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Now I am really Ticked off with this Fit/Non Fit

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KLUTZ

KLUTZ

Luke Skywalker
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To those who read my post yesterday regarding trying to get the door to fit along the rocker on my GT...
https://www.britishcarforum.com/ubbthread...p;page=0#288049
I took advice and clamped up the fender again to see what went wrong. Not good.
The fender fits perfectly along with the door and the chrome strip, but the rocker is a quarter inch in at the area i was concerned about yesterday. The rocker is 1/4" more narrow at the front then at the back where it fits. angry smiley

Here is what I have and I have no idea what to do. It is a Heritage Panel too boot.

https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v164/KLUTZP/DSCN4025.jpg
https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v164/KLUTZP/DSCN4026.jpg
https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v164/KLUTZP/DSCN4028.jpg
https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v164/KLUTZP/DSCN4027.jpg
https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v164/KLUTZP/DSCN4029.jpg
https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v164/KLUTZP/DSCN4031.jpg
https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v164/KLUTZP/DSCN4032.jpg
https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v164/KLUTZP/DSCN4033.jpg

Someone must have an idea??? Guess I have to get my trusty grinder and welder out again?
Why don't these get tested before sending out?

Signed

Frustrated and Peed off.
 
Re: Now I am really Ticked off with this Fit/Non F

What about cutting where it will be under the sill plate, then along the bottom at the corner before the return.

But I'm guessing you'd only need to cut about 3/4 the way back, pull it out a bit and fill it in.

When you get to the end of the cut, drill a hole to avoid crack doomage.
 
Hi Klutz,Can you do leading on body panels? Reshaping that to fit by leading would be a good fix.--Fwiw---Keoke
 
Re: Now I am really Ticked off with this Fit/Non F

[ QUOTE ]


Hi Klutz,Can you do leading on body panels? Reshaping that to fit by leading would be a good fix.--Fwiw---Keoke

[/ QUOTE ]


Not sure what you mean. Please explain.

Thanks

Paul
 
Re: Now I am really Ticked off with this Fit/Non F

Here's an idea. If you have any of the old sill left (and it's in fairly decent shape) you could weld it onto the new sill to take up the difference in the front. Once you've welded it into place you can use a bit of body compound to smooth the transition from the front to the back of the sill.

What do you think??? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/hammer.gif
 
Re: Now I am really Ticked off with this Fit/Non F

Paul - back to my original thesis: is the curvature of the rocker at the front the same as at the rear? Only way to tell is to make a template...if its not, release the spot welds & let it reassume its natural shape.
 
Re: Now I am really Ticked off with this Fit/Non F

Working night shift for three. I will have to put this on the back burner for a few days. (but I am sure I will get up early and dick around with it anyway)
A template should be easy to do while half asleep I suppose. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Re: Now I am really Ticked off with this Fit/Non F

[ QUOTE ]
Paul - back to my original thesis: is the curvature of the rocker at the front the same as at the rear? Only way to tell is to make a template...if its not, release the spot welds & let it reassume its natural shape.

[/ QUOTE ]

What about one of those contour guages??
 
I had a very similar problem recently when doing my 66 GT.

I was able to improve the fit by cutting the welding at the A pillar, using a pry bar to push down on the rocker, and reweld it a little lower. This corrected the door alignment, as well corrected the alignment of the fender to the rocker at the bottom. I used body filler to "move" the ridge on the rocker closer to the fender.
 
Welcome to the forum Doug. Where in Ontario are you??
 
Re: Now I am really Ticked off with this Fit/Non F

I had the same problem with my sprite. the new replacement sill was about 1/16" or so thinner and sat in on the tub. i was told many of the replacement panels are like this and lead loading was recommended (that or putty and i'm not a putty guy). anyway, your problem looks similar to mine and many of the recommendations made by previous posts sound like good options. i was also told to consider a second panel over the first one but i don't think the inset was that bad. anyway, let us know what you did to fix it.
 
You won't want to hear this, but it almost looks like the outer sill is welded too far back. How is fit at the dog-leg end? Also, remove the splash panel, thats not helping matters. There should be a weatherstrip riveted to the outer edge; looks like there is no room for this either.

Edit: do you have the fender bolted down, or just set in place? I probably fit the fenders 10x before I was happy with the fit at the sills.
 
I have 3/8 inch all the way around the splash panel to the fender so that isn't the issue but I don't have the fender bolted. I push on it and it goes flush with the bulkhead where the bolts will hold it and still the same. The probem is that the edge of the top of the rocker is 1/4" inside the bottom line of the door and the fender. The depth of it narrows as it goes to the front of the car from the back by that much. I measure on the passenger side from the inside sill to the edge of the rocker, 6 1/2" both at the B post and the A post. On this side I have 6 1/2" at the B post and 6 1/4 inches out at the A post. That is where the problem is. I need to move the front out, not up or down the 1/4 inch from the sill.

Paul
 
Sigh, cut and weld.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Sigh, cut and weld.

[/ QUOTE ]


OK /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif
 
Re: Now I am really Ticked off with this Fit/Non F

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]


Hi Klutz,Can you do leading on body panels? Reshaping that to fit by leading would be a good fix.--Fwiw---Keoke

[/ QUOTE ]


Not sure what you mean. Please explain.

Thanks

Paul

[/ QUOTE ]

Leading is a technique used by skilled body men very similar to what the unskilled ones do with Bondo. Lead is used in place of the Bondo as a filler and is then shaped as required. This makes a very permanent fix and will not fail.---Keoke
 
Re: Now I am really Ticked off with this Fit/Non F

Leading is an art! A skill that far exceeds the Bondo patch job. It takes a lot of skill and know how to do. It is not something you want to practice with on your restorable car. It takes a long time to learn to do properly. You can warp, shrink, and/or expand the sheet metal if the wrong heat is applied. Not enough heat and the lead wont stick. It has to be paddled on with wood paddles. It is a dying art that would be nice to learn, but I wouldn't advise it in this situation. PJ
 
Re: Now I am really Ticked off with this Fit/Non F

Sounds like it's time to cut/reweld.

I've a supply of lead I would like to be rid of... along with some paddles. Seems nobody uses it anymore.
 
Re: Now I am really Ticked off with this Fit/Non F

Think I still have my paddles someplace. The old man who taught me made me carve my own while I was watching him do magic. It's not bad on a flat serface but oh on the side of the car, everything must be just right.

Wax is used on the paddles to keep em slick.
 
Re: Now I am really Ticked off with this Fit/Non F

I've done alot of lead work on my TR3 resto I'm doing. It's really not that difficult to learn. I learned by trial and error on this car. The only place I'm reluctant to use it is on very flat sections, as there is a tendency of the panel to want to get out of shape. If there are any crowns etc. the sheet metal stays put. Vertical surfaces are a bit more challanging, but after you sweep up about a pound of lead from the floor, you get the hang of keeping it on the panel. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/jester.gif I find the lead work much more satifying to do then bondo. No dust to deal with either, as everything is leveled with vixen files.
 
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