Raven R code 281 Report post Posted March 6, 2014 I just got a couple of doors from the california desert and I'm not a body panel expert...yet. The outer skin of these original doors seems to have a bit of flex in them (mostly in the middle). is this just metal fatigue? My current doors have some flex but not as much as these. Has anyone ever heard of tack welding a support on the inside of the door skin to stiffen the area up? thx! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
miketyler 15 Report post Posted March 6, 2014 The top of my passenger fender had a big oil can in it that would stay in but you could pop it up from inside the wheel well. My body shop fixed it when they painted it and they added no stiffener to the underside. I need to ask them how they did it. Heat or dry ice or ? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Raven R code 281 Report post Posted March 6, 2014 I'm wondering if it is possible to add some sort of door beam like the repo's have in order to make it stiffer. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Raven R code 281 Report post Posted March 6, 2014 also....does anyone have experience working with the new rust preventative solutions like Eastwood's products? Not that the car will ever be in the salt , I would like to treat the bottoms of the doors to prevent the surface rust that ate away at the folded edge of the door skin (bottom). I talked to a guy at Eastwood and he said to make a trough and soak the door bottom for 2 days in this solution they have and then add another one of their coatings. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mustangstofear 608 Report post Posted March 6, 2014 You should have a cross brace that is tight against the outer skin preventing that. You can use KBS or Por-15 in the bottom of the doors. I've been using those two products for the last 15 years. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
moodster 55 Report post Posted March 6, 2014 The top of my passenger fender had a big oil can in it that would stay in but you could pop it up from inside the wheel well. My body shop fixed it when they painted it and they added no stiffener to the underside. I need to ask them how they did it. Heat or dry ice or ? You can use a shrinking disc or a stud welder to remove any oil canning. Generally the area will require a skim coat of filler afterwards. d Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
moodster 55 Report post Posted March 6, 2014 The outer skin of these original doors seems to have a bit of flex in them (mostly in the middle). is this just metal fatigue? My current doors have some flex but not as much as these. Has anyone ever heard of tack welding a support on the inside of the door skin to stiffen the area up?thx! In general steel body panels don't fatigue. Sometimes if you work the metal too much it will harden and become brittle however I don't think that is the case here. You've most likely gotten a door that is warped from the heat of the desert or the stress of an accident/improper storage. I'd recommend fitting the door first before you add any extra supports. 65-68 doors have a cross brace but I don't believe 69-70 doors do. david Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
