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MG MGB Technical - Door skin installation, HOW TO?

Hello,

I have to replace door skin and weld door bottom repair panel. I never faced such task. I have few questions:

1- Is it difficult?
2- Does door skin should be weld at many places?
3- How to avoid damaging door skin when hammering it in place?

Your input will be helpfull!

Many thanks,

Jean G.
Jean Guy Catford

Hi Jean G,
I've just re-skinned both doors on my '72 roadster. In answer to your questions:
1. It sounds/looks worse than it is. Just grind off the edges of the old skin and cut the small amount of welded section under the quarterlight. There may be some additional welds or brazing around the edges to stiffen the assembly. Putting on the new skin is pretty easy really. Just tap the raised edge of the skin inwards a few degrees at a time all the way round. I started at the 'crease' where the chrome strip fits, half folding both vertical door edges first before touching the bottom. Remember to fold as evenly as possible or else you will stretch the metal and form a crease.

2. The skin does require welding where the holes are under the quarterlight. It may also be necessary to weld at a few points around the edges if you are concerned that the assembly is not stiff enough, but only do this once you are sure the door fits the car very well. You should also have a look at Paul Hunt's website (www.mgb-stuff.org.uk/) where he sets out an additional strengthening technique to avoid the 'crack of doom'. Very helpful site on all matters MG.

3. Key to a good finish is to lay the door face down onto a piece of wood or laminated board, particularly whilst making the final part of the folds. At the same time, the edge you are hitting should remain as flat to the board as possible I managed one door on my own but an assistant would be helpful to maintain a steady hold of the door. You will probably find the bottom edge is a bit too close to the door frame to complete the final folding with just a hammer. I used a piece of hardwood like a chisel.

Before any reassembly you should of course take the time to clean up everything and give it all as much rust protection as possible.

I also had to repair one door with a new bottom section. This took me ages, mostly because the new section wasn't a good fit. The main issues here are to ensure that you do not alter the vertical dimension of the door and do not distort the frame, but by laying the two parts of the frame into the skin you can fairly easily sort this out. Make sure you get a good quality skin such as a Heritage one.

One other tip. The quarterlight sits along the top edge of the skin. The bottom fixing for the quarterlight attaches to the door frame. If the skin is a poor fit and sits too high on the frame, you may find the fixing and the screw hole do not line up. Easy to check before you fold!!!

Finally, have a look at www.chicagolandmgclub.com/techtips/. A very useful site with re-skinning a door as one of the subjects. Better still is has some pictures!
Regards
Richard
Richard Coombs

Richard,I need to reskin a door also.You stated this process well.I will be in touch,Rich
rich osterhout

Thank you very much Richard,

Your reply is conforting me in doing that task with more ease.

Cheers,

Jean G..
Jean Guy Catford

The other thing to watch out for while bending the raised edge around the flange on the carcass is the finished width of the door. I have heard of one person having to weld a fillet down the trailing edge of the door as turning over the raised edge had pushed the carcass in. Drawing the required outline on your board i.e. from what is left of the old door would seem to be the way to go.
Paul Hunt

Thats kinda what had happened to me.I sent my driver door to a body shop and they ground down too much on the strike latch edge.........soooo the gap is too wide for me.I might skin the door.Comments?????
rich osterhout

Rich,
A new skin should cure this as long as, of course, it's wide enough in the first place and there is enough flange left on the frame. No reason why you shouldn't measure the skin width beforehand is there?
I had no problem folding the skin at the manufactured edge. When starting to fold you should always hit the raised edge nearer the top rather than bang away at the solid edge. I guess if you were too heavy at the solid edge this could also cause the fold to migrate inwards. In my limited (only two) experience this will ensure the fold is at the intended place.
Neither of my skins actually folded directly on the edge of the frame except in a very few places. I.e. there was a small gap between the frame edge and the eventual fold so the risk of pushing the frame in was minimal.
You must also keep the edge flat to avoid putting a bend into the edge of the skin.
Lastly, with the exception of Paul's 'crack of doom' strengthener which is easier to add to the skin before skinning, don't weld anywhere until you've fitted the door. I found today that being able to twist the thing whilst on its hinges was a Godsend! Still not there but once its 'correct' I shall clamp and weld.
Regards
Richard
Richard Coombs

Jean Guy,
I'll add my reassurances as well. I was nervous but the job on two doors turned out to be much simpler than expected. Richard has said it all.
The Chicagoland site is excellent.
I've just also seen this one which discusses the use of adhesives rather than welding:
http://www.popularmechanics.com/automotive/how_to/4212304.html

Has anyone tried this technique?

Regards,
David
David Overington

David
You beat me to that question. In the places where there should be welds for reinforcment wouldn't one of the new age body panel adhesives work as good and be much easier especially for a novice who may burn thru or warp a new skin trying to weld it?
I was going to try this route when it comes time to reskin one of my doors. I'm interested to hear what others have to say.
Mike
MK Mike

Well guys,

A valuable input from all of you!

I think that taking time and measuring everything is as all body work, mandatory.

Thanks again...

Jean G.
Jean Guy Catford

Richard,Who did you buy your "Heritage" door skin from(Moss,Vic British,etc.)I cant seem to find it.Thanks,Rich
rich osterhout

Rich,

I bought mine from Moss.

J.G.
Jean Guy Catford

My parts guy who restores MGs mentioned to me in the weekend they now use adhesives on the door skins.

Simon
Simon Jansen

Rich,
I got both of mine from Moss who supply Heritage ('original')parts. The part numbers were HZA566 & HZA567 for RH & LH respectively. These are about 20% more expensive than the 'repros' they offer, but they will fit! Some time ago I bought a skin at an MG event and soon realised that it was not a good one. The curve of the panel was a poor match to the frame and the amount of metal for the folds was about 2/3 that of the Heritage skins.
Regards
Richard
Richard Coombs

Hello,

Mission accomplished. Not so difficult, but the lower repair piece is more difficult to fit properly.

Cheers,

J.G.C.
Jean Guy Catford

Adhesives.
Hi guys,I'm a panelbeater / painter but got out of the trade a few years ago. The idea of not welding is a huge bomus especially for the novice, although not hard to do if too much heat is used you may run the risk of warping. Although i have not personally used the two part adhesive a good mate of mine who has his own shop uses it all the time and swears by it, also it not only forms a good bond but is a good sealant which elimates the use of a tube of sealer. A great option that does work.

Good luck,
Dave.
Dave

Dave,Thanks for your imput.(on panel adhesive)
rich osterhout

This thread was discussed between 04/09/2008 and 17/09/2008

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