1950 Chevy Truck (Ep 69) Hanging and Adjusting the Doors on the 5 Window Cab

Today my friend Dave and I get the doors installed on the five window cab. I have a few tips and tricks I show to help you keep from scratching your new paint job while hanging and adjusting the doors. Dave also has a really good tip as well.
If you have a project you would like to showcase at the end of one of my videos just email me a few pics and a short description to: [e-mail]

[@lazyhoundracing9621]

Don't be so hard on yourself. Life is not easy for the perfectionist. Thank you for your time.

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

Thanks but I know better. The doors aren't the most adjustable but we got it looking really nice.

[@tomference4618]

..thanks so much, for being as particular as you were. Thanks to Dave too, for the 'cornstarch' tip!

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

You are very welcome Tom. These trucks can be a nightmare sometimes trying to get it to look nice with decent gaps. Back in those days if the doors stayed shut when you went around the corner people were happy. Mark

[@douglashart5059]

Boy, all these tips will sure help to get my doors aligned and closing properly on my 53 Chevy Truck. Keep up the great work!

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

Thanks Build quality wasn't all that great back then so sometimes you have to help it along a little with creative grinding of the holes. Mark

[@rodneysterling1452]

Good job Mark, door hanging is tough plus those truck doors are heavy.! Tip from Dave is a good one thumps up.

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

That's the beautiful thing about doing this stuff, always an opportunity to learn something new. Dave is a good friend.

[@ecotter5291]

Thanks so much for sharing your many years of experience. I am the owner that has ever body part painted and I am putting together. This Vedeo was very helpful. Look forward to viewing more video. God Bless

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

That's awesome, what year truck do you have?

[@robertmazzei2412]

Another fantastic video Mark.

[@benjamincole8677]

All I do is loosen the bolts and close the door so that lines up good and tighten it from the inside is pretty close

[@robbiehively4056]

I like the cornstarch idea. Just bought a set of door channels and window seals for my 69 c-10 I'll have to try that out.

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

It works pretty slick and the weather strip doesn't get all bunched up and wrinkled in certain spots like can happen. Nothing like new weather-stripping to make a truck feel newer again. Mark

[@thomasparsley513]

Mark thanks so much for your honesty, this is going to be very helpful on my truck

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

How is the truck coming along? Looking forward to some update pics.

[@thomasparsley513]

@@FoothillPaintandFabrication slowly but surely

[@BusyAsABeaver72]

Rewatching some of these misc '50 pickup videos Mark. Getting closer to sending the panel truck out for painting. I want to test fit the doors this week to check the gaps, etc. Domt anticipate any problems because the the truck has led a pretty sheltered life the last 45 years sitting in various garages ha ha. Will email some updated pics soon. Thanks for your videos!

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

Awesome progress! Remember when these trucks were built fit and finish wasn't all that great. You can absolutely do better with some work to the hinges and latch. Getting that bottom corner just right can be frustrating and usually impossible without reshaping the door. Of course it depends how far you want to go. What color did you settle on? Mark

[@BusyAsABeaver72]

Nardo gray. A solid darkish gray. The fenders & running boards will be black with a pearl/metallic tri coat.

[@BusyAsABeaver72]

Now you have me worried about the bottom corner! Well, I will find out soon..

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

Nardo Grey like off a BMW?@@BusyAsABeaver72

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

Hopefully yours are nice. The door doesn't always match the curve of the cab of over the years the latch pulls the center in but the bottom stays out a little. It is all what you can live with and how much the weather stripping will show. @@BusyAsABeaver72

[@soldtobediers]

11:40 Each time this happens to me; & it does often. These lyrics run through my mind... Collected volumes of history say Man makes mistakes most everyday The half a pound of chopped ground round Is still a burger when it goes downtown ~John Prine song: ''New Train'' album: "Lost Dogs + Mixed Blessings" (1995) Courtesy of: Daily driver of a '53 5wsb & '59 Apache Fleetside bwsb (one for each foot) Obligements FPF for the ever unpaid pioneering efforts. ''Knowledge speaks, but wisdom listens'' ~Jimi

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

So very true, thank you Mark

[@charlespartak2435]

a little tip , door alignment on these is a chore ...so, when mocking up the doors before paint. get the gaps and closing set right then drill a small hole (1/8") in an inconspicuous spot through the sheetmetal of the inside of the door through the hinges. when you get it all back from paint, all you have to do it put an 1/8" drill bit (or 8d nail)back in that hole to realign it to where you wanted it. also helps to not paint the hinges where it needs to slide into the door pocket. its tight enough as is . mask the hinges off about 1/2" in from the door pocket edge.

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

Thanks for the great tip Charles!

[@Stoked778]

Mark, this is the video I’ve been waiting for! (basically since the internet came out) Can’t wait for the hood install ;)

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

Hey Wes I wanted to let you know the truck will be coming back pretty soon and I will be getting the hood repaired and painted and then reinstalled. Keep an eye out for it. Mark

[@Stoked778]

@@FoothillPaintandFabrication awesome, thanks Mark! I’ve been working on getting my hood lined up and there seems to be some play in the hinges on the hood side. Anyway, making some progress on my truck but it’s not to the paint stage yet. Happy to send photos if you’re still interested though I’m not sure the best option from an iPad.

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

@@Stoked778 As long as the hood settles into a lined up position when closed you should be okay but if it won't consistently close to the same lined up position you will need top repair or replace the hinges. You can email your pics to me. [e-mail]

[@douglashart5059]

Had to revisit this after tearing my hinges out to rebuild. Were you saying the beauty plates are spot welded on originally and tend to get crooked? I'll check this out. Also, I appreciate the tip to get the hinges back in the pocket! The top hinges with the new springs is almost an impossible fit. But now I see the hinge has to be fully open and then a slight bump to get them past the opening.

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

On Darren's the passenger side beauty plate was spot welded on a little to high reducing adjustability. Once the hinges are rebuilt slide them in the body then slide them up and down watching when the beautiful plate hits the recessed area and when the slotted hole runs out of alignment with the threaded hole. You might have to get medieval on them to free up enough adjustment.

[@turboflush]

On new vehicles the back hinge nut plate floats.. these are welded. How do you adjust the in and out? Door at different depth than fender.

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

The holes in the hinges are oversized allowing some adjustment. If you cannot achieve proper alignment then slotting the hole a little should do the trick. If the door is way off something is bent out of place more than likely. Mark

[@decosse01]

Thank you for this incredibly informative series - fabulous and meticulous workmanship. I have a 'non-door' question if I may - it's regarding the hood fitment/alignment (edit - watching your hood videos now, alignment is coming soon I think! ) - I believe I may have to resort to similar techniques in elongating the holes to get hood all aligned properly; it still has the original hinges and they work really well, self-supporting the hood's weight completely unassisted; but especially on the right side, it sits quite high. Any tips you might have would be appreciated! As for the door, my driver's is really good, the passenger however is not so great - I'm torn between buying a repo door (problem exacerbated by me having a 51 with quarter window and lever handle! - so would need to convert to single piece window on a 47-50 door I believe) or repairing - needs new outer patch at bottom, however there is also a defect in center of door and also right at the window lip which I would perceive to be the most challenging element of a repair; I'm torn over potential fit quality of a repo door (although recognize even original have their challenges!) vs this one, which needs much work but actually 'fits' really well. Your counsel would be most appreciated!

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

Thanks for watching the channel. Most people install the hood and then match the fenders to the hood. In this case I had the owner install the inner fenders and fenders but not tighten the bolts down all the way and once the hood is completed I will install and align everything. As you know the fit and finish on these trucks was not good from the factory so the hood may have been high from the start on one side. First step would be to carefully check the hinges to make sure they match as one may have been replaced over the years. Next you want to check that the hinge was actually manufactured correctly and the mounting holes are correct. Then check the cab and see if the mounting holes match the other side. I have seen crazy things over 40 years of autobody work so don't discount wrong parts/wrong year parts, patch panels installed wrong, factory holes drilled/punched wrong or anything really. Bent hinges are usually the culprit. The door is a tough choice. I did a quick search and found a 51 to 54 repop door for 500 bucks. The problem with repops is you just don't know how good they are and how much work you will need to do to get it fitting and looking good. Since you know what you have with your current door I would price out the patch panels you need to buy to repair it and then go from there. If the panels come to half the cost of the whole door then get the repop if you can find one that matches your application. Even though your labor is free adding in the welding wire, grinding/sanding discs, body filler and primers plus frustration you would about break even. If you really want to save the old door it can be done but only tackle one panel at a time as cutting into these doors in to many spots can let them move a lot. Start on the window lip since it sound like the hardest part and if you cannot make it work the repop door is the easy choice then. Let me know what you decide and send me pics of your project and I will showcase them at the end of a video. Mark

[@decosse01]

@@FoothillPaintandFabrication Thank your for your detailed reply Mark - very helpful and I'll use these notes to do more work on the hood - it's high even with respect to the cowl, so seems fundamental cab to hood issue (although as you say, might be in the hinges themselves!) It's one of those things where you wish you had x-ray eyes to figure what's going on under there when you lower it :) :) :) As to the door - you may not be aware of the '51 nuances - while parts might be listed as a "51-54", is usually designated as such because of the quarter window config but is really a 51-1/2 -54; the handle/latch on the early 51 is swing lever (like 47-50), vs push button on the late 51/52+ - and it's not just in the latch, the striker and indeed entire pillar mounting for the striker is different, meaning a 52+ door swap is really not at all viable; but the early 51 has the quarter window like its later variants! (hence the 47-50 choice as far as door latch fitment goes, but with the downside of the single piece window unless I can somehow make the window parts fit) That is why vendors 'who know' this subtlety list the doors as 47-50 and 52-54 with 51 notably missing - and of course you can't blame the repo guys for not catering to that one-off year (or half-year even!!!) Without having an actual 47-50 door to see if the split window parts from my 51 will fit, I can't quite tell if they will or not - logic kinda suggests that when Chevy decided with the styling change to go to the quarter windowsfor 51 model, they continued to use existing door/cab stock before going to the push button latch which incorporated metalwork changes to both cab and door; that would make economic sense on paper at least that they would not go to a new physical door for less than a year but that's only speculative on my part. I will follow your suggested plan, because not much to lose - however if I do end up getting a 47-50 door, I'll see if the split window parts fit, to test my theory!

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

@@decosse01 I did not know that thank you. Those one year only half year production stuff really screws things up when you are sourcing parts. GM wasn't in the habit of making huge changes so you may be able to get the parts to fit with a little work. Try and save that door first, I bet you can totally save it.

[@dandurkin5186]

Mark, on my 46 international the front clip has to be on the truck before the doors can be aligned. There are torsion rods that tilt the top of the cab forward. I was trying to see if you hung the front clip as one piece or if you assembled the clip to the cab and chassis one piece at a time. Also I don’t know how to send you some pics.

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

Dan, On the Chevy you can do it either way if you have plenty of help but if you are doing it with just two people then a piece at a time is the best plan of attack. The 46 International is a beautiful truck but I have never had the pleasure of working on one so I can't say for sure. You can email me pics and a bit of info on your project to: [e-mail] Mark

[@johnragazzo2244]

The truck doors look nice. Have you done a video for a TriFive?

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

Sorry no videos for the Tri Fives. I have painted a 57 Bel Air and a 53 210 Business Coupe but those were long before I started the channel. Here is a link to a walk around on the 210. kzbin.info/www/bejne/p4iWlnyHec-YfdE What are you working on? 150, 210, Bel Air or Nomad? Mark

[@johnragazzo2244]

@@FoothillPaintandFabrication Thank you!!! I have a 56 Belair I want to make the doors fit a little better.

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

Nice! 56 is a beauty, My buddy has a 57. Of course the first thing is the hinges. Pulling the doors and inspecting and rebuilding the hinges has to be done. Before you pull the doors, with help loosen the hinges and see where you are running out of adjustment to get them where you want them to be so you have an idea if slotting the holes is needed. Remember to adjust the doors to the quarter panel and A pillar then adjust the fender to the door. Sometimes you have to make a little more adjustment than they did at the factory. @@johnragazzo2244

[@johnragazzo2244]

@@FoothillPaintandFabrication thank you....

[@markbramhall2391]

My driver side door appears to be twisted, and it sticks out on the bottom rear. Next to the cab. Do you have any suggestions?

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

Mark, It could be twisted or it may have been like that from the factory. The fitment back then was horrible and if you look at some of these trucks from that era you will see the same things, even this truck a little bit. Trying to bring the whole door into better fitment is tricky because what you do down low affects the window frame but the good news is the window frame is easier to tweak. First determine if the door fits correctly on the inside when closed fully and adjusted as good as you can get it. If it looks like it sits correctly inside and you tweak the twist out of it then it may hit somewhere else and not close. More times than not the lower corner just sits out to far but everything else lines up pretty well. If that is the case then (if you have the skills) slicing the inner door carcass in that area and carefully reshaping the door skin is a good way to go. Leave the door skin attached to the inner door carcass and slice a piece out allowing you to pull the skin inwards and tack it. Where to start and stop the slice and its shape are key. Always go a few inches beyond where you think the reshape should start so it is a smooth transition. If it is twisted leave the door on the truck and get medieval on it. Open the door a little and take a 4x4, slide it through the window down at an angle to the corner you want to pull. Attach the 4x4 to the corner somehow and pull. Check frequently to see if you are making progress. Use a block of wood at the fulcrum spot to make sure you do not bend the door at the window channel. These are my ideas not seeing the truck. Let me know what you decide and how it works out. Take you time and think it through. Mark

[@markbramhall2060]

@@FoothillPaintandFabrication , thanks so much for all the info. I’ve started on some of your messaging techniques. They seem to be working. I want to keep the slicing for a last resort.

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

@@markbramhall2060 Good idea, start off small and simple and then go from there. It all depends on how perfect you want the truck to be in the long run. For me door fitment is a very big deal and I look at it closely at car shows. Once you decide what level of restoration you are going to do then you can decide where to draw the line. Let me know how it works out and send me pics of your project and its progress. Mark

[@markbramhall2060]

@@FoothillPaintandFabrication , I’ll let you know, as well as some pics. I’m real particular about the fit as well. And thank you again for your help. It’ll be a few days before I get back out there, I’m fighting an upper respiratory infection, along with some fluid in my lungs. Gotta wait for the meds to kick in. At 75 and doing this project by myself, I have to watch my health.

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

@@markbramhall2060 Take good care of yourself first always, the truck will be waiting for you... Get well soon Mark

[@shep145]

I’m installing windows now…. are you going to use a sealant? I’m using 3m sealant but man it’s a messy job.

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

Darren the owner will be installing the windows unless he needs me to do it. Are you working on the door glass or the cab glass?

[@shep145]

@@FoothillPaintandFabrication Currently installing the back windows and the windshield. I’m using a bedding and glazing adhesive for the pinch weld and a urethane adhesive for the rubber to glass. I’m noticing a lot of people just skipping the sealants. I can understand why, its a huge mess. I still have one door left to paint so haven’t done the door windows yet.

[@FoothillPaintandFabrication]

Yes I believe the windows were just installed dry no sealants at the factory. If you have nice window rubber it might not be needed but if they don't lay down nice against the body they could let water it.