The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop Doors front pillar bent - door not closing easily

It's been a while since I've touched the truck, we just moved and last night I finally got to open the toolbox after a long break!

Passenger side door - over extended and did <THIS>
As a result, the door had to be closed with force to keep it latched.

I removed the <COWL> to replace, and get a look at what was going on with the pillar.

It's very hard to see a bend in the pillar itself. However, the hinge does look like it has a slight bend.

<Inside Pillar>

<Hinge Socket>

My big question is - how should I approach bending this back? Will it be trial and error with test fitting of the door?

Also looking for advice on how to bend it back, and how NOT to! Are there points I can measure to gauge how far it was bent in?

Any and all advice welcome.

Thanks - Mark
http://1949chevy.com/vented-cowl-replacement/

I'd be tempted to tack weld some bars to it for leverage and see how close I could get it. A template of the other side might help getting proper curve/angle.

I never thought of that... I was leaning towards a crow bar in the hinge socket... But I like the tack weld idea, and template.

Create a template with just some light wood? Balsa maybe.

Balsa, cardboard... Whatever leaves you with a good guide edge. I made some sanding blocks that conform to the curve I was working on out of 2" insulating board... Same idea.

Is this a common issue? I saw a lot of AD's with bent sheet metal just ahead of the door (mostly driver side) in a yard I was in a few weeks ago. The owner never really noticed until I pointed it out. Looks like a lot of drivers backed into a pole or something and over-extended the hinge

It is called a fence post crease, slow moving truck, door open as the previous owner was backing it up. Hit the post, door bends back...it is very common.

Most if not all these old trucks have or had some damage from the doors/hinges being over extended. Once the outter cowl panel has been removed the pillar metal can be easily worked/repaired. Bolt the hinge back in place and with a lever "reverse" the action that caused the damage. Note, the new cowl panel will not fit exactly like the original, Instead of a template I would rough fit "tack weld" the new cowl panel and then test fit the door. In the process you can check the hinge operation, are the hinges in good condition? Phil

I was thinking a plate you can bolt to the hinge bolt holes with a 1 - 2' piece of tubing welded to that. Kind of a -----------] tool handle thing. That would keep your hinge surface flat.

Hinges seem to be in good shape - a very small amount of play on the pins.

Can I test fit the doors without the outer cowl in place? Is it needed for support / integrity?

Mark... I like that idea as well. My only problem is currently my hinge surface isn't flat. It's starts a bend right before the inside bolt hole - hard to tell in that photo.

Yes you can bolt the door on without the outter cowl panel. Might even give you an idea on how the hinges and door fit/align. I don't see the hinge pillar being "twisted" all that much, just because the door was extended?

It's very minor - but enough to put the door spacing out 1/2" when closed. I'll see if I can find a pic with it closed.

It looks to me like if you tac a bar across the top of the hinge bracket and twist the back of the pocket back in alignment with the two sides of the hole behind, you could then tack them and thing would be lined back up and held in place long enough to see whats what. No?

Did I get this mockup correct?
<Mockup>

It's been awhile since I worked on a hinge pillar, but I'm still of the mind that a 2x4 and a sledge hammer would move the pillar in place. If your concerned about how far to move it, take a straight edge across from the other door/pillar for comparison. Your mockup looks good and would do the trick, but then you have to contend with cleaning up tack welds and possible damage to the metal around the hinge pocket. The 1/2" gap your refering to, is that between the cab corner and the door? Pic's would help out a lot.

I went hunting for pics of the door mounted on the truck, but can't find good ones - however, I took your advice and did the measurement. To my surprise, the pillars seemed to have VERY close to the same spacing...

This got me looking at the hinge socket closer. Have a look, it makes sense now.

First - the good drivers side with a straight edge across the pillar.

<Driver Side 1>

<Driver Side 2>

Nice and straight... now have a look at the damaged passenger side...

<Passenger 1>

<Passenger 2>

<Passenger 3>

The recessed portion of the hinge socket is what did the bending... ugh... I'm thinking with the outer cowl off I'll perhaps hammer it out from the inside...

Okay, the hinge pocket deffently has to be "twisted" back into postion. Why not put the hinges back on and using a cheater bar/pipe roll the pockets back around? I don't think you will damage the hinges, and the pillar will go back in place. If you fit the outter cowl panel to the hood/fender and upper cowl that will determine how far you have to move the pillar. I think you will be surprised how easy the pillar and pockets will move with the right leverage! Having access to the hinge pockets from the backside, lock the hinge in the open postion and apply reverse force to the hinge, it will roll right back into place. Beleive me I don't fix everything with a hammer, but sometimes these trucks don't play nice, just go slow and easy..

My only concern is damaging the hinges. I MIGHT just cut a piece of stock out close to the size of the hinge and bolt that on, apply the force to it... My only concern is putting pressure on the pin.

I gave the pillar a tug tonight just with my hands and was able to move it with some effort -

Lock the hinge in the open position?? I don't follow - am I applying force from the back of the hinge, behind where the cowl would be?

That could work but as mentioned leaves a mark.
I was thinking behind the bracket as in your inside pillar from the early post. I don't know if your truck is designed to float for adjustment purposes or not. It looks like it's 'torn loose' from the cowl there. I think moving the back will fix tthe front with no blows really needed. clamping the front in place would be good if it's where it needs to be. otherwise I'd let it move, even if it's a bit to far. But now the whole brace is inclined to move so if you can find a way to add a little support thats good!

I have had this problem on my 52. I utilized a BFH and applied swift and blinding violence until things straitened out. Do not fear the BFH, it is your best friend sometimes.

Just following up, what I ment by locking the hinge is any method by which you could reverse the action that caused the damage? You even mentioned putting a socket in the pocket, maybe drill a hole in the hinge pocket and drop a bolt/pin behind the hinge arm and then force the hinge to close reversing the damage? Another issue maybe the hinges being bent, and what about the hinge pockets on the door? All things to consider when getting the door and cowl aligned. Keep us posted.

I cleaned up the hinges tonight and compared them to the non damaged driver side. They're look pretty good and seem to match. The pins are pretty tight, although the springs are all broken.

I also took a stab at repairing the pocket. I used a bunch of different tools, a crow bar, body hammer, and a BFH in a few spots... it's looking 90% better - only a couple of small bends now. Haven't taken pics yet, but tomorrow I'm tempted to throw the door on and do a test fit.

I'll take some updated pics and let you know.

I like that bolt / pin in the hinge pocket idea. I'll put that in the "back pocket" pending tomorrows test fit.

Thanks for all the input guys.