Swage line alignment - Swage line reshape?

[ahfan]

Well, I'm the odd man out. I think it looks fine. It's an old classic car that was built in a time without automation and everything was stamped the same. It's a one of a kind classic of which not many are left. It looks good. Good luck.

Are in final stages of body work (in primer) restoring a 64 BJ8. Door gaps pretty good, rocker contour/gap good, door edges fairly flush with the fenders all around, but the swage line does not line up exactly, especially at the right rear. I will add that they did not line up before the car was disassembled either, and the car was original and never restored/disassembled, just in poor shape. So it came from factory like that.

As mentioned the tops of the doors as they curve inward are flush with front and back fenders on both sides, so to adjust the door/fenders to get the swage line to line up exactly would screw up the flush alignment and the door gaps.

To get it exact one would have to either reshape the doors swage line or adjust the doors to get swage alignment, then build up,reshape top of doors/fenders where they meet, and redo the gaps all over. At this point my only option is to leave them alone, or try to reshape by lowering the swage line with body filler or lead. I am sure this has been done, but I am afraid I do no have that talent and may or may not look right when done.

How important is the alignment of the swage line? Car will not be painted two tone. Car is not going to a museum piece, but we want it as correct as it can be. From the photos, what would all of you do? Leave it alone or try to reshape the rear part of the door swage to match rear fender? Opinions?

Note, I recently attended a British car show in Tampa where there were at least 25-30 Healeys. Some swage lines were perfect, most were closer to mine, and a few were worse. Yet all the cars in my opinion looked better than new. I actually bought a brand new Healey in 1968 so I have some recollection of how they came.

Thanks

jjs64bj8

 

[RAC68]

Hi All,

What would you do if you had Perfect Healey. Park it in the garage and be affraid to drive it? Just Polish it? Take it on a cross country junt and park it where many could walk around it, come close to it and possible touched it? How would you enjoy it?

I have owned my 1964 BJ8 since April of 1964 and drove it across the US and Canada … didn't make Mexico as we ran into a land slide in Arizona while driving through the mountains at night. After destroyed the radiator and having it fixed, we outran a couple of tornado reports on our way home to NJ.

I enjoy driving my Healey, taking it to reasonably-local shows, and, most of all, working on projects that have kept my Healey an active, living, part of my life. Yes, getting things to look very good is an objective. However, addressing the many flaws in the original build and even updating the original technology to improve performance and reliability is very rewarding to me … especially if I can share what I have discovered with others.

Please don't misunderstand, I have changed my Healey. However, I have also maintained a few rules. The primary rule I follow is that any change must be completely and easily returnable to original. The second rule is any change must be as inconspicuous as possible and NOT Change the Presentation of the Original Healey.

Should the swag line be perfect? It wasn't when originally built and the accuracy of panel stampings (the same forms were used from beginning to end by the Healey factory) could only be made perfect with sufficient body filler. As said previously, the key is to align the swag line as close as possible and the Healey purposefully incorporated the fender bead to misdirect the eye from any Fender/Shroud mismatch.

Just my thoughts,
Ray(64BJ8P1)

 

[Legal Bill]

I'm not sure I understand all four of the pictures, but if the first two show the front and rear of the same door, it looks like the door to fender gaps are off. The gap at the front is a bit too close. So close that I'd be concerned that the door and front fender would chip each other after the paint is applied. I would place a shim under the top door hinge. You have plenty of room at the rear shut line and the front line needs to open a bit. By putting the shim at the top hinge, the door will angle down a bit and the swage line should line up. I'd try that before I break out the bondo.

 

[bob hughes]

Bondo?

Why not try some lead work, I must confess I have only done a little myself but it does work a treat. There has been many an old car leaving the Aston Martin factory in the past with a few pounds of lead here and there to make things look right.

BTW my swage lines do not line up at the B post and I was disturbed about that in the past, but now I just accept it.



Bob

 

[pkmh]

I do not have to worry about swage alignment and I hope I never have to, but in JJs's case maybe, or even in other conditions were an alignment of some kind is desired, I am just curious to learn from the community if it can be a good idea or if there is any danger in using shims in principle, at the door hinges to flare rearward or maybe outward, as an example, say at the upper part of the firewall (or that area where the hinge meets the bulkhead wall).

I was thinking of the application of using a "soda can's material thickness," unraveled, of course. The advantages of using a soda can's material I thought is, it can serve as a workable sheet of non ferrous material, serve thin enough to custom cut and fit perfectly behind a visible mounting hinge plate without having to fully remove the hinge assembly (I've been advised to avoid doing so if at all possible), and they measuring approximately 10/1000th of an inch if my memory serves me correctly, so can be built up).

Just throwing this idea out there, not sure if it even makes any sense, but just a thought for further discussion on the table.

Thanks.

 

[Bob_Spidell]

I believe shims are used routinely, even in newer cars, to adjust door alignment. Really, whatever you do to get a decent alignment is fair game (assuming you don't undermine structural integrity). We did it on our BN2, and I did it on my BJ8.

Those who've been on this forum for a while have heard this story but my dad, who worked out of the Ford Fremont assembly plant, told me they got the biggest, strongest guy on the line--who happened to be black--gave him a 4ft 2X4 and had him 'adjust' Mustang doors with it; bending hinges or whatever as required.

 

[Rob Glasgow]

pkmh, I've used shims to position doors on my BT7 when ever I've had to remove and reinstall them. Last time I made them out of thin sheet aluminum. Maybe a little thicker than a soda can but that would certainly work and those are readily available. First time I needed shims was when I was farming in the Central Valley of California and I use shims that were made to adjust the height of mechanical cotton picker bars. They came in several thicknesses and I had plenty. Certainly not something you can pick up at the local hardware store.

 

[pkmh]

Okay, thanks for those responses. At least that's one option also available.