The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Interiors Door panel problem

The original door panels on my '53 3100 were in bad shape so I replaced them with cardboard panels from one of the big national parts companies. Problem is that it rained on a hot summer day & they got slightly wet. The pattern on the panels rubbed off leaving bright white streaks. Now I need to replace them & wonder if there's a way to seal them to make them impervious to moisture? Should I use a spray varnish on them? Thanks for any advice.

I used a sealer that I use on some woodworking projects. Seems to work ok but the cotton picking things seem to always have a mine of their own and never stay flat/straight... at least for me. To keep them from warping a bit you have to make sure there is no pressure on the screws when you install. The least amount of "stress or stretch" to get them mounted will cause them to warp. Just my .02 cent.

** There is a solution to your issue with the door panels. At least this works for me very well. ** I purchased enough very thin abs plastic & duplicated the door panels using the orig. ones as a pattern then covered with the same material as the seat cover. I see no reason they will not last a life time with exposure to the elements. **

marzach,

Your logical and elegant solution is my Plan B.

Thirteen years ago, I had glued seat cover material to varnish "sealed" painted-cardboard panels that I bought from parts vendors.

Several years later, after a long drive in a hard rainstorm, the glued-on material "de-laminated" from the cardboard, starting at the edges; and, the carboard became swollen at the edges.

Your technique should work, as long as the glue between the material and the abs plastic holds. I'll look for your write-up, but what type/brand glue did you use? Would you please post a link to you write-up (I recall reading it).

Thanks,

Would a high quality 1/64" or 1/32" thick birch plywood be too thick? It's readily available from Aircraft Spruce & Specialty

** Tclederman, **I highly suspect the failure with your sealed/painted cardboard panels was water/moisture intrusion over time. ** The abs I used is nearly bullet proof and will not absorb moisture. The adhesive I used was * 3M Hi-Strength 90 * in a spray can and water proof, a little pricey but really good. You can't go wrong with this method just follow the directions on the can in detail.

** The 1/64 spruce would probably work but the 1/32 with a seat cover type material on it would be to thick to fit into the panel surround. In my opinion the ABS would be far superior.

Thanks for the tip about ABS plastic, marzach. Where do you buy the sheets? I checked out Lowes and Home Depot online and I'm not convinced that they carry what you're talking about.

DJMTruck: when I bought my AD 100 years ago it had no door panels nor frames. After reading all the posts about the problems with replacement cardboard panels I did something like marzach submitted, but with a twist. I bought myself some replacement stainless steel frames from one of the vendors and used them as templates for panels I made from light gauge sheet metal. I then covered these panels w a fabric of my choice from Joanne Fabrics and glued it on w 3M Spray Adhesive as listed above. My completed panels then fit nicely into the grooves of those SS frames. Nice thing too about making them from sheet metal is you can bend the metal panels then to follow the slight contour of the frames/doors and it holds its shape: forever. Took a bit of work but, if I can, I like to do things right the first time.

Good luck, Dave

Dave, what type of metal (sheet metal) and do you remember the gauge of the sheet metal?

Marzach, do you remember the gauge of your plexiglas sheet?

Thanks, to both of you.

Tim, I used flat steel sheet, something I just had laying around, the gauge of which I didn't check; it was fairly lite gage, like what you might have on a door skin.

Flatblu4748,

Did you paint/prime that metal sheet (with what)?

Thanks,

Tim, yes I did prime and paint the panels after I got them cut to size, w holes drilled and edges dressed down, after my test fit. I just used some spray bombs of Rustolem I had laying around.