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Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt
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56D500boy
Posted 2018-08-19 12:37 PM (#568639)
Subject: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt



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Location: Lower Mainland BC

Previously, I refurbished my driver’s door panel using a thick(ish) Masonite. It was fairly successful but I knew I could make improvements if I had to do it again.

Reference: http://www.forwardlook.net/forums/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=64288&...

After making that first door panel and re-skinning it, I decided that next time buying new thick cardboard pre-made door panels would be easier and maybe better, so I ordered a set. I’ve had the set for about a year but I never even opened the package until last Sunday when I decided it was time to redo the door panel. Much to my surprise and disappointment, the rear door panels were wrong – they had sent me the 4 door hardtop rear door panels, not the 4 dr sedan rear door panels.

While that was being sorted out with the supplier, I decided that I wasn’t willing to wait and decided to make my own door panel (again), using my previous experience as a base.
I started by purchasing a 4’ x 8’ sheet of pre-painted (one side) hardboard , nominally 1/8” (thinner the first panel that I made). I had it cut into 36” and 38” sections at the store so I could get it in my car (Audi wagon).
When I got home the process started:

1. Tracing the old panel onto the hardboard, including the location of all the various holes. I clamped the panel to the hardboard so it wouldn’t move.

2. Then I cut the panel out of the hardboard using my Bosch jig-saw with a fine metal cutting blade (trying to keep the panel edge clean).

3. The round holes got cut with a 1” hole saw and the rectangular holes for the clips got cut with sharp wood chisels of the correct size.

4. Then I installed the Geno Industries 9-9361 (Auvenco 9361) clips into the rectangular holes:
http://www.auveco.com/OnlineCatalog/v2016/index.html#?page=410

5. With the clips in the holes, I took the new panel to the door and tested the alignment of the clips and the holes in the doors. Turns out that the 9361 clips (despite being labelled for Chrysler (and Ford)) were different than the OE clips shorter “throw” so I had to modify most of the rectangular holes so the slips would be closer to the edge of the door. No biggy. I imagine that I would have to have done that even with the pre-made panels. The issue is the clips. My local supplier only had the 9361s so I don’t know what would have been better.

6. Once I was happy with the location of the clips and I had trialled the door panel on the door (using a rubber mallet as needed), I took the panel off the door and went back to my work table and B&D workmate. (At the Workmate I trimmed the edges where needed - and then I used my belt sander to smooth and bevel the edges).

7. There I drilled the holes for the stainless steel trim (previously removed from the OE door panel – treat them gently – the metal tangs are old and don’t like to be bent and re-bent.

8. When I was happy (ish) with the location of the trim, I used 3M Super 77 spray adhesive to attach some laminate flooring underlay foam to the inside of the panel (over the new clips which I had left in place after step 6). Then I bevelled the edge of the foam. The previous time, I had stopped the foam about ½” back from the edge of the panel but that left a visible line in some places so this time I took the foam right to the edge of the panel but bevelled it so the “skin” would still fit fine.

9. Then I got a brain wave – I decided to use some thick nails that I happened to have to stake the skin in place to the new panel. I pushed the nails through the trim holes from the back of the panel and then applied the door skin in sections, using the existing trim holes in the skin.

10. In doing so I discovered/realized that the original creator of my particular door skin/panel really didn’t give a rat’s ass about alignment details/patterns being horizontal, etc, etc. Where possible, I made some adjustments by moving the trim holes a bit using my drill and bit as an adjustment tool. In the end, I had to live with what I was given, albeit with some minor adjustments.

11. With the adjustments made, I started glueing the skin sections down, using 3M Super Adhesive 77, one section at a time, keeping the staking nails in place while I glued and smoothed the sections into place.

12. The old dark blue vinyl (which was the real problem in the first place, was removed and replaced with a piece of marine vinyl of similar colour. This piece required some work as the lower corners have to go around a bend so sections of the back were scalloped with scissors and/or and X-acto knife before being spray glued down. At the same time, the other back edges of the skin sections were spray glued to the back of the panel (newspaper and masking tape was used to limit the extent of the glue spray to the pertinent areas).

13. After polishing the stainless steel trim it was applied to the door and the tangs pulled through and bent with needle-nosed pliers. At that point the door panel was done and was ready to be re-installed.

14. Well, not quite. I almost forgot that I needed to create a new door liner panel to replace the OE paper one. To do this, I traced the old liner onto some 6 mil poly vapour barrier that I have from various house projects. I especially noted that I need to leave a “tail” at the bottom to tuck into the slot near the bottom of the door to direct water into the door (and out the drain holes), not into the passenger compartment.

15. After one trial fitment and a bit of a trim, I attached the poly liner to the door with “Tuck” tape (made for the housing industry).

16. Then and FINALLY, I was able to attach the refurbished door panel to the door, using a rubber mallet and needle-nosed pliers, as needed, to direct the 9361 clips into the holes in the door.

17. As I applied the panel to the door, I had installed the conical door handle springs between the door and the door panel, as I found them, i.e. narrow end towards the door and wide end against the inner side of the door panel. The I installed the door handles which then hold the springs compressed - which in turn takes some of the pressure off the 9361 edge clips. There was one screw that I had removed when I removed the OE panel from the door that I did not install. I don’t know if that was OE or a later “bodge” (fix). The other door has one too so who knows.

Anyway, hope this helps somebody in the future.

See the photos below.




Edited by 56D500boy 2018-08-19 7:33 PM




(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_1GettingReadyToTraceOldPanelOnToNewHardboard.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_2OldPanelTracedOntoNewHardboard.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_3RoughCutAndFirstHoles.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_4CuttingTheRectangularHolesForTheClipsWithWoodChisels.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_5TriallingTheDoorPanelOnTheDoor.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_6DrillingTheHolesForTheTrim.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_7CheckingTheAlignmentOfTheTrim.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_8GlueingThinFoamToPanelAndBevellingEdge.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_9GettingReadToStakeTheSkinIntoPositionWithThickNails.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_10DetailOfTheStakingNails.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_11UpperPortionOfSkinStakedInPlaceReadyForSprayGlue.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_12RemainingSectionsOfSkinStakedInPlaceBeforeGlueing.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_13SkinSprayGluedInPlaceAndTrimAdded.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_14SkinSprayGluedInPlaceAndTrimAdded_BackSide.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_15GettingReadyToTraceTheOEDoorLinerOnto6milPlastic.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_16GettingReadyToCutTheNewPlasticDoorLiner.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_17TriallingTheNewPlasticDoorLinerOnDoorNoteBottomSlotTuck.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_18TapingTheNewPlasticDoorLinerOnDoor.jpg)



(56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_19RefurbishedDoorPanelInPlaceOnDoorWithWindowTrim.jpg)



Attachments
----------------
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_1GettingReadyToTraceOldPanelOnToNewHardboard.jpg (175KB - 296 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_2OldPanelTracedOntoNewHardboard.jpg (124KB - 302 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_3RoughCutAndFirstHoles.jpg (134KB - 291 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_4CuttingTheRectangularHolesForTheClipsWithWoodChisels.jpg (142KB - 299 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_5TriallingTheDoorPanelOnTheDoor.jpg (178KB - 292 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_6DrillingTheHolesForTheTrim.jpg (165KB - 291 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_7CheckingTheAlignmentOfTheTrim.jpg (148KB - 298 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_8GlueingThinFoamToPanelAndBevellingEdge.jpg (140KB - 265 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_9GettingReadToStakeTheSkinIntoPositionWithThickNails.jpg (128KB - 275 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_10DetailOfTheStakingNails.jpg (151KB - 273 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_11UpperPortionOfSkinStakedInPlaceReadyForSprayGlue.jpg (146KB - 261 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_12RemainingSectionsOfSkinStakedInPlaceBeforeGlueing.jpg (217KB - 288 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_13SkinSprayGluedInPlaceAndTrimAdded.jpg (200KB - 283 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_14SkinSprayGluedInPlaceAndTrimAdded_BackSide.jpg (113KB - 282 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_15GettingReadyToTraceTheOEDoorLinerOnto6milPlastic.jpg (132KB - 289 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_16GettingReadyToCutTheNewPlasticDoorLiner.jpg (117KB - 289 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_17TriallingTheNewPlasticDoorLinerOnDoorNoteBottomSlotTuck.jpg (198KB - 288 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_18TapingTheNewPlasticDoorLinerOnDoor.jpg (203KB - 257 downloads)
Attachments 56DodgeRightRearDoorPanel_19RefurbishedDoorPanelInPlaceOnDoorWithWindowTrim.jpg (165KB - 289 downloads)
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51coronet
Posted 2018-08-19 1:44 PM (#568642 - in reply to #568639)
Subject: Re: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt


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nice!
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60 dart
Posted 2018-08-19 5:39 PM (#568649 - in reply to #568639)
Subject: Re: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt



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real nice . i've been thinkin bout using 4'x8' fiberglass sheeting for door panel backing . it's fairly rigid as cardboard or wood panels and totally waterproof -------------------------------------------------------later
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Coronet_Jeff
Posted 2018-08-19 10:31 PM (#568667 - in reply to #568639)
Subject: Re: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt


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That looks great! I like the complimenting shades of blue in your car.
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billy
Posted 2018-08-20 1:21 PM (#568703 - in reply to #568639)
Subject: Re: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt



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Nice job...
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1960fury
Posted 2018-08-20 3:10 PM (#568709 - in reply to #568639)
Subject: Re: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt



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Location: northern germany
Great thread an job, well documented. This is what make FL-net so great. Thanks.
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56D500boy
Posted 2018-08-21 10:57 AM (#568757 - in reply to #568709)
Subject: Re: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt



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Posts: 9854
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Location: Lower Mainland BC
Thanks for all your positive comments guys.

1960fury - 2018-08-20 3:10 PM
Great thread an job, well documented. This is what make FL-net so great. Thanks.


When I decided that I had to make another new panel (and not get to use a bought panel), I also decided that I would document this one too because I knew that I would do a better job than the first one. I like do these kinds of posts so no biggy on my part. 100's of my 35000+ posts on quattroworld were DIYs or specific info posts so I have a history of writing things up.

Coronet_Jeff - 2018-08-19 10:31 PM
That looks great! I like the complimenting shades of blue in your car.


Jeff: I took that as a compliment but it also made me laugh because I have so many different blues going on (many of them Tremclad rust paint) that I am going to have to annotate a photo or two so I remember which paint was used where.



Edited by 56D500boy 2018-08-21 7:01 PM
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1960fury
Posted 2018-08-21 4:58 PM (#568795 - in reply to #568667)
Subject: Re: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt



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Coronet_Jeff - 2018-08-19 10:31 PM

That looks great! I like the complimenting shades of blue in your car.


Different shades of one color is typical 50s. Once had a 60 Desoto with a blue interior. The different shades of light to darker blue, accentuated with white looked heavenly.
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wizard
Posted 2018-08-22 2:36 AM (#568821 - in reply to #568639)
Subject: Re: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt



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Great thread with step by step instructions - very helpful for the members!
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56D500boy
Posted 2018-08-22 12:35 PM (#568839 - in reply to #568821)
Subject: Re: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt



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wizard - 2018-08-22 2:36 AM
Great thread with step by step instructions - very helpful for the members!


Thanks Sven. My intent was to document what I did so others can use it as a guideline if they happen to want to replace one of their door panels (and avoid some of the mistakes that I might have made (or avoided this second time around).

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1959 Belvedere Conv
Posted 2018-08-26 11:49 AM (#569046 - in reply to #568639)
Subject: Re: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt


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I have to do this on my 57 Chrysler Wagon and this tutorial will help tremendously to do it! Thanks!
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1959 Belvedere Conv
Posted 2018-08-26 11:50 AM (#569047 - in reply to #568821)
Subject: Re: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt


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wizard - 2018-08-22 1:36 AM Great thread with step by step instructions - very helpful for the members!

 

I also have ALF and ACD! Good to know there is others out there with our condition!

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SaratogaFan
Posted 2018-08-30 10:18 AM (#569256 - in reply to #568639)
Subject: RE: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt



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I am working on this for my 1957 Belvedere. Very helpful post!
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56D500boy
Posted 2019-07-24 1:43 AM (#585160 - in reply to #568639)
Subject: RE: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt



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To quote Gomer Pyle USMC, "Surprise, Surprise, Surprise"!!

I finally am getting around to rehabbing the 4th and last door (cleaning and painting the inside and replacing the window tracks, etc). Obviously to do so, I had to remove the interior door panel. I used a big Phillips screw driver to remove the arm rest and the factory door handle tool to remove the window and door handles. Then I used a small wide pry bar to slowly and carefully pry the door panel clips from the holes in the door. The end result is a door panel that needs *NO RESTORATION" !!. It's in great shape. I think that I will leave it alone and not even replace the clips (none of which broke during removal). I will just clean it and replace the "vapour barrier" (probably with 6 mil polyethylene) and then reinstall the panel. (After I redo the inside of the door and the window channels of course)

Interesting both left side doors were much better coated with the sprayed on tar sound deadening/rust proofing. The guy on that side was much more diligent than the guy on the right side who skimped on the tar (the right had more surface rust inside than the left - the left now has mostly bare shining metal).

The door panel (note the D63-3 = 56 Custom Royal and 541 = 4dr sedan in blues and silver):





(DaveFs56DodgeCustomRoyalD500LeftRearDoorPanel_InteriorSide.jpg)



(DaveFs56DodgeCustomRoyalD500LeftRearDoorPanel_DoorSide.jpg)



Attachments
----------------
Attachments DaveFs56DodgeCustomRoyalD500LeftRearDoorPanel_InteriorSide.jpg (192KB - 232 downloads)
Attachments DaveFs56DodgeCustomRoyalD500LeftRearDoorPanel_DoorSide.jpg (141KB - 232 downloads)
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di_ch_NY56
Posted 2021-02-07 1:35 PM (#608610 - in reply to #568639)
Subject: RE: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt



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Thank you Dave for your detailed instruction. With your instruction I assume I could refurbish the door and quarter panels of my Letter myself. I just need to find the sources for the adequate material within one to two years.

Dieter

BTW: the carpet band at the bottom I have to replace with correct style car carpet.



Edited by di_ch_NY56 2021-02-07 1:36 PM
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mikes2nd
Posted 2021-02-07 3:41 PM (#608614 - in reply to #568639)
Subject: Re: Door Panel Refurbishing – Second Attempt


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he redid his panels...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_NGCkKUkiA
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