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After a 3 week vacation I am getting back to my 73 project. I am going to tackle re-installing the doors, which are completely stripped down, they are replacement doors which I have already fitted up and repainted along with the rest of the car. What is the best way to go about installing them, is some of the stuff easier to install before they go on the car? Should I mount the bare doors and then install everything? When is the best time to install the weather stripping?
Eastwood sells door cradles for use by body shops for the purpose of removing and re-installing doors. They support the door..... and allow adjusting door alighnment ...? Best I remember, one costs less than $200.
I have a related question, but I'll make it seperate threat just to not steal yours.
That srep ladder for a cherry picker is a great ides. I would hang them bare. You start rolling them around on a bench trying to get windows and latches in and they will need painted again.
I had to put the doors on myself.
I kinda did the opposite of what most people do; instead of adjusting the door on a hanger, i just adjusted the height of the car wit a floor jack.
My jack is easy to control and lower slowly, so i was pretty confident in the adjustability.
I put the door on wood blocks(or a wheel dolly) with a blanket for cushioning and balanced it there (away from the car),
while I jacked up the car and lowered it til the hinges lined up(you can measure with tapemeasure)
and then i moved the door toward the hinges and with electric driver i put the bolts in.
raised the car up higher, and removed the blocks.
took like 10 min from prep to install, no paint loss.no building racks, no building hangers etc. the door is pretty lightweight when bare.
just an idea i guess. I think i might have seen the procedure here or on youtube or something. it seemed like a decent idea at the time.
i did so fast i didnt think to take a picture of my setup.
heres my artist rendition lol
I personally prefer to hand empty shells too, as you are doing.
It's helpful if you have two people. At least to get it initially bolted up.
I'm assuming you've rebuilt the hinges already. Make sure there aren't any cracks around the hinge area of the door. If so, weld them up now, even if it means minor paint touch-up.
Ideally, you want the car sitting on the tires rather than on jackstands. Because these cars tend to flex at the mid-section on jackstands.
A lot of guys put a wood board on a floor jack, with a rag on the board (to prevent scratching the paint). The jack can be used to raise/lower the door in fine amounts. Have someone hold the door initially so it doesn't fall off (although I've done it alone several times w/o any problems. I find this technique works pretty well.
Take your time during the adjustment process, it can literally takes hours per door to get it perfect. Even for experienced bodymen. Not saying it will take that long, but it 'could'. Don't rush it.
When you get it close to where you think it should be, put enough weight inside the door to approximate the final weight of all the glass and hardware.
I had to put the doors on myself.
I kinda did the opposite of what most people do; instead of adjusting the door on a hanger, i just adjusted the height of the car wit a floor jack.
My jack is easy to control and lower slowly, so i was pretty confident in the adjustability.
I put the door on wood blocks(or a wheel dolly) with a blanket for cushioning and balanced it there (away from the car),
while I jacked up the car and lowered it til the hinges lined up(you can measure with tapemeasure)
and then i moved the door toward the hinges and with electric driver i put the bolts in.
raised the car up higher, and removed the blocks.
took like 10 min from prep to install, no paint loss.no building racks, no building hangers etc. the door is pretty lightweight when bare.
just an idea i guess. I think i might have seen the procedure here or on youtube or something. it seemed like a decent idea at the time.
i did so fast i didnt think to take a picture of my setup.
heres my artist rendition lol
Spring: I've done them both ways. There's about 50 opening/closing attempts during the process of getting it adjusted right. Make sure it's lubed up properly.
Weatherstrip: Either way works. Having done it both ways a number of times, I tend to leave them off and install once everything is together, including the glass. It's more work that way crouching under the door. But putting the weatherstrip on the doors on a bench is a lot less strain on the back.
Another approach is to put the entire door together, glass and all and install it. They're a LOT heavier, but certainly anything is possible. If you use the hydraulic jack approach, once you get them on the jack, the weight is a non-issue. Some of these new pick-up truck doors are HUGE (and heavy!) and I've done a bunch of them fully dressed by myself.
Hi i have done this with them all complete had the shims in, hinges on the car loose then slid the door on closed it then tightened the hinges. that gets it dam close them start on adjusting the windows.
Lay the weatherstrip in place using blue painter's tape to hold it in the correct shape. While there, put 'witness' marks on the door surface AND on the wheatherstrip at the center of every turn and at intervals along the straight runs. That will guide you on lining everything up correctly as you work to attach it on the door with sealer. Without the witness marks, you can tend to stretch or over-relax the rubber in places so that it doesn't fit right. It's a little extra work that pays big dividends for the finished product.
P.S. Don't put the witness marks on the tape....
Last edited by 7T1vette; Oct 28, 2021 at 03:52 PM.
Completely Bare Door Install Procedure
