Shaved door handles

[SilverSpear]

Originally Posted by Elliott

No turning back now:

1- Don't tell me that was a three tone SVX?
2- I can see that piece of metal welded a bit towards the inside of the door, am I seeing right?
3- Were you able to remove the outside rear 4th glass quarter panels successfully without breaking the inner tabs? If yes, HOW?

[Elliott]

Originally Posted by SilverSpear

1- Don't tell me that was a three tone SVX?

It was a white/black car that got smashed up on the passenger's side, my parts car was all black, the door, fender and most of the quarter on that side came from the black car, along with the plastic, just haven't primed the plastic yet. Everything else got primed because it all required a little body work.

Originally Posted by SilverSpear

2- I can see that piece of metal welded a bit towards the inside of the door, am I seeing right?

Yeah, it is about 1/16" below the surface of the door, it might look like more because the welds weren't ground down at that point. The body filler is no more than 1/8" thick anywhere on the door, which is more than acceptable. I left the little lip that the handle sits in so the door resisted warping while I was welding, the metal is pretty much sitting on that lip, the metal I used for the filler piece is considerably thicker than the metal of the door. That is basically how we always do it.

Originally Posted by SilverSpear

3- Were you able to remove the outside rear 4th glass quarter panels successfully without breaking the inner tabs? If yes, HOW?

It was falling off when I got the car, it was already broken. I have to take the ones off the parts car soon, so I'll try to get them off without breaking them. I have a plan that might work.

[SilverSpear]

Originally Posted by Elliott

It was falling off when I got the car, it was already broken. I have to take the ones off the parts car soon, so I'll try to get them off without breaking them. I have a plan that might work.

Please SHARE with PIX if possible!

Do a write up!

[stiguy]

hers a pic of one i just found

[redlightningsvx]

It's already been posted.

[Elliott]

I solved the lock "problem" today, I'll have to get pictures tomorrow. I cut off the solenoid for the power locks, which freed up a lot of room and I also welded the lock permanently in the unlocked position. Even with nothing connected to them, door locks have been known to ruin my day by falling into the locked position.

Those door lock solenoids look promising for a power trunk release. I need to experiment with them a little. A pinout would be helpful, if anyone has one.

I also snagged a 40lb solenoid from the boss's truck, so I can at least mock it up tomorrow with that before I get around to ordering the new ones. I'll get pictures of that, even though it should be a pretty straight forward install.

[SilverSpear]

[nsm484]

Originally Posted by SilverSpear

Agreed!

[Elliott]

Got some pictures today, would have a video, but my piece of crap camera had a dead battery and my DSLR doesn't do video.

First thing I did was cut the lock solenoids off of the latch assemblies, since they were dead weight and took up precious space in that area:


Then I welded the lock permanently in the unlocked position:


Here is a good view of the latch assembly, the part with the blue plastic is where the exterior door handle was attached, which is where the solenoid will connect:


Here is everything installed temporarily. The solenoid is junk, but it works good enough for mock up, my boss had it in his truck for a while, but he always had a very simple mechanical backup. It is supposed to have a rubber boot on it:


Only have one bolt holding it on right now because I am not absolutely sure it is the exact model that I will be getting, but it does work fine for right now:


I was almost sure I would need a spring loaded "popper" to push the door out after it unlatches or it would get stuck in that safety position, but it does seem to be throwing the door out enough on its own. I will still install one because if the car is on a hill, it probably won't work too well.

[redlightningsvx]

Looks good so far, can't wait for it to be finished.

[Elliott]

More stuff is going away, I'm going to be very careful and weld up the washer nozzles tomorrow, the antenna is also going away. I'm toying with the idea of removing the trunk lock too.

BTW, in case anyone is wondering, everything clears the window with at least 1/2" to spare, the cable is really the only thing that comes anywhere close.

[Elliott]

Here is the solenoid in action. Just have it wired up to a battery charger for now:


Welded up the washer nozzle holes:


I didn't use any metal to fill the hole, just weld, I made this tool a while ago just for trim holes. Just copper tubing with a flattened end. It will hold the weld puddle, but it won't stick to it, it also keeps the heat controlled to reduce warping:


The metal did exactly what I wanted, it created a very slight low spot where the holes were, which was perfect for filler. You are always going to use filler in a situation like this, if the welding doesn't create a low spot, you have to make one with a hammer:


After primer, it is like they were never there:


Started filling the antenna hole in the quarter trim, used some stuff from SEM meant for plastic repair to start out with. Going to leave it sitting on the dash of my parts car for a couple days to make sure there won't be any problems, then I will grind it, fill it and smooth it out:



It may seem like little insignificant things, but it really makes a difference when the car is finished.

[subeman90]

how do you get radio stations if you have no antenna? Just wondering cause I know I personally like to listen to the radio in the car.

[Elliott]

Originally Posted by subeman90

how do you get radio stations if you have no antenna? Just wondering cause I know I personally like to listen to the radio in the car.

The trunk is fiberglass, so a hidden one will work great. Hot rod guys use them all the time in fiberglass replica cars.

[subeman90]

interesting. if you go this route please take some pics.