1936 Packard

Yeah, that is a tough one having a car burnt like that, though on a high note, Tom Medleys 40 coupe looked about as bad after a garage fire and his buddies went the distance to bring it back, a great tribute to him and his legacy, another founding rodder sorely missed.

As for the hood hinges, I can whittle them out no prob.

Got started with the suicide door hinges today. I bought these last year before I even had the Packard and now found that their 2x3" dimension is too fat for the Packard's skinny door jambs, so I 'sectioned' them 3/4" to fit them in. I also squared them up and tied them together with a piece of 3/4" tube so they will mount squarely with each other so there is no binding when operating.

Those hinges on the burnt car look just like the ones on my 47 Lincoln. Look back through my build pics and you'll see them.

Got one door hinged and loosely bolted on, some tweaking to do to make it fit the frame right, things seem to have a habit of moving around after a bunch of welding....
Before welding the hinge pockets to the door, I made and installed the window tracks that will hold the felt window channel - easy to do before all the other structure gets built and gets in the way.

Funny, I don't see a NITSA safety door crash bar in there....[P

I'm sure that the windows are electric. Who's window regulators do you use for these projects? The ones I got seemed to be adequate just a hair flimsy.

I'm gonna just keep quiet and watch and learn.
I just wish I knew what the heck I am doing sometimes.
Looks great!

Like the others, I'm interested in how you rebuild the doors with new hinges, window regulators, seals, and glass on an odd-ball application (Packard).

jfg455 said:

Funny, I don't see a NITSA safety door crash bar in there....[P

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That would make Big Brother happy, but not too likely...

Old Iron said:

I'm sure that the windows are electric. Who's window regulators do you use for these projects? The ones I got seemed to be adequate just a hair flimsy.

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Yep, electric. I'm using Autoloc ones as I have before. I'm sure there are better ones but the price is OK and I've had no problems with them. One thing I modify on them (and will show later) is extend the lift rail that the glass is glued into so it reaches into the felt window channel at both ends to stabilize the glass = especially helpful with longer windows.

Flipper_1938 said:

Like the others, I'm interested in how you rebuild the doors with new hinges, window regulators, seals, and glass on an odd-ball application (Packard).

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Me too, I make it up as I go......[S

Got the door latched and handle mounted, using the ubiquitous 32-4 Ford handle. Inside receiver mechanism is from Carolina Customs connecting to the usual bear claw latch. Finally cut off the door mounting tabs that were welded to the body - kept ripping my pants on them.

ZZ, the excess pocket just gets trimmed off at the jamb profile?

Then welded in at the edge?[S

choppinczech said:

ZZ, the excess pocket just gets trimmed off at the jamb profile?

Then welded in at the edge?[S

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That's correct. Also important with these hinges is mounting them as close to the outer skin as possible, otherwise the door will pinch against the frame as it opens.

I used to think I was a pretty good body man but after watching your work I am beginning to wonder about that.
I am perplexed as to how one guy takes a pile of cut up body parts and stitch's them back together and makes it all look so natural without any body work at all I mean it looks perfect as it sits patina and all. I sit here and shake my head in wonder.[cl What am I doing wrong?

What he said [cl[cl

You just have to believe you can do it... and if it don't, keep beating on it 'till works.

With the other door mounted and latched, I started in on mounting the window motor. I used a piece of 1/4" x 2" bar (yellow arrow) as a guide to position the motor assy. along with a couple chunks of felt channel set into the guide rails and ran it up and down to make sure it didn't bind. I was going to extend the rail the the glass sits in out to the felt channels but this new design Autoloc used has rubber lined clamps that hold the glass so I think I'll try it as is, maybe it's better than gluing the glass in. I'll have the glass made as long as possible so it won't be too tippy.
Mounted the inside handle (33-4 Ford) with another Carolina Customs mechanism, still need to sort out a door handle/armrest design and mount it to the door.

That looks like the same window unit I used in my Lincoln. I bolted mine to the original lower window channel where the hydraulic unit had mounted. They work great.

zzrodder said:

That's correct. Also important with these hinges is mounting them as close to the outer skin as possible, otherwise the door will pinch against the frame as it opens.

Click to expand...

Ahh. It is little tid bits like this that can make or break the experience for a first time builder. I hadn't put that much thought into it either. Thanks for sharing. Back to watching... [P

After what seems like a long time, both doors are done - so many little things and fabbing in each. Chopped and installed the garnish mouldings, made armrests from some chunks of hardwood, (they'll get upholstered later) and installed the door contacts for the wiring.

Looks great! Thanks for showing us how its done.

Outstanding work. [dr

If you ever become homeless and need to relocate let me know.
You can become the CMIC (Chief Modder In charge) at my failing enterprise. The position doesn't pay much but the benefits aren't either. We have fun whenever we want to and we work when we want to.

Great work.

Started on repairing 78 years of wear, tear and rust on the rear fenders. Starting on the passenger side one, replaced the crispy front edge and tacked in the patch for the lower rear edge. Made a small change to the wheelwell shape by pulling back the rear edge by 2" so it doesn't look like the fender is biting the rear of the tire.