I am putting the front clip back together to verify fit before paint. The truck is a 47 GMC 1/2 ton panel. I had 2 sets of hinges but could only find one set. Of course it was garbage and got tossed while a dreaded repop set was ordered. When installing new hinges with the original shoulder bolts, there is too much play in the hood to hinge connection. I no longer have the original hinges to check dimensions but I am hoping someone here might. Also, any timely input on this issue will be greatly appreciated as I want to keep moving forward.
The hood hinge set came with new support springs as well. I got the hood near perfect without the springs. When the springs are installed the hood goes wonky. Looking closely I see movement of the hood at the hinge shoulder bolt connection. I took a micrometer and did some checking. Here are the results;
shoulder on original mounting bolts .368
hole in new springs .374
hole in original springs which I still have .375 - .3785 (not round, no surprise as it is worn)
hole in new hinges for the 4 different hood mounting points .440, .445, .445, .465
Play in new hinge main pivot points .010
When I place an original shoulder bolt in a spring mount hole it feels real good with .006 clearance. When I place that bolt into a hinge hole with minimum .072 clearance, everything goes to heck. I am wondering several things;
1) anybody have any idea what the dimensions are for the shoulder on the new replacement bolts is?
2) does anybody have the measurements of the hole size on an original set of hinges?
3) does anybody have an idea or opinion on how much clearance there should be at the hinge to hood mount location?
As a last resort I am thinking of having bushings installed and new shoulder bolts made to tighten up this mess. I look forward to your ideas.
