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01/20/26: Over the last week, I found some more time to work on the truck. I first reinstalled the seat belts which went well.

The real challenge came with the passenger side door. I spent a full day to trying to get it properly aligned and reinstalled. To eliminate variables, I worked on the fitment without the weatherstripping or striker plate initially. After countless iterations—on and off the door so many times I lost count—I made some modifications, including machining the upper hinge slightly to allow it to go deeper into the door. This helped me raise the back of to door to better match the beltline.

Unfortunately, all that trial and error led to a few paint chips. The most noticeable was on the edge that I’m sure I can touch up and the rest were on the frame so a quick fix.

In hindsight, the mistake I made was not reinstalling the door before priming the body. During the metalwork, the door fit reasonably well, but it seems the opening may have closed up during the bodywork process. With the rush to get paint on, I skipped verifying the fitment at that stage, and now I’m dealing with the consequences.

The main issue is at the bottom rear of the door—it’s just too tight, which limits how much I can lift the back to align the belt line. Compounding this, the belt line width between the door and the “B” pillar differs slightly—wider at the top, narrower at the bottom—so while the top aligns fairly close, the bottom sits a bit low.

Even with these imperfections, the door was so close to fitting that I decided to press forward. I installed the weatherstripping and mounted the door for the final time. After adjusting the striker plate, the door now latches securely and closes with a solid, reassuring thunk.

At this point the rear gap is tight, the belt line sits slightly low, and the cab corner at the bottom is a touch proud—but overall, it functions well and looks acceptable from a few feet away. At this stage, I’ve made the call to leave it as-is. This build has taught me a lot about patience and process—especially the importance of dry-fitting major components before final paint.

If these misalignments bother me down the road, I can always revisit and alter the door to make it match the body. But for now, I’m ready to move forward.

It’s been a learning experience to say the least!