[Che]

I got a new drivers door on the weekend, got a few Q's before I put it on. Not a panel work guru at all, so any advice appreciated:


- can I turf the original door rubbers or are they rare as hens teeth? Is there a rubber kit available?
- the pins on my door hinges are a bit hows your father (bleeding rust from these points ike a mofo). Can I just replace these pins or is it easier to replace the whole hinges?
- how do I get the glass out?
- how to get rid of the sticky tar stuff sealing the interior panel to the door? I've scraped most of it off, can't lay paint until its completely gone though.
- are the hinges secured with Locktite or something of higher strength?
- for the interior panels: where to get the fixings that secure the interior panels to the door?
- best way of rustproofing the inside of the door panels?


Also I got some general body work questions:

- Killrust: do I apply this, wait a week or two and then sand it off again before priming a panel? Not sure if killrust is a 'coat' or a temporary application. Not sure if it has to come off before I hit it with primer.
- What is the panel gap filler stuff? Is it just silicon, or something else? Can it just be removed with a wire wheel or is there a solvent I need to use? What's the easiest way to getit off?
- priming a panel: do I need to get the whole panel back to bare metal before priming, or can I just deal with the problem sections? Keeping in mind I plan to respray the whole vehicle on the other side of winter, and want the usual problem areas rustproofed as well as possible.
- also when to reapply silicon stuff? I'm really keen to seal up the gaps between the folded metal work (the bonnet is a good example). Do I prime the panel before sealing with the silicon stuff? Or does primer go over the top of silicon? And another Q - will paint stick to silicon? Last Q - is silicon the best filler or can you recommend something else?

- is primer in a spray can OK, or is primer applied via a compressor and spray gun waaay better?

Too many questions in one post I know, but any answers are appreciated. Might have a few more as I get stuck into sorting my panels out.

[2stroker]

What is with all the guitars

[Che]

That's only half of them.... ground was wet, car was dry so I put them there before putting them all into their cases. Had to take them to a different studio for work.

[BlueSuzy]

che_guitarra wrote:

I got a new drivers door on the weekend, got a few Q's before I put it on. Not a panel work guru at all, so any advice appreciated:


- can I turf the original door rubbers or are they rare as hens teeth? Is there a rubber kit available? Probably new from suzuki. Unsure aftermarket
- the pins on my door hinges are a bit hows your father (bleeding rust from these points ike a mofo). Can I just replace these pins or is it easier to replace the whole hinges? What? All sierra's are like this. Hit it with wd 40 every so often
- how do I get the glass out? Take off the top door window wipes. Undo the side track. undo possiblly 2 bolts holding the window with the bottom track.
- how to get rid of the sticky tar stuff sealing the interior panel to the door? I've scraped most of it off, can't lay paint until its completely gone though. Tried anything? metho, turps, goo remover? Pretty basic...
- are the hinges secured with Locktite or something of higher strength? They are secured with phillips head bolts..
- for the interior panels: where to get the fixings that secure the interior panels to the door? Supercrap should have replacements on a turnstyle rack
- best way of rustproofing the inside of the door panels?Fishoil


Also I got some general body work questions:

- Killrust: do I apply this, wait a week or two and then sand it off again before priming a panel? Not sure if killrust is a 'coat' or a temporary application. Not sure if it has to come off before I hit it with primer. Try reading the can?
- What is the panel gap filler stuff? Is it just silicon, or something else? Can it just be removed with a wire wheel or is there a solvent I need to use? What's the easiest way to getit off? Sikaflex. Wire wheel/grinder/sander/stripper disk
- priming a panel: do I need to get the whole panel back to bare metal before priming, or can I just deal with the problem sections? Keeping in mind I plan to respray the whole vehicle on the other side of winter, and want the usual problem areas rustproofed as well as possible. If the door is sanded and smooth, it should be fine. If you have edges unsanded from the original paint, it will look shithouse.
- also when to reapply silicon stuff? I'm really keen to seal up the gaps between the folded metal work (the bonnet is a good example). Do I prime the panel before sealing with the silicon stuff? Or does primer go over the top of silicon? And another Q - will paint stick to silicon? Last Q - is silicon the best filler or can you recommend something else? Again. Sikaflex is paintable. read the instructions.

- is primer in a spray can OK, or is primer applied via a compressor and spray gun waaay better? Its OK

Too many questions in one post I know, but any answers are appreciated. Might have a few more as I get stuck into sorting my panels out. You owe me $50

[Che]

Answered like a true mechanic

With the hinges - I mean when I replace the door/hinge screws do I need to coat them in Loctite, or is there something more industrial to use for the job? What ever the factory uses is beyond what i'd call household strength. Glue the hinge to the panel? C'mon, gimmie a litle more credit than that.

No way i'm just gonna maintain the hinges - everytime I spray with WD40 (yes, been doing that) it bleeds out pure rust. And there's lateral movement in the door panel from pin deterioration. Can't use the hinges on the replacment door because the flanges have been bent. Option is to replace pins or get completely new hinges... it's just that freaking thread lock I have to deal with.

[BlueSuzy]

che_guitarra wrote:

Answered like a true mechanic

With the hinges - I mean when I replace the door/hinge screws do I need to coat them in Loctite, or is there something more industrial to use for the job? What ever the factory uses is beyond what i'd call household strength. Glue the hinge to the panel? C'mon, gimmie a litle more credit than that.When did i say glue the hinge to the panel? The original bolts have no loctite. If there was loctite, you would never get the blasted phillips head bolts out! I am replaceing mine with stainless button head as they work by allen key.

No way i'm just gonna maintain the hinges - everytime I spray with WD40 (yes, been doing that) it bleeds out pure rust. And there's lateral movement in the door panel from pin deterioration. Can't use the hinges on the replacment door because the flanges have been bent. Option is to replace pins or get completely new hinges... it's just that freaking thread lock I have to deal with. Mine rust. Because the hinges are not made of stainless, anything metal to metal wear the gal plating off, then its going to rust. You might be able to replace the pin in stainless, but then where the pin is turning in the mild steel hinge, so it will wear/rust. The hinge pins will have a spline on it slightly larger than the hole. Like wheel studs. When you hammer them in, they grab.

You have 2 options for rustless hinges that i know of..

No doors = you don't need hinges.
Or
Aluminium hinges with stainless pins.
http://www.lowrangeoffroad.com/index.ph ... inges.html

[want33s]

http://auszookers.com/index.php?name=Fo ... oor+screws

[Che]

Sweet I was looking for that thread.... lost it when this forum changed. Allen key head is a great idea, might go get some from the local bolt shop..

Are you sure there's no thread lock on the screws? They screws are the most stubborn things i've ever tried to work off in my life.... i'd hate to shake the guy's hand that put them in originally

[Gwagensteve]

Doublepost

[Gwagensteve]

BlueSuzy wrote:

Aluminium hinges with stainless pins.

That's a worse than terrible idea. Anyone that pays $239 for them deserves them.

Cut hinges are, in themselves, a crap idea. The hinge strength is compromised and it's not hard to envisage the door coming up off it's hinge in an impact. Sorry if this seems paranoid but it's just redneck hack. It isn't that hard to undo 8 screws. Really, it's not.

However, those hinges are shit rolled in glitter. Not only are they no better than the stock hinge, they are aluminium, with a stainless pin. Anyone that knows anything about materials will tell you that's going to wear like crazy, so now not only is your door poorly retained, it's loose, floppy and comes out of alignment.

Che_guitarra- Yes the screws are threadlocked, but they are also painted over inside and out. There are ways to remove them (air hammer with a screwdriver bit is the easiest way) but it's generally not easy.

The quickest way is with a cold chisel. Tap the chisel into the outside edge of the head of the screw. Tap it in stright down at 12 O'clock, with the chisel vertical and close to in line with the body. Make a decent nick into the screw. Tip the chisel to about 45? and now tap it to undo it. The shock will break the seal and you can then undo them.

I've tried an impact driver before and smashed the panel in without undoing the screw. the chisel method works every time.

You won't need loctite on the screws when they go back in. Just use a quality #3 screwdriver and hand tighten them as tight as you can.

If you want to remove your doors for driving offroad (and you do) it's easier to replace the screws with bolts - they don't flog out as easily.

Otherwise, you're overthinking everything massively.

Don't fully strip the door. If the paint is intact, sand it to rough it up and paint. It's a 4WD, not a show car. Are you trying to match the stock paint? You might be better to get the doors painted professionally. Ask a panel shop about a cashy, or supply materials + a slab or something. If you are worried about plastic welding the airbox and dirty water running out of the hinges, you'll never get an acceptable finish with your own skills and equipment. (That's not a dig- matching stock paint finishes is HARD)

Steve.

[Che]

Gonna have to buy heavier tools to do this myself then - seems to need a freakin great whack rather than a solid tap.

Any tips for getting the alignment true, or do I just need 8 arms? Part of the problem with my last door was that it wasn't attached dead straight (causing the panel around the latch to peel).

These hinges look better suited to a soft top, but if they're out there it's a good sign I have a few options and don't have to try reco the ones I have.

With the painting - i'll just stick to the panel prep. I got a couple of mates that can help me out with the top coat (like you've noticed i'm too fussy) - 'tried it once' skills are different to the 'do it everyday' skills my mates have.

[mika]

i just paint some half doors for my heep. All i did is sand the visible areas with some 800 sand paper, wiped over with petrol, masked what i didn't want painted, a coat of rattle can etch primer and next day a good coat of rattle can matt black and there done but i didn't have to match colours as i did black doors on a white vehicle.

[2stroker]

Dead set

Gwagensteve sound's like he is in a bad mood or something.

Mate firstly those hinges are in yankee land and for quick lift off doors on rock crawlers that probably have full cage with intrusion bars. If you are worried about safety you need to think Volvo instead of sierra.

Secondly the screws are not thread locked in and want33s has posted a very good detailed link on removing them.

you'll never get an acceptable finish with your own skills and equipment. (That's not a dig- matching stock paint finishes is HARD) - mate its a white car, there is only one white in the sierra range and it is available over the shelf, like most of us this dude probably has a suzuki so that he can work on it himself, time for him to start learning by being hands on.

[Gwagensteve]

2 Stroker - Nah I'm not in a bad mood, I just think that's a terrible product, actually, it's worse than terrible, it's expensive and less functional than the item originally fitted to the car. That's the aftermarket at it's worst.

It's a big "probably" that those hinges will be used with door bars. do you know how hard it is to fit a door bar in a sierra with the doors on?

100% they're threadlocked. It's not like loctite, but they are frozen and I've also heard of using heat to help release them. I agree that they unscrew quite easily once they are broken free. That doesn't mean a compound isn't used.

I think che agreed with me about the need to get a good finish to meet his standards. It's a white car, not some drab junk that comes out of my shed.

Steve.