there have been problems prior to your involvement. Firstly remove the shims from the top, and see how it looks. You can file out the holes in the a post any which way, but if you need the holes to go up, weld up the lower section of the enlarged hole or the door will be liable to drop into the old position. I'm guessing when you do this the door will need to go further to the front of the car at the bottom. If it's just a few mm, you could sort that with strategic beating of the lower section of the A post.

[samsfern]

Personally, I'd remove the door before cutting anything out, and weld a bit of tube or box section across the opening, this will brace it a lot better than just the door, and you'll have the space to work without the door there.

[panelbeaterpeter]

I think he's already done that Sam, his second question is unrelated to the first.

[BusheyTrader]

Cheers Peter,

I just tried again without any hinge shims and the door's bottom rear corner got pushed even further into the rear quarter panel so I guess that means some hammer adjustment to the bottom of the A post.......

The door lock's still scraping the striker plate for a tight fit so maybe the top of the A post will need some attention as well.

I'll slot the hinge holes upwards and take it from there. What's the minimum clearance between quarter panel and door that I should aim for when I adjust the A post?

Your help's much appreciated.

Adam

[BusheyTrader]

There's a sturdy T profile brace about 3 inches above the inner sill......

Thanks Adam

[panelbeaterpeter]

The important bit is the part at the bottom of the window frame, where the top of the door skin goes round the frame. You want that bit to have a gap of about a pound coin. If the door isn't built up yet, do so or fill it with something of the same weight as the winder mechanism and the glass, the door can drop slightly when you add that weight. The door catch mustn't be hitting the striker or need to be pushed to become closed, if it is then it's too close. Go easy with the beating of the A post, you can only go so far before you will start damaging welds and stretching things. Worst comes to the worst, you might need to cut the bottom, move it back a bit then reweld.

[BusheyTrader]

Thanks for the advice. That's tomorrow morning taken care of. The door hasn't been stripped so its at full weight.

All of the panels that I've removed so far have looked original, very perforated and what look like factory spotwelds. As you say, there must be some hidden history behind all those shims.

Adam

[Brams96]

Are you sure the door isn't out of shape?? If the frame still has the original factory welds then wouldn't that point towards the door being reskinned or bent slightly not the frame itself being ?

[BusheyTrader]

I thought that originally. The driver's door looks unmolested or repaired. Everything looks identical to the passenger door right down to the seam sealer.

There must be something in the car's history that's caused this......


Adam

[Brams96]

It may look the same but is it straight?

[BusheyTrader]

Hi,

Both doors look good. After giving them a once over, nothing looks strange with either of them.



I slotted the hinge holes in the A post to give more vertical movement. Without any shims the door looked a better fit but still tight.

A length of 4" x 4" timber was placed up against the A post and gently nudged a few times with a 4lb club hammer. Without going mad I've now got a 1.0 - 1.5 mm clearance at the rear of the door but need more time at the weekend to work it further. I'll post a couple of pics when it gets there.

Thanks,


Adam

[BusheyTrader]

Ok,

Using these trusty precision tools, (with a notch cut out to clear the flitch panel's trailing edge)



I've persuaded the A post further forward..... I took it relatively easy with the blows then refitted the door to check clearance and repeated it about a dozen times till I was happy with it. The flitch panel / A post doesn't look like its moved at all but it must have since the door now clears the B post.
Using the pound coin measurement I reckon the clearance is there or there abouts without using any shims. The doorskin looks parallel to the quarter panel but I might have to "adjust" the profile of my home fabricated A pillar repair piece as there's not a lot of clearance.



Hopefully that's job done for the door alignment so I can offer up the doorstep for fitting.

Adam

Edited by BusheyTrader, 30 October 2011 - 09:41 PM.