Mounting and Aligning Doors ???

[Button]

Hey guys, after months away from my 510 project I am finally back in the garage and I am now mounting the doors on my '72 two door.

 
I have no idea how to align the doors. Does anyone have any tips or tricks to get the doors aligned well? Should I remove the front fenders and align those later? I Have searched here but couldn't find anything. I don't understand how laying inverted over the seats, trying to reach impossibly positioned hinge bolts (where you cant get any light to, to see what you are doing) how you you are supposed to get these doors aligned. 

I rebuilt the hinges so they aren't sagging. Anyways I already got enough paint chips trying on my own so I thought I would ask here. I am stumped.

Thanks.

Chris

[DanielC]

Adjusting doors is as much art as science.   I can give a detailed explanation this evening, when I am not at work.

 

These pictures and explanation are on a 521 truck.  Same basic idea on a car.  Substitute the word "Car" for "Cab"

 

I wanted to move the whole door forward.  This is the top rear corner before adjustment.

 
This is after the adjustment.

 

 

Ideally you want to remove the door catch off the rear door post, or the door latch mechanism out of the door.  The door catch should not be used to adjust the height of the rear of the door, the door should be held by the door hinges.  Removing the catch off the door post is easier, you do not have to partially disassemble the door, but if you remove the door latch (lock) mechanism, you can clean and regrease it.  It will work a lot better with fresh grease in and on the latch mechanism.

 

If you have a four door car, adjust the rear doors first.  Then adjust the front doors.  After the front doors are adjusted, you adjust the fit of the fenders to the door.   If you are also removing the hood, you adjust hood fit to the cowl, and then adjust the fit of the fenders to the hood and doors.

 

When I am putting doors on a cab (car) after painting the door, it is way easier to avoid chipping the paint on the door edge if the fenders are not on the vehicle.  I put the hinges on the door, and move them around to approximately center the hinges in their range of adjustment.  It is also easier to put a door on the vehicle if the door does not have the windows, or lock mechanism in it.  The door is lighter.  If the window is not in the door,  you could reach through the window to put the bolts in the hinges through the door posts.

 

I just wanted to move the door forward.  This was simple, I loosened three of the four door post bolts, on the top hinge, and two of the three bolts on the bottom hinge.  I then slightly loosened the two remaining bolts, but leaving them tight enough to hold the door.  I loosened the top bolt a little more, and lifted the back of the door, and tightened it.  This moves the top of the door forward, and up, leaving the door slightly crooked in the opening.  Then I loosened the tighter bolt in the bottom hinge, and the door moves forward, and down slightly, making it straight in the opening again.

 

You adjust the door gap to the car to the door frame visually.  To check door fit or tightness to the weatherstrip, you use a dollar bill, and put the dollar bill where you want to check the tightness to the weatherstrip.  Hold the door closed and feel how much drag is on the dollar bill as you pull it out.  Use the door hinges to adjust the bottom of the door fit to the weatherstrip, checking with the dollar bill.  When the fit to the car body is good, and you have a fair amount of drag on the dollar bill, reinstall the door latch and catch.  Use the latch and catch to hold the door fit to the weather strip, again checking with the dollar bill.  Do not worry about the top of the window frame, get the fit on the lower part of the door good.  If needed, you can bend the top of the sliding window frame in or out to adjust fit to the weather strip at the top of the door.

 

Door hinge pictures.  The hinges are bolted to the cab door post, and to the door.  You can adjust the whole door forward, aft, up, and down, by either loosening the door post to hinge bolts, or the door to hinge bolts, moving the door, and retightening the bolts.  You can also adjust the door in and out to the cab by loosening the door to hinge bolts.

 

When you put the fenders back on, you want the front edge of the door slightly inside the fender.

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Charlie69 reacted to this

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Edited September 3, 2018 by DanielC

[Button]

That's a huge help Daniel, I really appreciate it. I got the passenger fender off and i will see how it goes.

 

Chris

[banzai510(hainz)]

have 2 people helpiing .

dont over tighten as those bolts are very weak

[]2eDeYe]

DanielC with the excellent tech! ?

[G8KeaPoR]

So I did body work from 14 yrs old till 17 at a body shop that did concourse restorations and here’s a brief easy mode synopsis. 

1 bolt the door up lightly snugging the bolts and repeatedly shutting the door making minor like 1/16 to 1/8th adjustments until it shuts effortlessly.  

2 assess the door with a measuring instrument.  If the door is sticking 1/8th inc in at the Bpillar and is. And is say 1/4inch lower at the bottom leaving a big gap open the door and adjust the b pillar latch up 1/4 and out 1/8 inch and then repeat the first step. 

3 now stick Teflon or plastic dipped paint mixers in the bottom gap and support them square to the kickplate and adjust the top in and out at the hinge using the center of the hing (door skin side on the top first leaving all bolts lightly snug.). Next adjust the lower hinge.  If the door doesn’t.t shut lightly du to the door appearing to angle in at the latch then you need to adjust your hood/fenders.  You can do that by removing all the Bolts except the front and windshield side.  Next measure from the center of both those bolt heads and write that number down.  Next measure the distance front and windshield side between the fenders.  You will want to adjust these until they are even before adjusting your hood.  Due to the low tolerances of the body panels of these cars you may have to make adjustments but be sure to make sure from the center of the car that the fenders are evenly spaced.  Afterwards repeat the above.

 

Last but not least.  Have Patience!!!!!!!  I can’t stress that enough.  It isn’t a fast process but if done right it is more than rewarding..

 

 

 

[G8KeaPoR]

Oh I forgot you can typically access the bolts from the inside side of the door while open and of course o. Your truck forward and back is adjusted it appears from inside the truck. That by the way is extremely odd to me but a lot of cars use fifferent hinge setups. Either way the alignment process is the same.  Also since my ipad won’t let me confidently edit a post.... the reason for the Teflon or plastic dipped (available for cheap at any hardware store and only needed if you are aligning painted doors) is so you can slide the door without disrupting the height alignment of the door.  I know there are other ways to do it but when aligning 50-100lbs doors when you are built more twiggy than an anorexic that was the quickest way for me.  It usually took me less than 10 minutes to do a door 20 minutes for both sides.  In the event that I had to do the hood and fenders add 20minutes to that.