Chassis 85517 Number 17 356 Convertible D

[JTR70]

Left lock post area:

Some photos out of sequence : Rear gap ran tight so slowly grinding out the solder here to get a 3mm gap.


Filing too as it went.


Before I reached 3mm of gap strips of steel began wearing through. This is the rare occasion where you wished the filler was thicker.


As filing progressed the mid run in through here turned to steel. I began pecking it back as it went but I was still well shy of the gap I needed through here.

I began weighing my options as to how I was going to get past this. My first thought was to move the door forward to get the final gap width I needed but as you can see in this photo The "flipper" is only engaging on the very outer edge of the receiver. Any adjustment forward and this door will stop latching all together. Realizing this latch engagement now really bothered me. For safety reasons mainly as this is an open car and prone to chassis flex. I could just see this door springing open going around a turn. I've seen old pics of them doing just that so I know it happens. This current situation only exacerbates the problem.

[JTR70]

While taking the gap and mechanism Issue into accont the upper details of the relief features of the striker post itself where weak and washed out from the beginning.
By this time I was back filling that large flat spot behind the door I had highlighted in chalk earlier. To further help me make a decision on what to do with the striker area I ground out some strips to see how thick my filler was getting. Not liking it.

Not really a make or breaker here but just high lighting more wierd things about the repairs. This outer striker flange could have been easily pecked in tighter against the skin but instead it was left and just back filled with a quarter inch of seam sealer. Not long for this world as you can see it was already pulling away from the edge.
So if I went ahead and cut the edge of the quarter panel free again I could dial in the gap, fix the relief details on the top corner of the striker, reduce the amounts of filler and adjust the latch reciever in closer to the door. A lot of issues in one fail swoop. Once I got the okay I bagan stripping the leading edge back to metal. As thick as my putty was getting there was this much lead under that. I was already feeling better about this area.


I knew it received a new striker post and a leading edge repair strip but I didn't know how far it went back. Only a few inches and seems nicely Tig'd in.
Middle portion runs tight but the upper corner tapered away. I'll get a chance to make that more uniform with the door later.

Thanks for looking!
Justin

[roy mawbey]

Justin, the things you find when you start really looking! It really makes me wonder what must be under the paint on some cars. The door latching is so important to get correct. I can imagine easily a fast bend a hole or bump in the road and the jolt to the car. Then the door going !!! Your customer is so lucky he has you checking that previous work.

This thread is really interesting to follow.

Roy

[JTR70]

Agree Roy, once you really start directing your attention toward an area all sorts of details begin to jump out versus just a casual look. Thanks a lot!
Justin

[JTR70]

Getting the lock post area cleaned for cutting:

With all filler removed and the door fully latched you can see how much of it was needed to bring the corner up with the edge of the door. Cutting this leading edge free again will give me the chance to reset quarter panel edge much closer in line with the door all the while eliminating a lot of filler.

Again I can rebuild this upper corner in steel and eliminate so much need for solder to create this feature.
Just under a quater inch of solder to achieve a 3mm gap BTW.
With the lead removed out of the jambs I could finally see what was going on under here. The twin step reliefs should run all the way up but as you can see it fades way too soon into one. Marking and getting my head around how I was going to fix this. I'd have a better idea once I got that welded lap joint out of the way.
Would be cutting this lap joint all the way down to my previous rocker repair. While in the middle of this I sure wished I would have done it all simulataniously but at that time I didn't think I'd be cutting the whole edge of the post free. Always learning...
Cutting next.

Thanks for looking!
Justin

[JTR70]

Cutting the edge of the post free:

Leading edge cut free. Opened a test window to see what was going on under it.

At first I thought the outer relief step up here had been hammered flat or eliminated some how. Much to my own relief it still existed . The edge of quarter panel repair patch was set at level with the inner relief step and simply overshot it making this corner appear as though it had been eliminated.
So once I come in with my new skin flange it will rest on the outer run and give me back the twin relief detail I need. Small example mock up here.
Entire run now cleaned and dressed of the old weld.
Begin relief cutting at the top and pulling the wall out here to create the new 3mm gap that will be mostly steel this time. More prep and planning next.

Thanks for stopping by!
Justin

[JTR70]

Upper lock post modification:
Pulling the lock post forward reveals secondary shoulder and the actual surface the quarter panel flange should mount to.

Stretching a 90 degree channel into a matching curved profile shape as this will become the new quarter panel skin flange.

Planning and relief cutting the existing features for needed shape.
As usual it became alot more involved as it progressed.
Inner step flange feature had to taper as it went up so more slices where required. This new lock post is not for D or Roadster so these changes have to be made. I can now understand why the previous shop just burried most of this behind the repair panel and tried to recreate it out of solder.

[JTR70]

I'm at huge disadvantage here without an original reference car or part to build from. Fortunately I had my buddies RJ and Convertible D Authority John Chately send me some reference photos:

John's late production Convertible D.

The last three example provided by RJ. As you can see they are all similar but do vary slightly in shape and detial. This falls exactly in line with what Bruce Baker had stated a while back as he said they all vary a little and just ended up in the final shape and contour that developed. Anyway these shots provided the roadmap I needed to recreate this upper corner properly. More on that next.
Thanks for looking!
Justin

[JTR70]

Lock post continued:
With my copies on hand for quick reference I could move forward with confidence.

Soon determined it was easier and cleaner just to start from scratch with this upper corner. To be able to get at it however meant cutting back some of the previous repair patch.
Touched bottom and heading upward from here.
Stretching new shoulder section to needed contour. Tacked in here.

Edge of it set to just outside of 3mm with the edge of the door.

[JTR70]

New secondary flange section fully welded and dressed. New fenderskin flange will eventually interlock right into this new feature.
Outer shield detial welded in completing the lock post changes.
Fender skin flange will carry on off the edge of that extention thats been plug welded on next to the seal channel. As you can see it will only require a venier of solder to get a perfectly shaped gap with the edge of the door.
While all of this was going I was also able to lean the lock post in closer for better engagement with the mechanism. I actually had it a touch too far and the heads of the screws were dragging against the end of the door. Back it down just enough for clearance so this was just about as close as you get.
t
New Skin flange set screwed in initial position. New quarter panel rust repair sections usually don't have the double stepped 90 degree flange. You get one bend to make the outer corner and that's it. (like the way I found this one) Adding the flange in separately gives me the luxury of adding in a double flange. Why? This is how it was originally done and the extra flange surface will accentuate the relief shape I'm trying to recreate. BTW I didn't take the relief shapes in far enough toward the seal channel. I'd have to correct that later.

Thanks for looking!
Justin

[JTR70]

installing new flange:
Trimming back the edge of the new flange just shy of the edge of the door.

Also setting it for about a 4mm gap against the edge of the door.

With a little heat I hammered the horizontal edge to final shape over the stiker post shoulder. Solder will take it the rest of the but only a venier will be needed.

Trimmed, shaped and now punched for plug welds.. its finally ready to go on for good.

Plug welded to the post and slowly tacking the edge of the skin while adjusting for height against the door as it went.

[JTR70]

Done...at least I thought I was.

New upper skin section all but in. Raising that pesky low spot to the inside as it went in.


Entire run finally buttoned up and dressed.

Prepping it for solder like it was really done but....
it finally dawned on me that relief shapes needed to go into further. This is most likely a coupe version striker post so those reliefs end alot sooner to make the turn upward towards the B pillar for again a coupe. Speedster/Roadster continues the arch. Outlining what I need here.
The correction didn't take long I just didn't like going over it again. Always learning.

[JTR70]

Okay, now I'm all done! What finally sunk in was that in all my example photos the relief shapes made it to the rubber seal and one or both disappeared under it.
Now to solder this all up to take it in the rest of the way.
Tinning acid applied and now for some solder.

Initial application and working in the shape. As you can see the metal will be lurking just underneath so you know these features are not entirely composed and carved out of lead.
Basic shape and contour roughed in. Finishing out the rest of the jamb in solder next.

Thanks for looking!
Justin

[Red911]

Hi Justin, great tutorial for a beginner like me. I appreciate your patience and ability to show us all how you work professionally.
Tom

[JTR70]

Hey Tom, Thanks! I'm just an enthusiast like yourself learning it the hard way at times but glad to hear all this may help others in the future.

Justin

Lead soldering complete:
Rest of the lock post soldered up as best as I could. Tough to add , move and shape without losing it on the floor.
Pretty close rough initial gap before file shaping.
Filed and shaped about as far as I can chase it. A lot of divots and imperfections I knew full well I'd end up with but I'll catch the rest in putty.
I'm just not good enough to add more solder to these low spots with creating more problems than I'm initially trying to fix. Besides bondo is lighter.
But the basic shape and volume is still solder. I'm good with that.... A little more filing and grinding yet but just about ready for some sealer here.

[JTR70]

Left lock post all but complete:
After a thorough neutralization and cleaning of all the tinning acids a base sealer coat was shot on. Swatches of putty and block sanding in repetition followed.
These next several shots where way later but I wanted to show the finished area while I'm on the subject.
Some minor blemishes remain but nothing serious.
Another round of shape sanding and swatching where needed to come.

This last shot is much later still. Lock post in final work coat. One more final sand to get it just a little bit better then final color. Onto the next deal.

Thanks for looking!
Justin

[JTR70]

Left door upper corner repair:
With the door openings on the car pretty much set I turned my attention toward the back edge and jamb of the door itself. It had several issues I wasn't going to be able to leave alone. The very upper edge and corner of this door was super thick and appeared to be largely composed of solder. I like overhang features to be made mostly of steel if possible.
The upper corner of this door was obviously repaired. During the process part of flange was allowed to slip out from under the skin's pinch seam. This whole run gets a coating of solder but I couldn't just bury this in lead. It would have to be tucked back in.
The pinch seam on the skin side was also split along the leading edge here so more was required than just filling and sanding.
The solder was melted away so I could exactly what was done to it and what needed doing/redoing. Some rust repair was done down in the window channel and along the back edge. A pretty good sized divot was left and filled over.
I had set the edge and jamb on the car side to flow off of this door. As you can see now with the solder gone I'm now dealing with about a 3mm discrepancy .