I am posting some pictures of my drivers door gaps. You tube has some ideas but I wanted to pass my question on to the Bolters. So the gaps are fine as they sit, the door opens and closes without touching. After epoxy primer the gap will get vary small and in some places the door will scrap the hinge and latch posts for sure. The gaps that are not close to scraping are relatively accurate to the desired gap. The hinges are tight and do not allow the door to hang improperly. So, how would you all shrink the door?
It looks to me like the whole door need to go up a smidge. The opening is a bit tapered, so moving it up will increase the gap at the bottom where you are having the worst problem.
Even just a 1/16" lift will make a huge difference in those lower clearances, without significantly affecting the wider upper side ones.
~ Dan 1951 Chevy 3 window 3100 Follow this story in the DITY Gallery "My Grandpa Carl's Truck and How it Became Mine" 1966 Chevelle (Wife's Hot Rod) | 2013 Chevy Silverado (Current daily driver) US Army MSG Retired (1977-1998) | Com Fac Maint Lead Tech Retired (1998-2021)
If possible adjust the door so the beltline is aligned at the rear . That would raise the door at the rear opening and increase the gap at the lower front of the door/door opening . Once the belt line is aligned then take next steps after re-examining the door opening. See attached pdf . Can you post a pic of the front of the door beltline ?
Ron - - Dusty53 1954 Chevy 3604 In the Gallery Forum "You can't dance with the Devil and then wonder why you're still in Hell." "They will forget what you've said, and they will forget what you have done but they will never forget the way you made them feel."
I'd loosen the upper hinge, door side, and push the back side of the door up that in the opening. Make the gaps better. If you needed more, snug the upper bolts, loosen the bottom, then push up a little more. Adjusting the door doesn't have to happen all at once, it can be done in increments. It just takes a little time to do it.
If you're worried about the door scraping at the hinge pillar, move both hinges out just a touch by loosening the bolts holding the hinge to the pillar. That and moving the door up a bit to line up the belt line, as already mentioned should make the door fit better. Worst case scenario, you could grind the door edges and weld them to make the door smaller. but I don't really think you need to go there.
Kevin 1951 Chevy 3100 work truck Follow this saga in Project Journal Photos 1929 Ford pickup restored from the ground up. | 1929 Ford Special Coupe (First car) Busting rust since the mid-60's If you're smart enough to take it apart, you darn well better be smart enough to put it back together.
If you haven't rebuilt the door hinges, I would strongly recommend it before you go any further. "Tight" does not equate to right. If the hinge pins are heavily worn, they can become stair-stepped and seem tight. When this happens, as the door is opened, the hinge pins will shift and the door will move in a way that is not correct, and cause inconsistent movement of the door. This will only get worse with time as they wear further.
1952 5-window - return to "as built" condition | 1950 3100 with a 235 and a T-5 transmission
If possible adjust the door so the beltline is aligned at the rear . That would raise the door at the rear opening and increase the gap at the lower front of the door/door opening . Once the belt line is aligned then take next steps after re-examining the door opening. See attached pdf . Can you post a pic of the front of the door beltline ?
I saw what you were saying about the belt line. I missed that. So I went after that gap and had great success. Now at this point my gap is parallel around the door and the belt line is right on the money. I then drilled a 1/8" hole in the top and bottom hinge arm drilling through the inner door skin and completely through the arm. When I reinstall the door those holes and 1/8" rod will get me close to its permanent location. Now for the fun part, the door is to big. I don't know why but perhaps the gap was tighter in 1955.1 or GM used thin coats of primer and paint, or both, I don't know. Anyway, after epoxy primer, high build primer and paint there would be no room to open and close the door safely. Take a look at the pictures to see what I did. In a nut shell I ground back the latch side of the door 3/16" and in doing so the skins bend around lip fell off. Then I added back a new piece of metal to replace the fallen lip. Leaving the new piece wider then necessary I built on top of the new lip and in turn adding to the end of the door. My experiment was to complete 5" at the bottom of the door and see what happens. To my surprise I not only cut through the added metal but I also cut the weld.
