As I continue to prep my chassis for the six I am planning on removing the doors so I can prep them for surface rust repair and to rustproof the interior and paint the inside. So what is the procedure to remove the doors? Is it as simple as removing the bolts at the hinges and lift them off? What about reinstalling? Technique for alignment? Any surprises to look for before,during or after removal? It's a 75 chassis. Thanks

Six screws and a pin are all that it takes to remove one....

Mark the location of the hinges with a magic marker to be sure you can realign. and
Use rubbing alcohol to remove the marker- after the doors are back in place....

Make sure the marker goes into the corner of the hinge/door frame to ensure alignment ....

Some people outline the hinge block with a scribe...

Nasty rust later....

Ken

Ken is spot on. Alignment can be a PITA later, but it's not hard, it just takes patience.

heres one way... arent kids wonderful
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Hey Mark,

You ever remove the pins only so you dont have to realign. I think you need a special tool though to attach to a slide hammer, huh?

Jim

Removing them is easy. 6 bolts and a pin.

It snot hard till you have to put them back on.

Somebody passed on this tip a while back, drill a small hole (or 2) for a pin on the hinges, so you can get the position right.

Driving the hinge pin out is a PITA. It's much easier to mark the position of the hinge plates and unbolt the hinges from the jamb.

If you have the ability and the resources to make a slide hammer, that's the easiest way to go. I can get both doors off inside of 5 minutes.

We did a customers car this year by removing the pins. I will NEVER do it again. 3 professional restorers with a combined 80 years of experience STILL knicked the door trying to get the pins BACK in. I STRONGLY advise against removing them, unless it is re-installed OFF of the car. But then that kinda defeats the purpose.

Something else to note. When you remove your hinge plate from the door or door jamb, do not paint those areas all the way out as you are adding quite a bit of thickness. 2 things WILL happen if painted all the way.

1. gaps will be significantly reduced, very likely to the point of panel contact
2. you will most likely crack the paint when tightening the plates down

Strip the area under the plates and prime once for protetction. or leave them bare and apply some grease to the backside of the hinge prior to installation. The grease will act as a moisture barier and not add any thickness.