After four straight days of sanding I took a break and tried a small job. The left side door hinges on my 56 TR3 were a bit worn so I wanted to try to repin them. At $50.00 each for replacements I figured I had nothing to loose. The hardest part of the repair was finding a replacement pin. A 7mm bolt would be the best replacement because of cost , but they are not easy to find. I ending up with a couple of door hinge pins from the local hardware store for $3.75 each. The bolts would have been about 40 cents.
The only problem with the pins is that they are thicker near the head of the pin. This needed to be turned down with my homemade lathe. Chuck the pin in your drill, then put the drill in the vise and turn down the pin with a file. I also used this method to put the angle cut on the head of the pin.
Next the holes in the hinge need to be enlarged. I used 50 grit emery cloth in my homemade hone to do this, then finish with 150 grit. Be very carefull the brass is soft so the 50 grit cloth will cut thru very fast. Do not run it for more than a few seconds at a time, then trial fit. You want the part of the hinge with three holes to be a bit tight, and the two holes to just fit.
The only problem with the pins is that they are thicker near the head of the pin. This needed to be turned down with my homemade lathe. Chuck the pin in your drill, then put the drill in the vise and turn down the pin with a file. I also used this method to put the angle cut on the head of the pin.
Next the holes in the hinge need to be enlarged. I used 50 grit emery cloth in my homemade hone to do this, then finish with 150 grit. Be very carefull the brass is soft so the 50 grit cloth will cut thru very fast. Do not run it for more than a few seconds at a time, then trial fit. You want the part of the hinge with three holes to be a bit tight, and the two holes to just fit.