Door skin patch panel

[flthead]

use this , every body shop uses this for replacing panels now http://www.levineautoparts.com/3maupaboad20.html

[80stepsideguy]

What i am personally trying to find is a NOS door skin for our trucks, i seen some drivers doors but no pass doors.Chris can you help out?

thanks
pat

[Captkaos]

NOS, no clue unless you can find some stored away.  It would probably be easier to find a whole door stored away though.

[HAULIN IT]

use this , every body shop uses this for replacing panels now http://www.levineautoparts.com/3maupaboad20.html

Really? Not directly wanting to bust on you, Flthead. My shop fixes nearly 600 cars a year, I've never bought any. There are many others on the market. Don't get me wrong, there are some places for adhesives, but flat-rate techs are using this stuff to "beat the time". It is not necessarily the best for every job it is being applied to. The glue is fast & cheaper than the $15,000 spot welders, this is why many are using it. I wont get into the whole "whats wrong with gluing everything", it does have a purpose & works very well for somethings. A seam is not one of them! For a guy without a welder or some skills it may be an ok plan. I have yet to see a seam done with glue that didn't show a "ghost line" shortly after the vehicle is painted, sure it is better than rust, but not the best for this job in my opinion. Rigerous, When I get a little more time I'll add my thoughts on your task. Talk to you all later, Lorne   

[Blazin]

I agree totally. Glue works but will never replace a correctly welded seem. I have used it for cab corners and rear wheel arch patches but it was on a crap box that just needed to get one or two more inspection stickers on it.

[Dragon]

use this , every body shop uses this for replacing panels now http://www.levineautoparts.com/3maupaboad20.html

Really? Not directly wanting to bust on you, Flthead. My shop fixes nearly 600 cars a year, I've never bought any. There are many others on the market. Don't get me wrong, there are some places for adhesives, but flat-rate techs are using this stuff to "beat the time". It is not necessarily the best for every job it is being applied to. The glue is fast & cheaper than the $15,000 spot welders, this is why many are using it. I wont get into the whole "whats wrong with gluing everything", it does have a purpose & works very well for somethings. A seam is not one of them! For a guy without a welder or some skills it may be an ok plan. I have yet to see a seam done with glue that didn't show a "ghost line" shortly after the vehicle is painted, sure it is better than rust, but not the best for this job in my opinion. Rigerous, When I get a little more time I'll add my thoughts on your task. Talk to you all later, Lorne   

Couldn't agree with you more!  Personally I don't think there is a Good Substitution for welding, when it comes to Seams..  In most cases it is recommended by the Adhesive and Auto Manufacturers, to piggy back the use of adhesives with welding the seams...

[HAULIN IT]

Rigerous, I'll give you my free two cents on the subject. I'll start by saying bodywork is like allot of things, everone has their way of doing it, some may be plain wrong & some may work well. The first problem you are having sounds like you need to curve this new panel some first. The next thing I would do is flange the original skin, this will add some strength to the panel & the heat will follow the fold & not go up the panel. Now cut your patch panel to lay on the flange, just below the fold. Cut through the old skin on the ends where the frame of the door is so the old & new are one cut, about 3/4" long, preparing for a butt weld on each end. Get your skin in place & tack it every 8" or so, one buzz, nnntt.....nnntt. Fold over the hem on the bottom & sides. Go along ONE buzz, nnntt.... move 8 or 10" nnntt.....nnntt, never any longer & never two beside each other. Back & forth for litterly an hour or so, nnttt....nnttt. stopping as you get it allmost filled in so it cools, until you have it completely welded solid of little, one lumps overlapping end to end. You can then grind it down a little here & there at a time until your done, go back & fill any little spots you missed. Flip the door over & weld the front & back hem lip. Make sure you sit the door in a stand cradling the door & not the curve across it, you will make what I call "hove prints" from the saw horse, get it? Horse - hove, Ok.  You will end up with the lip of the original skin down on the inside of the door, this way water wont run in. Now get some good epoxy primer mixed up & pour in the bottom of the door, later stand it on a side & pour, repeat for the other end, after it sets up, turn the door upside down & work the epoxy in the seam with a brush, let it dry, do it again another coat. What you want is to seal EVERY pinhole, cover the bare metal, ect. Now turn it back over & lightly sandblast the seam, getting ALL of the black, burnt impurities out. Prime the jamb with epoxy & seam seal. Mix up either a fine strand fiberglass filler (Duraglas is good) or All- metal (mix it very well) & give the weld seam a coat, sand & fill as needed with regular filler & finishing putty. Prime the outside, block & prime as needed. BEFORE you do any wet sanding,washing ect. spray inside the bottom with non-drying rustproofing being careful to get EVERY INCH coated, including the seam. There it is, over 20 years of practice,everyday in a simple format.  Any Questions, Just Ask, Lorne         

[VileZambonie]

since these doors are still readily available for aftermarket, used and GM wouldn't it be cheaper and easier to just replace the door? By the time you're done patching, spending money on materials and hours of work, patching the door hardly seems like a worthwile process on one of these trucks. I can see doing a rear quarter or parts of the cab but the doors, inner and outer fenders, and hoods are throw aways when they rot out.

[flthead]

since these doors are still readily available for aftermarket, used and GM wouldn't it be cheaper and easier to just replace the door? By the time you're done patching, spending money on materials and hours of work, patching the door hardly seems like a worthwile process on one of these trucks. I can see doing a rear quarter or parts of the cab but the doors, inner and outer fenders, and hoods are throw aways when they rot out.

ya thats why i said panel bond it , easiest most effective way besides wasting time repairing it ,but guess some guys shops  work hourly

[HAULIN IT]

Yes guys I do agree with you. I would not bother patching the door either. However, He asked for advise on how to go about it & is pretty determined by the sounds of it. Have a Good Day, Lorne

[JJSZABO]

since these doors are still readily available for aftermarket, used and GM wouldn't it be cheaper and easier to just replace the door? By the time you're done patching, spending money on materials and hours of work, patching the door hardly seems like a worthwile process on one of these trucks. I can see doing a rear quarter or parts of the cab but the doors, inner and outer fenders, and hoods are throw aways when they rot out.

I agree - I replaced both of my banged-up doors with junk yard 1991 Suburban doors (power wiring harness and both doors - 100 dollars).  Sooooo much easier and I got power door locks and windows also. 

That was a good write up on body repair Lorne    

[Blazin]

I agree that replacing doors is a better way to go. But I will admit that I have patched quite a few of my own. I know my time is worth money but since I am a body man a patch is second nature and is not a large chunk of change out of pocket. Plus most of my trucks are plow / work, or wheeling rigs. So if I bash a fixed door it wont hurt as bad as a new one.

[RIGEROUS]

Okay, first let me say this forum is great, I am getting a lot valuable help from some experianced guys. Yes I know I could buy a new door and save time and money but..... This truck was very well cared for and documented its whole life by an older gentleman and was about to start getting "modified" by a kid when I "saved" it. It is all original except one replacement of tires, brake lining and stock exhaust system. I want to keep it as original as possible, just because that is how I think chevy trucks should be. The second thing is I am definitely the ocassional weekend mechanic but I would much rather work on a chevy truck than watch TV, its just a lot more fun particularly since I am stuck in an office all day. Now that I am into this door I want try to see it through. Lorne, could you tell me more about flanging the original door skin. How big of a flange. 1/4 ". 1/2" ? Do you mean bend the cut off edge of the original door skin in toward the inside of the door ? Should I also flange the patch panel so the two flange halves join as if they would be bolted together ?

[HAULIN IT]

Rig, There are several tools on the market to do the flange. There are crimping pliers, sorta like Vise-grips with a flange die on the end. The air powered ones are easier to use & are worked at 90* to the panel which makes them better if you are close to the bottom of the door. One design works with an air hammer (chisel) & the better (easier to control) is an air tool that has flange dies on one side & a hole punch on the other. You can purchase any of these at a good autobody supply store, go look at them & decide what seems best for you. All of these typically make about a 1/2" flange. Rig, yes the original skin will be "offset" inward the thickness of a layer of sheetmetal. You won't have to do anything with the new panel, it will just lay flat on the flange. If you cut the old skin straight off,end to end, then flange the panel, you will find you can't do the last 1", due to the frame. Lay the patch panel on there & cut through the old skin the 1" on each edge,just above the new panel. This way you will have a butt weld just on the edges & a "backing" for your weld on the whole middle, but will not be a different height from the original skin, plus the flange will add stiffness to you original skin, which is part of your initial problem. Any other questions, feel free to ask! Glad to help, Lorne   

[ccz145a]

Just an observation, but wouldn't putting a flange in the vertical tend the straighten the door skin? That is, try to flatten the curve of the door? I never used this method, just thinking that's what would happen.