JP_AstroMan Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 (edited) Hey folks. My '72 has always had an annoying gap between the door and front left fender. The gap behind the door is good, would not want it to be any larger though or else I would need door guards to fill the space! Anyhow, is it possible to loosen the fender bolts and get it to move maybe 1/8" back? Thanks for any help because I have no idea what's involved with adjusting a fender... Edited January 9 by JP_AstroMan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dtret Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 I’m not a body man but is there enough room in every fender bolt to move it? If you have to pull back the cord support your going to sacrifice every other gap involved in the front end. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackhawk Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 Check the bolt on the firewall and see if it has a shim between the fender and firewall. I don't have the assembly manual in front of me but I think the gap between the fender and rocker should be around 1/8", what is yours at? Is the gap even from top to bottom or is one more than the other? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jft69z Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 19 hours ago, JP_AstroMan said: Thanks for any help because I have no idea what's involved with adjusting a fender... If as you say that you have no clue what it takes to align panels, it's not a skill that we're likely to explain to you here in a way that you'll benefit. Not trying to be a d*ck, but without the proper shims, skillset, and sometimes the right tools, panel alignment isn't something you just go and do. All of the different adjustment points interact (doors, hood, fenders, grill, etc.). You adjust one point, it'll likely affect a gap somewhere else and so on & so forth. The panel gap specs can be found in the Fisher Body manual, btw. It can be a lengthy and trying task for experienced body men, let alone someone who has never attempted the job. It's not impossible, but if you can find a good collision shop in the area, it may be worth a few dollars to let them do it, and save yourself some gray hairs and grief. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott S. Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 Even someone with those skillsets can make a mess of it..... My passenger's door gap proved that. As has been said, everything interacts with everything else. But if you have the time and a high tolerance for repeating things, you could get a fairly good idea of what to do by looking at the whole thing several times. Get to know where ALL the bolts are,(under the fender,behind the door, down the firewall, behind the battery or washer tank....) and which direction things will move if you add/remove shims before you jump into it. And a second set of hands is helpful to, to hold things in place while you make those adjustments. Best of luck, should you choose to complete the mission. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marks71 Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 I was getting ready to comment on this when Joe beat me to it. He’s right. For every action there is a reaction. If the fender gets moved even 1/16” closer to the firewall to close the gap between the fender and door, the hood goes with it. That 1/16” pull back on a 6’ long hood will change the centerline of the hood in relation to the grill by a significant amount. The hood could be adjusted forward the 1/16” on the hinge to compensate but remember the fender extension along with the fender was moved back 1/16”. So now the gap between the hood and fender extension has been closed by 1/8”. Snow ball affect. Remember, depending on the day of the week your car was built, build quality varied. I have a few friends and family that worked out here in California at the Van Nuys plant that can testify to that. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jft69z Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 30 minutes ago, Marks71 said: I was getting ready to comment on this when Joe beat me to it. He’s right. For every action there is a reaction. If the fender gets moved even 1/16” closer to the firewall to close the gap between the fender and door, the hood goes with it. That 1/16” pull back on a 6’ long hood will change the centerline of the hood in relation to the grill by a significant amount. The hood could be adjusted forward the 1/16” on the hinge to compensate but remember the fender extension along with the fender was moved back 1/16”. So now the gap between the hood and fender extension has been closed by 1/8”. Snow ball affect. Remember, depending on the day of the week your car was built, build quality varied. I have a few friends and family that worked out here in California at the Van Nuys plant that can testify to that. My head hurts just reading that, and that's without loosening one bolt yet . That's just the tip of the iceberg too, like Scott says, if you like repeating the same actions multiple times possibly.. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marks71 Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 I got a C in geometry. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jft69z Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 7 minutes ago, Marks71 said: I got a C in geometry. I went to public schools, spent most of my time in auto shop, lol. I actually got a score of '2' on a geometry test, because the teacher wouldn't let me out of class to keep working on another teacher's transmission. Went to his class all dirty, blasted thru the test in about 3 minutes, then went back to the auto shop. Maybe I got 2 points for spelling my name correctly... (BTW, I wasn't knocking your write-up, I was trying to convey that if that is just a little bit about the procedure, the job is much worse than that). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marks71 Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 No offense taken. I worked in the cabinet industry for 26 years and fit an hung many a door and drawers. Piece of cake compared to automotive panel fitting. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVC Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 How to Properly Fit Doors and Fenders On Your Car or Truck - YouTube.webloc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dtret Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 If you can put a square peg in a round hole with no damage or no gaps then this type of work is for you. But not me. I know that a friend and myself have at least 20 hours in door gaps, window gaps, fender gaps and hood gaps. That said, it ended up “good enough “. That time didn’t include the deck lid and it’s still not right, but that I think is a panel problem, so it’s good enough. Good luck to whoever attempts this. Especially after paint. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP_AstroMan Posted January 11 Author Share Posted January 11 Yeah, the "after paint" part is killing me. I could have added some metal to the door when I had it stripped...but I figured an adjustment would be nothing. I'm likely going to go talk to someone in person...as suggested! Thanks everyone for the honesty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jft69z Posted January 11 Share Posted January 11 51 minutes ago, JP_AstroMan said: Yeah, the "after paint" part is killing me. I could have added some metal to the door when I had it stripped...but I figured an adjustment would be nothing. I'm likely going to go talk to someone in person...as suggested! Thanks everyone for the honesty. It may be as simple as adding a few shims, but without seeing a lot of detailed shots, or in person, it's just too hard to tell. Keep us updated on what they tell you. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jft69z Posted January 11 Share Posted January 11 I sent you a PM Jeff 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP_AstroMan Posted January 11 Author Share Posted January 11 (edited) Here are a couple pics...so IF I was to try this, that spacer up against the firewall would be removed, everything else loosened, and see what happens? Edited January 11 by JP_AstroMan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP_AstroMan Posted January 11 Author Share Posted January 11 Photo 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP_AstroMan Posted January 11 Author Share Posted January 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jft69z Posted January 11 Share Posted January 11 You have to look at ALL the gaps first, before moving anything. Bottom of doors, other side gaps, how the hood fits (fore and aft, and both sides), how the front grill and fender extensions fit in relation to the hood, and so on. Everything comes into play when adjusting gaps. You said it was painted in the past? How did everything line up prior, or was there a lot of panels replaced, that made starting from scratch necessary anyways? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott S. Posted January 11 Share Posted January 11 I was wondering that too..... From the pictures, the door looks "shorter" across the top than across the bottom. Is it the original door ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dtret Posted January 11 Share Posted January 11 IF you do this you need to start with the door first. But you need to know if the quarter panel was changed. Now I see why it bothers you. That would drive me bananas. ( see what I did there. lol 😂) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott S. Posted January 12 Share Posted January 12 I'm beginning to think Dennis has been to one to many Gwen Stefani concerts....... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dtret Posted January 12 Share Posted January 12 2 hours ago, Scott S. said: I'm beginning to think Dennis has been to one to many Gwen Stefani concerts....... Who’s that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP_AstroMan Posted January 12 Author Share Posted January 12 I don't believe any panels have been replaced but I wouldn't know for sure. I painted it because my dream Monte is black. It just looks so damn good on that car. My mistake came when I removed the doors AND hinges. Didn't even mark where the hinges were. But I was able to get the passenger side perfect without damage. But the driver side door wants to sag like the hinge needs a new pin but I don't think it does. There is zero movement in the hinge. I need to find some old photos and zoom in on that gap. I BELIEVE it's always been there...but could be wrong. I do know the door sagged before I removed it because it doesn't line up with the rear fender until it closes and lifts up onto the whatchamacallit. I might just have to move the door forward and put door guards on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP_AstroMan Posted January 12 Author Share Posted January 12 Latest photo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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