Door Outer Skin Replacement

[johnnyrotten]

Alright so I have a good set of doors minus the outer skins. I recently purchased some outer skins with the handles pre cut out.
I could use a little advice or assistance with a link of how to replace the skins.
This is a 1974 Bronco and yes I am completely refurbishing this bronco from A to Z.

 

[hankjr]

howdy. im getting ready to build up a set of doors myself. Im using bonding adhesive (the slower curing version). i will get the hinges, strikers, latches on, spread adhesive on all contacting surfaces with an acid brush, and start to dolly the flaps over. i will check fit as i go. as the flap gets folded over say half way, i will start using a set of those vise grips with the wide jaws to crimp the flaps down well. I've been guided to hit the top corners with a bit of weld bead once its all done, but we will see if that is necessary.

i already painted the inside of my doors and applied Noico mat to the inside of the outer shell.

there are you tube vids out there (not bronco) but similar idea.

Ive also read some threads here which is where most of this intel comes from.

Hank

 

[SteveL]

I thought about taking on the door skin task myself. I know summit sells a door skin tool for the install

 

[Joe473]

howdy. im getting ready to build up a set of doors myself. Im using bonding adhesive (the slower curing version). i will get the hinges, strikers, latches on, spread adhesive on all contacting surfaces with an acid brush, and start to dolly the flaps over. i will check fit as i go. as the flap gets folded over say half way, i will start using a set of those vise grips with the wide jaws to crimp the flaps down well. I've been guided to hit the top corners with a bit of weld bead once its all done, but we will see if that is necessary.

i already painted the inside of my doors and applied Noico mat to the inside of the outer shell.

there are you tube vids out there (not bronco) but similar idea.

Ive also read some threads here which is where most of this intel comes from.

Hank

I've been thinking about it too but was thinking of just using a hammer and dolly and going slow. Was also going to drill the flange 3/16 in a couple of spots to tac it in when folded over and then seam seal.

With the adhesive you may have trouble shifting the panel if it moves while folding over later in the process.

Post pics of you guys do it and curious where you got the skins from and how they fit. This may be a winter project for me.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

 

[tinytim02]

It's on my list of things to do...

I've got this thread saved for future use:

http://classicbroncos.com/forums/showthread.php?t=116160

 

[Cortez]

I’ll share what I’ve done...was going to write a tech article about a door skinning tool but it sucked so bad I threw it away. There are some good tools to bend over the lip of the skin but extremely specialized tools and only worth it if you do it for a living. So I ended up doing the whole thing by hammer and dolly and it turned out nice. Based on my experience it took 3 hours for the first one going slow and learning how to use the hammer and dolly and the second skin took only 90 minutes. I personally wouldn’t recommend the adhesive if you do this with a dolly based on the time it took me..,and the fact that once you bend the lip with hammer and dolly it doesn’t move around and is then easy to throw a few tack welds on to hold it. Also tried a vise grip to crimp a corner and learned the hard way that it compresses both sides...meaning the pretty side got bent a little so I stopped that straight away. I’m not highly skilled so maybe others have some more tips but for my first time skinning the doors look outstanding and I’m definitely glad I did it. Now on to the details.

1. Measure your spacing at the top of the door where the glass passes through so you can match it when you tack weld the new skin on the tabs. Remove the old skins by using a grinding wheel around the perimeter to separate the old skin, cut minimally until you see the separation between the skin and inner door edge (see pic) then you need to delicately (pliers and flat blade screw driver or similar) remove the skin lip which remains on the door, a flap wheel may help you here but be careful not to over do it the metal is very thin. Be careful not to bend or damage the mating outer edge of the door as this will be what determines how your new skin will sit. Trimming around the hinge area takes a little deeper cut to the edge of the welds see my pics. Spot weld cutter will separate the tabs at the top of door where the glass is raised and lowered.

2. Lift off the old skin which require removal of the door handle and internals of the door. Prep the inner door, I used some spray on rust treatment after using a wire wheel to clean it all up.

 

[Cortez]

3. Lay the new skin exterior side down on a well padded and supportive work surface. I laid bubble wrap over a moving blanket on my saw horses. Used a disc grinder to trim and clearance the skin around the upper edge of the door and at the corners because if you don’t the edges at the corner will overlap when crimped. Then start working around the perimeter with the hammer and dolly. I used the dolly with best mating surface for support under the skin and topped it with some rawhide so I didn’t have metal on metal on the exterior surface while I worked the hammer around the lip bending it over a little at a time. Work it a little bit at a time around the door so the lip is crimped slowly a little bit on each pass around each edge and you ARE NOT starting and finishing one side then moving to another as that is likely to make the skin off center. Keep focus on the hinge openings so that they are aligned with the new skin openings. Round and round you go, your forearms will thank you tomorrow...feeel the burn. Flat hammer used on the flatter surfaces but when you get to the contours near the top 5 inches of the door edge then I used the wedge side of the striking surface on the hammer to get more force and crimp around the contour.

 

[Cortez]

4. Don’t waste money and your sanity on the skin zipper. Bronco door skins seem much thicker than what it was designed for (maybe a Kia?).

 

[Cortez]

5. Once you get the crimping done and it’s snug, hit it with some spot welds. Then step back and love that new skin look! Love me some new steel on old bones...Amen.

 

[jperry1290]

I did it with a hammer and dolly, turned out nice. My dad put a clamp on the corner and over tightened it so I have a small circular dent.

 

[pcf_mark]

Cortez that is a really good write up with plenty of pictures you should make it a tech article.

Only thing I would add is to tack weld the skin in place in a few places (not the corners) before you start crimping. This will keep it square and aligned while you crimp the edges. Before it has enough crimped edge it can move around.

 

[Cortez]

Good suggestion- that would lock it in place for sure.