convertible body off doors on or off ?

[Wayne P.]

I will be transferring my 1964 convertible body to a new frame.
( driver not a number matching car. )
I have seen pictures of cars with doors on and doors off when the body is being removed.
Is this a personal preference or is their a correct way . I don't need the extra work if not required. ( power windows )
Thanks

[Keith B.]

Re: convertible body off doors on or off ?

Depending on how you are going to move the car it would be best to keep the doors on. The issue you will most likely run into if you take the doors off is trying to get the door gaps to be reasonable because the shims from one frame to another will be different. The doors on and shut will help stabilize the car from sagging.

[Michael F.]

Re: convertible body off doors on or off ?

I did my body off with doors off when pulling and replacing body, I had counted and reused shims and everything lined up correctly. I used 9 people to do body off/on. 1 each side supporting front fender area, 1 each side back fenders, 2 each side at front of door and back of door and 1(me..) underneath removing/replacing shims. I got the easy job of course since I was owner

[Doug F.]

Re: convertible body off doors on or off ?

i always have the doors on, they need to be in order to shim the body correctly anyway, also plan on adjusting the doors at least once, they always seam to move a little as you add more parts to the car and climb in and out of it a couple hundred times.

[Jack H.]

Re: convertible body off doors on or off ?

The factory originally assembled the body and ran it through paint with the doors ON. BUT, bear in mind, they had special 'mule' fixtures to properly support the body assy when it wasn't bolted to its frame.

The concern folks have about removing a body from the frame with the doors in place, is absent proper tip to tail reinforcement, it's possible to distort the bird cage (especially on a convertible) resulting in change(s) to the door gap geometry.

Club locals here seem to favor removing the doors and fabricating a pair of 'cross bars' to FORCE structural integrity of the bird cage. But, there are others who've NOT gone this route and gotten the restoration job done without a hitch.

So, this one is your call...

[Chris E.]

Re: convertible body off doors on or off ?

I pulled the body on my convertible and left the doors on.

However, I had a body cart that had a front support for the radiator to avoid the kind of sagging that was described earlier in this thread.

When I went to put the body back on and check the door gaps, we needed to play with the shims just a bit but the doors fell into line REALLY well.

I'd vote for leaving the doors on.

[Gene M.]

Re: convertible body off doors on or off ?

You need access to the body mounts inside behind the kick panels. I suggest you fabricate metal braces that pickup the door hinge and the threads for the door latch in the jamb. Do this prior to removing the current body mount bolts and after door removal. Insure your structure is solid and tight so rear section of body stays in location as body is lifted.

If you make these braces solid enough you can lift the body with them.

[Wayne P.]

Re: convertible body off doors on or off ?

Gene. I have all the body mount bolts out. Thanks .
I also have the convertable roof in the car. I guess I should take it out due to weight.

[Peter J.]

Re: convertible body off doors on or off ?

Wayne,
About fifteen years a go when I was looking for a midyear a guy told me he knew a guy that knew a guy and so on. Well the story was, there was a 63 convertible that had spun a bearing and was for sale at a independent body shop in town. The body guy had his shop on his wife's family property and she kicked him out and got a restraining order. He had removed the body and doors and interior and placed it on two saw horses - one under the front of the car and the other in front of the rear wheel opening. The whole rear of the car broke of and was laying on the ground.
So I see why the advice for leaving doors on or bracing the body.

[Wayne P.]

Re: convertible body off doors on or off ?

Peter. Are you sure the body shop wasn't working on a stretching the body and frame . Sort of like a limo. Thanks that was a sad but great story.

[Mike G.]

Re: convertible body off doors on or off ?

doors on if you can.