coolie Posted June 15, 2014 Report Share Posted June 15, 2014 i have been setting up door catches , took catch of post and the captive bracket slipped down into post !! thinking of drilling 65mm hole in post door jam to retrieve ?? has anyone had this problem and if so how to remedy . cheers coolie Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stuart Posted June 15, 2014 Report Share Posted June 15, 2014 If you take the side trim panel off there is a hole in the top of the inside of the "B" post you might then be able to fish it back up by using one of those flexible wands with a magnet on the end down through that hole. Stuart. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AlanT Posted June 15, 2014 Report Share Posted June 15, 2014 Did you hear this hit the bottom? Do you know how far down it went? These should not fall. There is a folded cover, spot welded on, to stop this happening. Of course it could be missing or rusted away. You need to rig up illumination to try to see exactly what happened. You may be able to fish for this with MIG wire. Quick set Araldite on the end of a rod, maybe. Making a big hole is what you do when everything else fails. It's usually possible to get things like this out with some patience. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
coolie Posted June 16, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 16, 2014 hi alan T , i must have played with the catch to much as the spot weld on the holding bracket came away ,resulting with the bracket falling !!! tried everything to retrieve to no avail . i have drilled a 55mm hole in jam and there is was ,jammed flat on the sill !! with the hole drilled it still took an age to retrieve . all sorted just need to repair hole cheers coolie Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AlanT Posted June 16, 2014 Report Share Posted June 16, 2014 Since you probably won't fix the backing plate this will drop again. I'd find or make a plastic or rubber bung. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
coolie Posted June 16, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 16, 2014 hi alan T, threaded string through original hole pulled bracket up with string , then self taped through post into holding plate to replicate spot weld . bracket moves around in holding plate so catch can be adjusted good as new . just got a 55mm hole to sort cheers coolie Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AlanT Posted June 16, 2014 Report Share Posted June 16, 2014 (edited) Are you planning to repair this by welding? Are you used to this kind of welded repair? Edited June 16, 2014 by AlanT Quote Link to post Share on other sites
coolie Posted June 17, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2014 hi alan T , yep was going to weld , i throught to far ahead as how to get best result ? any advice welcome cheers coolie Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AlanT Posted June 17, 2014 Report Share Posted June 17, 2014 This is how I would do it. Make two discs, one about 1/8in smaller all around than your hole, the other about 3/8in bigger than your hole. Put two self taps into the big disc. Cut the disc in half, with one screw in each piece. Feed the half-moon shaped bits through your hole and bring up behind the panel by pulling on the screw. Fix with a few tack welds and linish these flat. Grind notches to make the small disc lay perfectly flat in the recess that you have made. If you are cunning you can use the self taps to hold the small disc in place. Tack weld the small disc and finish weld in place all around. Use "back-stepping" and dodge about a bit to minimise heat distortion. Having a backing plate inside the post will: 1. make it much easier to avoid blowing through 2. stop the disc falling into the post 3. make it easier to align the disc to match the post I've fixed loads of holes in sills like this. You dont want a patch-plate stuck on the outside drawing attention to itsself. Done this way the repair will be invisible. Squirt inside with Waxoyl or similar. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
coolie Posted June 17, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2014 hi alan T . cheers for the detail , i was thinking along those lines. nothing worse than a poor repair job , this will be right , may do a befor and after pic cheers coolie Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AlanT Posted June 17, 2014 Report Share Posted June 17, 2014 There are lots of variations but you have the basis of a method that will work. Take the paint back, 1/2 to 3/4 in will be enough. Lots of little welds are easier than long runs if you are not an experienced welder. Don't use thin sheet. For this I'd use 1.6mm. This won't bend about so much or blow away. It will probably sit a bit high but you can grind it flat. Having a gap to weld in will make the weld sit flatter and make a stronger weld. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.