door and fender help

[usar17]

So im re-assemblying my truck. Cab is on, engine is in, radiator clip is on. I bolt on the doors, align them with the cab. Bolt on the fenders and align then with the doors the best i can......doors wont open without hitting the fenders. Push the fenders as far forward as i can. Doesnt help. Adjust the doors back as far as i can and in as much as i can. Doesnt help.

Any tips? Break it down start over? Anyone have measurements i should be aiming for with the fender/door gap? They are only base primed so i know ill need to take into account a few layers more of build, base, and clear. What order should i install the doors, fenders, and inner fender? Ive never done this before

 

[bucket]

Can you get a picture of your gaps? Where do the doors contact the fenders, down low or up high?

 

[usar17]

Lol i just fixed them today. Ill take pictures tho when i get home tomorrow. It was right where the contour line runs down the side. (The upper part of the stripe on older 2 tone style)

-Shawn
1985 Chevy k10 w/ 92 TBI, 94 4l60e, 91 NP208

 

[circuitguy]

So what happened? Did you fix it? Pics?

 

[Keith Seymore]

Ideal door to fender gap is about 3/16". If you end up with 1/4" then it will probably look a bit too wide. The main thing is to make sure it is uniform as you follow it down top to bottom (ie, not an "A" gap or a "V" gap).

One other thing you can do if the gap is on the tighter side (when viewed from the side) is kick the rear edge of the fender outboard some (when viewed from the top). That will give you a bit more room for the door to tuck inside the fender the leading edge of the door swings by.

The build order is (a) fit the doors in the opening (fenders off) (b) hang the fender and fit to leading edge of door (c) set the hood and adjust side to side by sliding the rad support back and forth and (d) tighten everything down.

I did roughly 900,000 of these (one per minute for about 6 years). Also - when we did it the fender inner (wheelhouse) was already installed on the fender outer.

K

 

[usar17]

Thats good knowledge right there!! I got everything on and swinging fine. I just pray it all looks right and doesnt rub ones i paint it. I really had to push the fenders out to make it work. I think bc its all aftermarket panels things are fubar'd. The hood is danger close to the fender at the front. And thats with spacers on the fender. What a pain!!

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-Shawn
1985 Chevy k10 w/ 92 TBI, 94 4l60e, 91 NP208

 

[usar17]

You must be registered for see images

You must be registered for see images

-Shawn
1985 Chevy k10 w/ 92 TBI, 94 4l60e, 91 NP208

 

[Don5]

Ideal door to fender gap is about 3/16". If you end up with 1/4" then it will probably look a bit too wide. The main thing is to make sure it is uniform as you follow it down top to bottom (ie, not an "A" gap or a "V" gap).

One other thing you can do if the gap is on the tighter side (when viewed from the side) is kick the rear edge of the fender outboard some (when viewed from the top). That will give you a bit more room for the door to tuck inside the fender the leading edge of the door swings by.

The build order is (a) fit the doors in the opening (fenders off) (b) hang the fender and fit to leading edge of door (c) set the hood and adjust side to side by sliding the rad support back and forth and (d) tighten everything down.

I did roughly 900,000 of these (one per minute for about 6 years). Also - when we did it the fender inner (wheelhouse) was already installed on the fender outer.

K

Thank you Keith for posting this. I am not a body guy and I am going to have to do this so your help is really appreciated. This post should be a sticky on door/hood/fender alignment and adjustment. It would help out a lot of us old guys and even more new guys and gals. Great info. Thanks again.

 

[Keith Seymore]

Thats good knowledge right there!! I got everything on and swinging fine. I just pray it all looks right and doesnt rub ones i paint it. I really had to push the fenders out to make it work. I think bc its all aftermarket panels things are fubar'd. The hood is danger close to the fender at the front. And thats with spacers on the fender. What a pain!
-Shawn
1985 Chevy k10 w/ 92 TBI, 94 4l60e, 91 NP208

I'm not seeing anything outside the realm of production variation right there.

Keep in mind as the tools wear the panels tend to morph into a giant "ball" - that is, the contours tend to get more convex and the curves straightened over time. You've got door tools that have been wearing out and being replaced since 1973, and front end sheet metal wearing out since 1981 so the two are on different lifecycles, hence the contours that look "off".

You can control the match at rear of fender/front of door with the shims you put in, but the front of the fenders is set by the width of the radiator support. The only thing you can do there is loosen the rad support mounts on the frame and scoot the doghouse left/right, and hope you have enough overall width to have a nice hood/fender gap on both sides.

K

 

[usar17]

I tried and the radiator wont go right anymore bc of tight the fender and inner fender were to line up.

-Shawn
1985 Chevy k10 w/ 92 TBI, 94 4l60e, 91 NP208

 

[Keith Seymore]

I did roughly 900,000 of these (one per minute for about 6 years). Also - when we did it the fender inner (wheelhouse) was already installed on the fender outer.

K

These happen to be Pontiacs but you get a quick glimpse of the process at the 2:25 mark.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02eULOTP6CA

K