Best way to remove 1959 door window front post
Anyone have a suggestion on the best way to remove the upper front retaining bolt in the window front door post. It is glassed in from the factory, but the patch-over has partially come loose from the body of the door over time. Not sure if restorers drill a new hole to get to the bolt or just pop off the glass-over in the door. Also, should the re-patch be perfectly smooth or "not too noticeable" a patch? I had not given much attention to this area in the 27 years I've owned the car until today when I was going to remove the post and garnish moldings to replace the fuzzies and liners and repair the stripped out door panel screw holes.
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Re: Best way to remove 1959 door window front post
Al, You just have to break it out of there. If you can try to pry it out without breaking it, do that so you can reuse it.
Most were just filled with black dum-dum and painted over, but I've also seen some that had bonding adhesive pasted in there, likely what yours is.
edit add....I just took some photos of my own '59 that never had the posts out. That stuff is rock hard with several coats of white paint on it. But it's actually rock hard black dum-dum. See the pics, then I pushed my thumbnail in it and it made a mark. I had to push real hard.
RichLast edited by Richard M.; March 27, 2017, 07:26 AM. -
Re: Best way to remove 1959 door window front post
Thanks Richard, it is fiberglass resin. I just took a dremel tool to it to cut a hole to help pop it out. I noticed that your door posts sit down lower into the door than mine, but not by much.Comment
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Re: Best way to remove 1959 door window front post
Al, The C1 doors and posts and door/body pieces varied tremendously. Not uncommon that you'll see differences like that. Every car is different in many ways.
As yours has the resin(or likely bonding adhesive) in there, I'd bet early cars like yours had that to make them pretty, but as production went on they just jammed some dum-dum in there, mushed it on with their thumbs, then gave it a spritz of body color paint later at the trim line.
RichComment
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Re: Best way to remove 1959 door window front post
Richard, there was a big wad of dum-dum between the door post and the resin. I assume this was to provide a backer for the resin. As I do not have any plans to restore this car at present time, my big decision is whether to put dum-dum back in or to put resin back in as was originally applied. I guess I should have taken pictures to document the resin for any future owners or research. I have not removed the passenger side door post as yet, so I guess I can document that side.Comment
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Re: Best way to remove 1959 door window front post
That bolt was eliminated at some point in C1 production. They also eliminated one of the other door post bolts. I want to say 1961, but I am not sure.
My 57 had some kind of hard material in there. Not sure just what it was, but I had to dig it out with a knife.
-Dan-Comment
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Re: Best way to remove 1959 door window front post
Thanks Dan, I considered leaving this bolt out also, in case I do restore the car in the future and placing it in a zip lock bag with what it is and putting it with the other original parts that I have had to replace in the past. I just wasn't sure if this would affect anything with the stability of the post. This may still be an option.Comment
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Re: Best way to remove 1959 door window front post
I have left mine out on the driver side. The post seems to be tight and does not move. This was probably a process change for ease of manufacturing. The threaded hole in the post was eliminated on these later posts as well.
My 57 has a later year driver side door. It was in a bad accident in its earlier life. I'm trying to figure just what year the door is. The 57 door post has serrations where the weather strip fastens and it is glued on. In the later year driver door the serrations are eliminated and the weather strip has 2 tabs that are molded in the rubber, The post is threaded for screws. Does anybody know just what year this change took place? Just would like to know.
-Dan-Comment
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Re: Best way to remove 1959 door window front post
Dan, mine has the serrations, again it was a Feb car, serial # 43**Comment
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Re: Best way to remove 1959 door window front post
Okay, that is good to know Al. So my door is at least a late 59 or newer. Most likely a 61 I think.
-Dan-Comment
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Re: Best way to remove 1959 door window front post
62 was the beginning of the smooth door post. Dan, are you sure they eliminated that front bolt? I have the 2nd-last 62 built, and it still has the front bolt, as has all the other 62's I've had.
By the way, I have seen these cars with black hardened dum-dum. Also with dum-dum with resin over the top. Also dum dum covered with a fiberglass disc the exact size of the hole, with resin smeared across it. All of those factory-original.Comment
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Re: Best way to remove 1959 door window front post
Positive on the front bolt Mike. The post is not drilled and tapped for it, and there is no hole in the door fiberglass for it. I wonder if they took it out, and then put it back in, which would indicate that it was needed.
Also, the upper adjustable stud used on 57s is not used on my door. The door inner panel fiberglass still has the deep recess for it, but the post is not drilled and tapped. This is shown in section F, sheet 9 of the 57 AIM. It also shows a 'plug' for the front hole, but like you say, this was probably not used.
So I wonder what my door and door post really is. Maybe a service replacement?
I know I have fought this baby every inch of the way. It is back together, but I am not real happy with the results. The fuzzies still bind some, and in the rear too. Usually it is only in the front. In spite of Rich's excellent step by step rebuild procedure, this thing has an attitude.
To complicate it some, my car is a power window car, the replacement door was not, so holes were drilled & etc. The wire conduit that was added was pretty bad. I ended up pop riveting a aluminum plate to the inside of the door to get it in the right position and to fix the stripped out screws. That all works, but the glass does not go down all the way - the front of the window is up farther in the post than the original right side door. Don't know why.
-Dan-Comment
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