The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop Gap between frnt fender and dr.

3/4 ton 55 ..My front fenders have about a 1/2 inch gap between the frnt fenders and door,exposing the cab kinda like this....... ........ frnt fender------ -------frnt door..you know what i mean..The doors line up perfect..the fenders attach perfectly..then the gap ? Is this normal on a 3/4 55..M/G

no not normal. Is the gap consistant from top to bottom? or less on top? less on bottom?

Keith

Consistant,,,right and left side, Passenger side is origanal fender. Could i fill the gap with bondo,smooth it out

It will chip off

Dam...It would huh..with the fender jumping around..My only other option is to buy parcial panels to weld in..Half fenders from Classic..I guess?? Then hide the expense from the wife..

Before I did too much to the fenders, I would try to move the doors forward some & the fenders/rad support back(elongating holes if necc.)as much as poss, you may also need to shim the rad support. Worst case scenario, you may need to move the cab forward on the frame some.

I agree with Fleet..you should be able to find enough slop here and there to adjust it. Moving the cab may sound drastic but there are only 4 bolts holding it on...a little here a little there and the gap should close up..

Keith

Thats sounds like the first option..If i can gain just a 1/4 to 1/2 inch I could live with that, Its more like 3/4 inch gap..always somthing..Thanks Guys

i have yet to see a truck with good gaps unless you build them into it, these old units were ment to work out of, the best they did is not rub on the next panel! The last two i did i couldn't enough from anything to make much difference!

1/4 inch welding rod welded to the edge works wonders!

Welcolme to the wonderfull world of fitting Task Force body panels! :hammering:
The TF trucks seemto have the most frustrating door/fender fit problems. Most likely, you're going to need to move the fenders back, and possible move the doors forward. Moving the cab won't do anything to fix the gap. There may be a issue with the core support/inner fender panels being too far forward. There is an adustment on the lower mounting of the rad for that.
It doesn't help that the aftermarket can't seem to make door wheatherstripping that will allow the doors to shut in the correct position, either. Exept for Steele, theirs fits.

I need to gain about ...well close to a hal inch. I just finished my inner fenders, I put the inner fender gaskets on and they are butted right up to the fire wall...I just cant see them moving back at all..Idont see the fenders moving back either,the fenders are sweet to the grill and with thw hood...I dont know...??? You guys sure I cant use filler??

Just took a look at the alignment..I dont see were I can make this up (gap)...The door lines are correct...if I yank the cab a bit the hood will be out of alignmant with the fenders and the hood latch.....I could take one of those 1/2 inch wide fence connectors,the things they use to connect chain link fence together and fab it to the end of the fender,not flush to the fender but set in a bit and use filler..Kinda like an extension of the fender to the door...you guys know what I mean?

There should be enough adjustment there to get it correct. Everything reads of the cab, so moving the cab around on the chassis won't improve things. Probly going to need to adjust the entire doghouse back. Do the fenders first, then re-align the grille/core support, the hood last. Try that first, rather than adding to the fender length. I know that these TF trucks can be a pain to get the panels aligned, just be patient and take your time with it. Beleive me, I've done it more time than I really care to admit. In fact, I'm in the process of doing it again, as I'm having to do a little collision repairs to the '55.

I trust your advice Bill..will give it a go. Thanks

Bill..Question about front fender seal.Is this rubber seal installed on the edge of the fender,meaning is it exposed..or is it hidden behind the edge of the fender..Hope you know what i mean.

the seals [actually 'anti-squeaks'] go underneath, won't fill any gaps .... see here

filler would be a very last resort [like someone said about adding a welding rod along the fender edge] .... I'd loosen all the front parts and see what can shift around, even a tiny bit of movement on the core support mounts might make the difference, and up/down there or the cab mounts is possible too .... the way these trucks were built, the entire doghouse was assembled to the cab and then that combined unit was put on a chassis

Bill [the untrustworthy one ]

Got it ...Thanks again

Doghouse is? front fenders etc?

Thanks,

Keith

The doghouse, or front clip, is the entire fender/grille/hood assembly.

Mike,
loosen up All 6 bolt of the front clip and move it back.Do not move the cab if you do not a thing will line up.Your gap should be 1/8 of an inch or a little more.Most of the time the top to bottom gap will be defferent on 55-59 chevy trucks most of the time.They did not spend alot of time on these trucks at the factory.Do not bond it will crack off.If any thing spot weld down the edge to colse the gap.Hope it helped you.P.S hi longbox55!!

I thought that was you, truckman!

6 bolts....I have to try to remember,its stripped right now but I am getting close to putting the front clip on, I am going in reverse now, and my front fenders will be last..or maybe i took it all off the wrong way..just tell me which 6 bolts and i will be fine.

Mike are these original fenders or the new replacements?

Mike,
You have the 2 on top of the fenders that bolt to the cab, 2 on the lower fenders that hold it to the cab.The last 2 are on ether side of the radiator support that hold the front clip to the frame.that will let you move that clip back to close the gap and make sure the clip is stright.If our clip is apart put it together off the truck and get a buddy to help put the whole clip on at one time.This will make the work alot faster ....