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A-pillar repair Question

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64rocksprite

64rocksprite

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OK folks..I searched and found lots of pictures of the A-pillar repair, discussions on aligning doors etc.
What I cannot find is any reference to how to get the skin off on the edge nearest the door. I see that is it spot welded to the other side by the fender, but the door side almost appears to be simply folded over (?)
Is it spot welded also? I just need to do the lower 6" patch..not the whole pillar. The tapping plate and its structure are gonzo..I have new of both.
What I have done so far was to cut horizontally about 1/2" below where the patch will go (but not all the way through on the 'back' or door edge), drilled out the spot welds and then cut vertically down the skin about 1/2 way to remove the front 1/2 of the rusted out skin..

How to get the back half off? I'll try to post some pics of where I am later tonight..
THanks!
 
It is just folded over to the best of my knowledge.
 
The trailing edge is just folded over. As you said, cut the outside with a cutoff wheel being careful not to cut the panel behind it. Then take a hacksaw blade and cut the edge that is folded over. They sell holders for the blades that have the blade stick out but you can do it with a gloved hand. That's it, I did the job this past weekend. Good luck.
 
When refolding that edge be careful as you'll find it to be very, very sharp. Don't ask how I know, it still hurts thinking about it. A widemetal bending type pliers helps to bend that edge over but can also be done with an adjustable monkey wrench. Just bend slowly and evenly across the width of the folded over tab.
 
Thanks all,
I just stopped as I was afraid to start tugging on that folded piece..I didn't want to tweak the metal above it.
Chris - when you say to cut the edge..does that mean using the blade on the inside parallel with the outer skin? I'm guessing it is with the suggestion of the hacksaw blade holder!
Bill - thanks for the link..I had found that page..but still was not sure how the piece was attached at the back edge (until now!)
It looks like they drilled the front spot welds first and just unfolded the back?!

I like Chris' method..less likely to bend something I don't want bent!
 
I looked at that eclectic site- good clear pictures- but I wondered, why leave the hinge and screws in place? It looks like a fair amount of surface rust inside the pillar they coated with something (POR?) . I cant imagine those hinge screws would EVER come out with the rust and POR in there
 
Soak and soak those hinge screws with PB Blaster and they will come out. I believe those are POSI Drive Screws not Phillips Head. Heat them as well before trying to unscrew. Could not find proper POSI Drive Screws locally and ended up using rather thin hex bolts of proper thread. Doors close just fine and alignment is correct now.
 
Jim,
Amazingly..like every other nut/bolt on this car (so far) I gave the hinge screws one squirt of PB..set overnight and the screws for the door came right out, which once I cut into the skin and saw what was left of the tapping plate...is amazing. The threaded plate itself was there..and that was it, the rest had turned into rust flakes laying on the top of the rocker.

I used a phillips head for the hinge screws. I still don't get the difference of POSI vs phillips..I guess I will once I strip one out!
These sure as heck looked like a phillips head..and a blunt-nose large phillips screwdriver gave a good bite on them. (or is a "blunt-nose phillips" actually a "POSI"??)

I too was surprised that eclectic left all that cancer, albeit coated, in place..what a nice fit of their patch though..didn't even look like it needed any filler at all!!
 
Philips heads are designed to slip once a certain amount of torque is reached. "Posi" drive are designed to grip and not slip. "Posi" has little grooves in the corner that are parallel to the axis of the fastener.
 
Thanks Trevor..first time I've seen that explained! I assume the bit/driver is specific then..
 
Yup... sometimes you can buy a set of "security bits" that include "posi" drives.

Otherwise, it is generally a special order item.
 
Glad you were able to get things apart. Final alignment is a little tricky but just keep at it.
 
what I use to remove screws that are rusted in is an impact driver (very handy tool)
 
Jim,
I have your how-to thread bookmarked on here..so I can find it again when the time comes..thanks for sharing that one.
 
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