The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Fitting fenders and hood.

I am in a bind. I posted this in body and paint but it may be more appropriate in this forum.

Got my '52 back from the painter and the front fender braces are not attached to the fenders. Hood is not aligned either. Painter said it was the best he could do. So I need to do it myself.

Have not been able to find guidance about how to do this. One acquaintance said that all parts should be loosely assembled then tightened in a certain sequence but he did not know the sequence or measurements.

Where can I get this guidance? Is there a pamphlet or something. My mechanics manual does not address this.

Any help will be GREATLY appreciated.

Ernie in Tempe, AZ.

It's been a LONG time since I've had to fit body panels. One thing to remember is to mark panel positions before removing so they can be put back in the same place. If everything is being painted that will be minimal help since the marks will be removed/painted over so you'll need to measure from unchanging points of reference and take lots of pictures. Assuming it's too late for that I would first fit the fenders, setting the fender-to-door gap as evenly as possible. Your friend was correct in that you don't fully tighten anything until everything is fit correctly. Then hang the hood making sure you slowly and carefully close it to check the fit to the fenders. It'll help if you put several layers of tape on the panels in possible rub points before doing this. A bit a scarred tape is far better than scarred paint. Since nothing is marked you'll just have to tweak and adjust for best fit. Good luck.

Good advice from Tiny.

Here is a Tech Tip on hood alignment that might help.

Have your read the Shop Manual?

The shop manual gives measurements for the two braces. I would suggest that you remove the bolts from the mount under the rad saddle. Use the brace adjustments to pull the fenders up so that they meet the hood properly. When things look good then add or subtract shims to the rad saddle mount.

Ernie, welcome to Stovebolt. You can find stuff like this in the search feature. Below I have copied and pasted one of those posts.
I have done three ADs and 3 of them were Frankenstein trucks and can get them danged near perfect now. Feel free to PM me if you run into trouble and I'll try to walk you through it.
From the post in the Search Area:

Loosen ALL nuts and bolts involved in the front clip (excluding hood hinge bolts).

First, follow closely the instructions in the Factory Shop Manual on how to install and adjust the hood-to cowl procedure. I had to read it line-by-line and write it down in my language, then have it nearby as I put the hood on.

Make sure to have a helper that you trust, as this is much easier with help. The hood is heavy and awkward, and you will need someone to retrieve thrown tools and that are willing to throw themselves in front of fragile, valuable items.

With the hood closed, pull up on rear of fender to remove the gap between fender and hood, then tighten the upper-most fender-to-cowl nut/bolt. Repeat on the other side.

Adjust the rods that go between the firewall and the fenders to factory specs for a starting point. This adjustment will move each fender fore and aft, so that the front edge of the hood is even with the front edge of the fenders. Do not be concerned if your adjustments of these rods end up being out of spec.

To adjust the gap between the side of the hood and the fender, you will need to determine the current gap with the hood closed and figure out how much you will need to move the fender either left or right once the hood is open to achieve the proper gap. Its easiest to do this with the outer-most bolt, located at the top of the radiator support very snug but not fully torqued. Make an adjustment and carefully close the hood to test for the correct gap. This took me several attempts.

Tighten up ALL nuts and bolts and brag to all of your friends as well as perfect strangers.

Warning! If you are putting together a front clip from several donor trucks or aftermarket parts, do all of this BEFORE paint, as you may need to make some of the bolt holes larger to make everything fit, and you may need to massage some of the sheet metal surrounding the grille.

Hope this helps.
Carl

Thank you so much guys. Will get started in a couple of days. Forgot to mention that the '52 cab was replaced by a '53 5-window cab. Hope this does not complicate things.

I too am in the process of re assembly of my 53 Panel in which the parts are painted ...I am proceeding in the following order

Rad support and radiator
lower grill support
Inner fenders
Fenders and support rods
Grill
hood latch panel
Hood

The first 3 I have installed and tight , I was going to install the fenders on loose but have the grill to fender bolts tighter and proceed from there can anyone either confirm or add to this scenario ?
Dan

Dan,
Every, I repeat EVERY nut and bolt needs to be LOOSE. You will need to be able to move everything as you position each piece. Once you get a part in the right location, then tighten the fasteners that hold that piece in place then move on to the next.
You should adjust the hood first.
Have you studied the Factory Repair Manual?
Carl

Carl,

"Have you studied the Factory Repair Manual?" (good advice)

Factory Assembly Manual or Truck Shop Manual (most likely Truck Shop Manual - link to on-line manual is given above)?

Dan & Ernie,

Heed Carl's advice: "Every, I repeat EVERY nut and bolt needs to be LOOSE."

Carl,

I read your post above and plan to use it's guidance , is my order of install correct.... in particular the hood last ?

I will check for the correct names of the reprinted manuals that I have and post back tomorrow but I agree with your statement that sometimes you must rewrite directions in ones own language..
Dan

Dan,
Hood first. Everything needs to be aligned to it.
Factory Shop Manual is the correct name (as pointed out above by tclederman).
There are too many different places in the Factory Shop Manual where the needed information is, and it is sometimes worded awkwardly .
Carl

That change in cab year will have no bearing in adjustment. I have aligned a front clip on an early 49 cab with a 54 hood, one GMC fender, repro grille, one 52 fender, and inner fenders from who-knows-where. I then did the same alignment after swapping out the 54 hood with a 47-53 hood.
I would make a video of the procedures, but it would likely be rated X for profanity and excessively violent tool throwing.
Carl