Door pin and bushing repair

[Durandal25]

FBBO TEAM,

So my 69 Bee seems to have some pretty tired door bushings. I have seems few videos on YouTube covering bushing emplacement, but was wondering if you guys had a solid step by step process you recommend?

 

[kb67mopar]

I just did this yesterday!

So all I did was take 1 hinge off at a time (which required fender removal and of course getting access to the bolts on the inside by removing the lower kick plate and gauge cluster).

Then you put the hinge up on your vise and use a hammer to push the pin out. Make sure you leave a large enough gap for the head to go through in the vice. Then take your drill and create a new hole sized for the new pin (make sure you measure and get this right). Then slide the bushings in. This is where it gets a bit trickier, now the whole assembly is a little bit taller and doesn't just easily slide into place. You will have to take a hammer and smack it strategically to get everything lined up. Then install the new pin just like the old one hitting it until its fully seated. Took me about an hour to do both lower hinges and one upper. But my car was already disassembled.

Its not too bad, a little common sense and paying attention and you can have it done in no time.

 

[Durandal25]

I just did this yesterday!

So all I did was take 1 hinge off at a time (which required fender removal and of course getting access to the bolts on the inside by removing the lower kick plate and gauge cluster).

Then you put the hinge up on your vise and use a hammer to push the pin out. Make sure you leave a large enough gap for the head to go through in the vice. Then take your drill and create a new hole sized for the new pin (make sure you measure and get this right). Then slide the bushings in. This is where it gets a bit trickier, now the whole assembly is a little bit taller and doesn't just easily slide into place. You will have to take a hammer and smack it strategically to get everything lined up. Then install the new pin just like the old one hitting it until its fully seated. Took me about an hour to do both lower hinges and one upper. But my car was already disassembled.

Its not too bad, a little common sense and paying attention and you can have it done in no time.

.....fender removal? Lordy, I was hoping no to to have to do that. I do not believe they have ever been removed. I really wanted to leave the hinges intact and just tap out the old bushings by supporting the door with a piece of wood and a jaclk.......

 

[kb67mopar]

I am not supremely confident you will be able to get in there and do it without pulling them off. It might be possible and maybe somebody here has done it. Like I said, mine was already apart so it made it pretty simple. if you can get a hammer in there cleanly from both sides you may be able to make it happen. the part you have to drill is the door side and you can pull it apart and do that in a vice.

 

[RubyredSavoy]

I have done it both ways and much prefer the ream the hole and install an oversize pin method. The uppers were bushed from the factory, the lowers were metal on metal. The major benefit here is that you do not have to remove the hinge half from the body, just remove the door, knock the pin out, run the reamer through the hinge and then know the new pin home!

Here is a great company to work with that sells the reamer and OS pins.

http://www.restorick.com/

 

[Cletus]

Great thread. I have a problem with my doors too - apparently, one of the former owners thought it would be a great idea to substitute the proper pins and bushings with stainless threaded rods, so it will be fun to see how much metal inside the hinges has been eaten away by the threads... oversized pins might be the way to go.

I dread the fender removal as well, but it looks like I have little or no choice...

 

[Durandal25]

Great thread. I have a problem with my doors too - apparently, one of the former owners thought it would be a great idea to substitute the proper pins and bushings with stainless threaded rods, so it will be fun to see how much metal inside the hinges has been eaten away by the threads... oversized pins might be the way to go.

I dread the fender removal as well, but it looks like I have little or no choice...

I believe in total observation, and review before any project, but as you have pointed out, many owners took a short cut or two along the way. The reaming solution may be best, but the bushings may work too if the pin hole is close to spec. I have been looking at the Doorman replacement PINs and bushings, but will also look at the Restorick stuff too.

 

[okiemopar]

I used the doorman kit and it worked fine after I got the right size bit to drill them out for the bushings. I didn't remove the fender are take the door off. You just have to do 1 hinge at a time. You'll have to take the kick panels off to get to the 2 inside bolts on each side and then it is easy to get them off. Good Luck Ronnie

 

[WileE]

Don't have to remove the fenders.

 

[Beekeeper]

I would recommend the restorick kit as the bushing fix is only temporary

 

[okiemopar]

I done my 340 Swinger 13 r 14 yrs. ago and it has been drove a lot and they are still fine. I done my RoadRunner over 4 yrs. and it has been drove a lot since they were done and they are still fine. I think the trick to the dorman kit is to get the odd ball size bit to drill the hinges which is easy to get at NAPA are any of the store that carry a lot of different sizes. It is just a size that don't come in a regular set. Ronnie

 

[kb67mopar]

I done my 340 Swinger 13 r 14 yrs. ago and it has been drove a lot and they are still fine. I done my RoadRunner over 4 yrs. and it has been drove a lot since they were done and they are still fine. I think the trick to the dorman kit is to get the odd ball size bit to drill the hinges which is easy to get at NAPA are any of the store that carry a lot of different sizes. It is just a size that don't come in a regular set. Ronnie

Yeah I had the size in my full drill index. I also used one of those hole gauges to measure the outside diameter of the bushing. The dorman kit is great for the price, pins and bushings for both upper and lowers. 2 kits will do a 2 door car completely. I like the bushing idea because it doesn't thin the outer load bearing bracket at all by drilling the hole out and the extra thickness from the bushing keeps everything nice and tight. My doors close perfect now and sagged over a 1/2" before.

 

[themechanic]

Here's the link to the RestoRick kit:

http://www.restorick.com/proddetail.asp?prod=DrHingeRebuildKit

 

[RubyredSavoy]

Yeah I had the size in my full drill index. I also used one of those hole gauges to measure the outside diameter of the bushing. The dorman kit is great for the price, pins and bushings for both upper and lowers. 2 kits will do a 2 door car completely. I like the bushing idea because it doesn't thin the outer load bearing bracket at all by drilling the hole out and the extra thickness from the bushing keeps everything nice and tight. My doors close perfect now and sagged over a 1/2" before.

I had to drill the hole out oversize, for both the bushing (bushings are incorrect anyway, matters to me at least) and for the OS pin. Which bushing kit did you use that you were able to just press the bushing into the stock sized hole?

BTW- the reamer doesn't remove much metal and most of the time, the original holes are wallowed out anyway...

 

[bandit]

I am doing mine now and bought the dorman kit part #38381. Comes with upper and lower pin and 4 bushings. I only need two bushings since the bottom pin is metal on metal. Bushings went in fine on upper hinge.

 

[Durandal25]

I am doing mine now and bought the dorman kit part #38381. Comes with upper and lower pin and 4 bushings. I only need two bushings since the bottom pin is metal on metal. Bushings went in fine on upper hinge.

I got 38382 kit and have not installed it yet, but feel it should work well. I really don't like boring out holes, but the copper sleeves look like they will do the job nicely.

 

[kb73rr]

I rebuilt the door hinges by blasting them clean, grinding off hinge pin rivet head then removing it, line boring bracket and hinge holes to .4375 dia and making a new pin out hardened steel (Rc 28) with only .001 clearance, coated pin shaft with moly-disulfide dry film lubricant, welding and regrinding worn area on spring, and assembling by peening over the new pin. The rebuilt hinges work like new.

 

[Durandal25]

I rebuilt the door hinges by blasting them clean, grinding off hinge pin rivet head then removing it, line boring bracket and hinge holes to .4375 dia and making a new pin out hardened steel (Rc 28) with only .001 clearance, coated pin shaft with moly-disulfide dry film lubricant, welding and regrinding worn area on spring, and assembling by peening over the new pin. The rebuilt hinges work like new.
View attachment 139268

....now that is what I call a tight hinge sir.

 

[themechanic]

I bought one a few months ago when Rick Ehrenberg was selling a batch of new hinges.

Posted via Topify using Android

 

[Azure]

I may be speaking out of turn here never having replaced the hinge pin on a Chrysler product but I've done several Ford and GM cars. I just cut the old hinge pin with a angle die grinder and cut-off wheel. Then the pin will push right out with the fender and doors on.