Removing door posts
 

Hello,

I'm trying to remove the door posts to have them re-chromed, and re-do the felts and fuzzies.

I removed the inner trim and both fizzies.. and the post is loose and ready to come out.. but....

How do I get the outer stainless trim off?

I might be able to get the rear nut off (it's a tight squeeze), but no way in hell I can get to the front one.. The window frame/glass is in the way!

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...d9a328c533.jpg

I searched old posts and studied the AIM.. Can't figure it out.
Hopefully I'm missing something obvious.

Thanks,
Fred

I think I found the answer in ST-12.
I need to remove the window, right? :D:D:D

Yes. Got the window out.. Got the trim off.

You need to us a spinner nut tool (looks like a screw driver with a nut drive head) to reach up from the bottom inside of the door with the window rolled most of the way up. If you have big hands you will have problems. You can reach up from the large door access opening in the door panel. A small socket head on a flexible shaft will also work. Have read of other ways to get to it but this way worked best for me. Remember the process b/c you will need to put the nut back on when you put the stainless back on. Good luck ... stay patient. Thx

Thanks CANDA.. After I removed the window, I thought that I *might* have been able to reach around the glass if it were rolled up.

A chance to clean the 57 year old grunge in there! Was that once rubber?? :-)

I did the other side today.. Much easier the 2nd time you do this! Only took me about an hour.

I was actually able to get to those nuts with a regular old 3/8 crescent wrench. The sweet spot seemed to be with the window up 3/4 of the way.

A question for the gurus: What do you use in place of the putty/goop at the base of the post when reassembling?

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...e5e3d506de.jpg

Also, some cool factory codes from inside my car.. The passenger side post is dated Nov 8 1960 (smeared).

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...8f77d6747d.jpg

And this written in crayon on the passenger door,, Is this the job number?

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...762d7bfdc8.jpg

For the gray sealer go to Home Depot or Lowes. Mortite weatherstrip and caulking cord.

Dropped the stuff off at my plating shop. The guy questioned the need for masking of the ends (as detailed in Rich's PDF and threads). His response was:

"Going through striping and multiple stage plating with a part masked off will leave a ridge at the stop start point. I usually don't like to do that because it will be a weak point for moisture and pealing in the future."

He convinced me to NOT mask the ends.. and said he will test-fit the stainless after the plating.

So has anyone done the masking the way Rich describes it?

No, but it makes total sense. He is eliminating a failure point. No seam/ridge= no place to fail down the road.

Yeah it made sense to me too... We will see.
BTW: He quoted me $175 each for the posts.

Did you get all the fuzzies off the door posts?
Are the replacement fuzzie kits interlocking to the door post like the original ones?
Where do I find Rich PDF
You said you were able to remove the two 3/8 nuts without removing the glass?

Yes, getting the rusty staples and rusty fuzzie metal took quite some time.. but the underlying stainless was in almost perfect condition.. so take your time.

Fuzzies don't connect to the post.. they connect to the trim (inner and outer). The metal inserts (with felt) are held to the channels with 2 screws and 5 rivots (I think this varied from year-to-year).

Yes, I got the 3/8 nuts off without removing the glass.. Window at 3/4 (almost up), reach in the large opening with a 3/8 crescent wrench.

Here is the link to Rich's thread. It's helpful, but as I said, talk to your plater about masking the end of the post.. Mine recommended NOT doing this.

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...procedure.html

Fred

I had already had mine replated when I sent them to Rich to have my windows redone and the garnish moldings polished. Rich had to carefully grind off the plating at the ridge. It won't fit correctly with it all plated. Probably 99% off platers do the whole thing- incorrectly.

Thanks for posting. My plater said the right way to do it is to grind them down BEFORE, then plate them.. so it should be the same as original.

But I imagine you're right - lots of guys take a shortcut.

Thanks, I will start with that process, how much should I remove 3 to 4 Thou.?

closer to 30 or 40

Since I wrote that document I should comment....

The chrome plating issue is a tough one. I've done many of these and some are worse than others. The worst ones were already chromed when I got them and I believe it's because the platers are not aware of the issue. When I see joints with "drips" of copper/chrome like those pictured in my document I cringe. One slip-up and it's back to the plater.

I had a set of '59 windshield and door posts done by a local shop a few years ago and he was well aware of the issue. I brought the stainless trims with me to show him and he was the one who explained it to me. He was able to control how much copper was applied to those joints. As I recall he masked the joints but removed the masks before the last copper application, then ground/buffed the mask edges a bit before the last copper coat was applied. This left less copper at the joints when he buffed before chrome. Then when the chrome was applied it was uniform with no heavy buildup. I had no grinding requirement with those posts.

The idea of grinding before plating is another idea, but I would want the plater do that. This way he can control it based on how much copper he is planning to build up. Maybe he can measure them or make templates before his work and ensure it's the same measurement when he's done.

I'm not really sure how much anyone should grind away before plating without some advice from the plater. If the plater is demanding that you grind, ask him how much. If you do too much then the trim fit will be bad, too little, then get the grinder out after chrome.

Trim to Chromed joint issues have been around a long time and I'm sure some platers are aware of the problems that restorers have and some platers are just not aware of the problem. This is the main reason I brought it up in the document.

Rich

Thanks Rich for all of the encouragement today, I will "attack" the other side tomorrow

That seems like a great price. I was thinking it was more like $300 a piece.


I just saved a copy of Richs PDF. Thanks again for posting that.

I think it's about average from my searching. Someone offered an "Exchange" service for about $350/pair.. But I'd rather keep my originals for about the same price.

It's a local chrome shop here in San Diego. Family business.. the father was running it when I started work on my car, now it's the son!