C3:Bird cage Rocker channel replacement

[Steve L.]

Can anyone advised on a good way of replacement method for the RH and LH.

The body is off and on Noland body dolly. The doors are still in place.
I have doner replacements for both sides which includes about a foot of the uprights. I also have the sleeves that I bought from Caladonia previously since originally I thought I would just put the sleeves in.

Looks like I need to raise the body about a foot off the body dolly to get at the channels. I was thinking of supporting the body on the fiberglass buckets behind the seats with a large sheet of plywood. Is there any good place at the front?

Next would be to cut out the originals. Should I align the door gaps by moving the body front and back before I do this so the body is somewhat straight?

I need to cut off about 1/2 inch of the bottom of the front uprights to get to good metal. The backs are fine all the way to the channels.

Next is to cut the front doner uprights to match the original uprights and cut off the back uprights completely on the doner channels.

Do I just but weld the front uprights and fillet the backs or is there some alignment step I need to do before welding to get the door gaps right?

Also, should I be bracing anything before I cut out the original channels(this is a coupe)?

I noticed on some of the vendor sites, that they say to do the welding after the body drop and after door gap alignment with the body shims.

Should I leave the tops of the original channels in place and cut out the sides of the channels. Then plug weld the doners onto the original. This is essential what they do with the add on sleeves.

Thanks for any help

Steve L
73 coupe since new

[Harmon C.]

Re: C3:Bird cage Rocker channel replacement

I just cut a rear body up for parts and attached to the rocker channels is a plate that is used for the seat belt guide nuts. That plate is sandwiched between fiberglass and made it hard to get the channel out. I would say you will need to remove the top and the outside of the fiberglass that covers the channel and cut it on the top inside seam in order to pull that plate straight out. I broke all the glass that covers the roockers to get the channel out.
Go slow and good luck

[Chuck R.]

Re: C3:Bird cage Rocker channel replacement

The front floor board area is the only spot you have to support the front of the body as you need the channels free of any supports.

When you raise the body it would be benificial to have it as level as possible to avaoid twisting the body when the channels come free.

The reason the vendors suggest having the body in place, is to avoid as much pillar movement as possible. If the doors are closed and latched, they can assist in holding the pillars in position. Measuring clearances is still critical.

I agree with Lyle, your going to have to cut the glass away from both lower pillar section to cleanly get access to the spot welded sections.

If you going to splice donor parts onto the lower portion of the hinge pillar, I would cut and fit the donor part until it is exactly the way you want it and then remove it and weld splicing tabs onto the donor part first. Then fit the donor part back onto the pillar and weld it in place.

First place only a couple of tack welds to the pillar to barely hold it in place ensuring that the donor part hasn't moved before you lay in the permanent welds. The steel is awfully thin, so your going to have to move quickly or you'll have blow throughs to deal with.
Then of course clean and re-prime the repair areas.

I would also invest in a spot weld cutter to separate the channel from the pillars to avoid twisting and deforming the pillar steel work.

Whatever you can do to immobilize the pillars so that they can't move while they are separated from the channel is key Steve.

As I always remind, safety glasses or shields, gloves, hearing protection and good ventilation for your body..... plus, jack stands, bracing, additional supports, and a fire extiguisher for the "other" body

Chuck

[Steve L.]

Re: C3:Bird cage Rocker channel replacement

Thanks Chuck and Lyle,
Lyle, I know what seat plate you are talking about. Mine are pretty much rusted away anyways. I have new replacements.

Chuck,
I like your addition of splicing tabs idea. I do have a spot weld cutter but I didn't think about using them here. I'm gonna have to think about a method to immobilize the pillars with the doors in place. Looks like your suggesting to weld everything down solid before the final body drop.

I just finished doing an extensive frame rebuild(should have just bought a new frame). I had too many close calls, so now it's a full face shield(too many small pieces from the grinding wheel hitting me in the face), gloves(came to close to the grinding disk too many times) and ventilation(smoking POR15 made me feel wierd a few days later- I POR15'd the inside of frame pieces, then welded them on.) Oh yea, I even caught my jacket on fire from the grinding sparks, now I always wear a leather welding apron.

Steve L
73 coupe since new

[Dave F.]

Re: C3:Bird cage Rocker channel replacement

Let me just chime in on the importance of stabilzing the hinge pillars. Any movement there will most likely affect the windshield frame in a most negative way

[Harmon C.]

Re: C3:Bird cage Rocker channel replacement

I think I would take the door off and weld something from the hinge pillars to the rear door latch pin. If you bolt metal to the hinge holes and use the threaded hole at the rear with an angle bracket and weld a solid angle between the two on a coupe this should keep things from moving. If you think it is needed a brace from the hole in the windshild corner down to the cross brace should keep it in place.

[Bob U.]

Re: C3:Bird cage Rocker channel replacement

I used the Hinge and Latch Pillar inserts and the cross channel package from Caldonia on a 73 Roadster. I copied Lyles design for a cross support that bolts between the upper hinge mounting holes in the Hinge Pillar and then threaded an All Thread for adjustment into the latch pin mounting hole. Before I started I took accurate measurements from the rear of front fender and the front of the rear fender at the door opening. As weak as this area is when it is rusted, you have to keep it aligned or you will have a mess when you go to drop the body.

I also only tack welded the parts in place until I dropped the body again to make certain it was all in the right place. Then it was final welded. The body was up and down several times in the process. If you are going to remove the existing cross channel, it is a big job as Lyle noted. The parts I had put a second channel inside the original.

[Chuck R.]

Re: C3:Hmm I don't know

Well Steve you have joined the elite ranks of "the close calls"

Between grinder nicks, flying slag from grinders or catching yourself on fire, take heart in the fact that your not alone.

I'll go out on a limb and say for all us "wrenchers" out there, better than 99% of us have had those dreaded "close calls" where the injuries were minor in nature and we have healed and learned from our ahh...mechanical indiscresions

Sometimes Mr. Murphy's law lobbs surprises at even the best prepared projects. Patience is everything Steve

Regards, Chuck