TR3 Door Hinges

[Mr Blue Sky]

Hello all,

I am thinking about repairing my door hinges on my 56 TR3, as they have so much play that that are taking the paint off the sills when I close the doors.   I am trying the local machine shops to see if any of them are interested in drilling out the worn pins and fitting oversized pins (I seem to recall a post on the forum about using 6.5mm dia silver steel).  However, if I draw a blank locally (Malvern), does anyone on here have the interest and capability to do the job for me?  I will of course offer suitable compensation and pay for all postage and materials.  I have looked online and at ca. £250 for a set of 4 hinges I am keen to look at alternatives if at all possible.

Thanks, Laurence

[BlueTR3A-5EKT]

 

I am guessing you have brass hinges.

If your hinges fit your car now and the door fit does not need changing then yes re-pin the hinges.  Talk to Richard whose later steel hinges I re- pinned and he had a horrible fit after. 

Simple job with basic workshop tools.

Getting the old pins out an be a challenge as heat is required.

I have done these re- pin jobs with varied success 

The steel pin is easy to obtain. 6.5 mm silver steel or even stainless if you so chose.  That of course will need the wear checking.  My experience is that the pin wears more than the hinge.   Standard pin is 1/4 “ diameter steel.  Reaming the pin holes is similarly easy but needs a reamer.  Flanging  the end of the pin is simple too with a ball pein hammer. You may need to shim between the leaves to get the slop removed.

Cheers

Peter W

 

[Richardtr3a]

Peter did a very good job on my hinges and the door now hangs and closes well, with good clearance over the sills.  But you may need to carry out adjustment. I tried shims for a while but gave up  and tried another way.  I finally managed to adjust mine by holding the flat part, that attaches to the A post,  in a vice and using a heavy hammer on the pin part. One or two taps and try a refit, ( many times ). But it is very satisfying when it is finished. Allow an afternoon when the weather is warmer.

I have also added an ' L ' bracket inside the front wing , attached to the inner body, and with a long recessed adjusting bolt through the top hinge . This can be adjusted and locked with a socket accessed from the wheel arch . So with luck it will not close on to the sill again.

Good luck Richard & B

[BlueTR3A-5EKT]

34 minutes ago, Richardtr3a said:

Peter did a very good job on my hinges and the door now hangs and closes well, with good clearance over the sills.  But you may need to carry out adjustment. I tried shims for a while but gave up  and tried another way.  I finally managed to adjust mine by holding the flat part, that attaches to the A post,  in a vice and using a heavy hammer on the pin part. One or two taps and try a refit, ( many times ). But it is very satisfying when it is finished. Allow an afternoon when the weather is warmer.

I have also added an ' L ' bracket inside the front wing , attached to the inner body, and with a long recessed adjusting bolt through the top hinge . This can be adjusted and locked with a socket accessed from the wheel arch . So with luck it will not close on to the sill again.

Good luck Richard & B

Your hinges are steel Richard.  

I am not convince the same level of adjustment with a hammer would be tolerated by a brass hinge before it snapped, unless some heat were applied perhaps.  Even then I would be careful.

Peter W

[Ian Vincent]

I used lead shims to adjust my hinges.  I had some spare code 3 and code 4 lead left over from an outhouse roofing job.  It is easy to cut to shape, won't rust and provides a good seal against water ingress behind.

Rgds Ian

I also used lead washers from the same left overs to sandwich between my earthwire connections to the body and the tag on the earthwire.  Gives a good connection to the bare steel underneath and again stops it rusting.

[JeffR]

I'd also recommend using some clear plastic film of the type used to stop stone chips on bodywork to the sill tops to avoid any scuffing should the door drop in the future.

[Mr Blue Sky]

Thanks for the responses, I still can't get the hinges off the A post so this may all be academic. 

[Ian Vincent]

7 hours ago, Mr Blue Sky said:

Thanks for the responses, I still can't get the hinges off the A post so this may all be academic. 

I presume you are using an impact driver. 

Rgds Ian

[Mr Blue Sky]

Hi Ian,

yes, I have an old "hit it with a lump hammer' impact driver.  My batt powered impact driver wouldn't generate enough of an impulse to get them moving.  Maybe need to get my hands on of those 24V monsters.......

Rgds, Laurence

 

 

[greasemonkey]

51 minutes ago, Mr Blue Sky said:

Hi Ian,

yes, I have an old "hit it with a lump hammer' impact driver.  My batt powered impact driver wouldn't generate enough of an impulse to get them moving.  Maybe need to get my hands on of those 24V monsters.......

Rgds, Laurence

 

 

Be careful - The screws are retained by captive nuts in a loose cage behind the A post - get plenty of WD40 in there for a few days - if you stretch the cage you're stuffed!!

Phil.

[greasemonkey]

On 2/11/2021 at 9:27 PM, Mr Blue Sky said:

Hello all,

I am thinking about repairing my door hinges on my 56 TR3, as they have so much play that that are taking the paint off the sills when I close the doors.   I am trying the local machine shops to see if any of them are interested in drilling out the worn pins and fitting oversized pins (I seem to recall a post on the forum about using 6.5mm dia silver steel).  However, if I draw a blank locally (Malvern), does anyone on here have the interest and capability to do the job for me?  I will of course offer suitable compensation and pay for all postage and materials.  I have looked online and at ca. £250 for a set of 4 hinges I am keen to look at alternatives if at all possible.

Thanks, Laurence

L - these guys may be able to do the job if they are not too busy, father & son outfit - it would be a 15 minute job I suspect so they may not be interested - but no harm trying them as they are local-ish in Bromyard - https://mactooling.com/macsmachineshop/

Phil.

[Mr Blue Sky]

On 2/16/2021 at 9:22 PM, greasemonkey said:

L - these guys may be able to do the job if they are not too busy, father & son outfit - it would be a 15 minute job I suspect so they may not be interested - but no harm trying them as they are local-ish in Bromyard - https://mactooling.com/macsmachineshop/

Phil.

Hi Phil,

thanks for the steer - Bromyard is only a short trip so I will give them a call.  I need to work out how to get some WD40 on the captive nuts next.  I have a long weekend coming up so will take a better look at how I get behind the rubber mud shield.  Never let it be said that these cars don't throw up some challenges!!

Regards, Laurence

 

 

[Lebro]

WD40 is NOT a good penetrating fluid, it is good at protecting against corrosion, &as a  temporary lubricant (the solvent dries off, leaving a sticky mess)

Plus Gas or simply diesel fuel is the best.

Bob.

[Drewmotty]

As Nob said WD40 isn’t the best lubricant or penetrating oil. It was developed as a water dispersant hence WD. 
There’s a bit of interesting history here:

https://www.wd40.com/history/

Edited February 18, 2021 by Drewmotty

[Lebro]

Nob ? 

[Drewmotty]

1 minute ago, Lebro said:

Nob ? 

Sorry Bob. Let’s not fall out over auto correct :-)

I won’t correct it or subsequent readers may misconstrue your post as abuse.

 

[Lebro]

[greasemonkey]

On 2/18/2021 at 8:51 AM, Lebro said:

WD40 is NOT a good penetrating fluid, it is good at protecting against corrosion, &as a  temporary lubricant (the solvent dries off, leaving a sticky mess)

Plus Gas or simply diesel fuel is the best.

Bob.

I accept that we all have our favourites for such jobs. It may not be the best but it generally works ok (irrespective of its history, these days it is marketed as a penetrating fluid) and a big plus for me is that it has the "flexible straw" so you get it where you want it and not all over the general area. Maybe Plus Gas do a straw too these days but when I last bought some they didn't even do an aerosol! A long time ago agreed!

Phil

[roy53]

euro car parts sell it

[Mr Blue Sky]

Hi All,

I will give the diesel a go - need to commandeer one of the better half's spray cleaner bottles.  Suspect the diesel will destroy the pump PDQ, but may last long enough to get the captive nuts soaked.

Thanks everyone. Laurence

 

 

[Ralph Whitaker]

9 hours ago, Mr Blue Sky said:

Hi All,

I will give the diesel a go - need to commandeer one of the better half's spray cleaner bottles.  Suspect the diesel will destroy the pump PDQ, but may last long enough to get the captive nuts soaked.

Thanks everyone. Laurence

 

 

Have you managed to get the inner wing splash plates off to gain access to the back of the nuts?. Problem is they too are held by captive nuts if original which also seize.

Ralph