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doors and doors

To: morgans@autox.team.net
Subject: doors and doors
From: Stephen.Stierman@huntington.com
Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 10:51:33 -0500

John,
     Fitting doors is more a matter of patience, splitting the difference,
and using the proper fittings.   The frames actually have a bit of curve to
them to fit the aperture and over time they can warp a bit and not quite
fit as they once did.  I have actually had to cut the frames and reglue to
get this curvature.   Also the screws and hinges get sloppy and mess up the
equation.  The rubber buffers that position the doors get worn and fall
off.   The skins rust along the lower edge and no amount of body filler is
going to cure that.  If you disassemble a rusty door you will find that the
lower couple of inches is solid rust and quite thin.  There is no choice
but to reskin.  Reskinning is not a job for those that are not mechanically
inclined and have worked with sheet metal as it does require a good deal of
skill and patience.  The best time to reskin a door is during a
restoration/repaint because it is often impossible to get the door to line
up with the soldered drip edge without adjusting its position.   There are
a couple of techniques that I use that would require a good deal of time to
explain and I don't know if this forum is a good vehicle for that.
     However; I can tell you unequivocally that Morgan doors can be made to
fit and shut like a Rolls Royce (or a Miata) door!  Mine do, none of this
lifting, shifting, and juggling stuff that I see every time I go to a
Morgan meet.



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