Door Panel Tops

[rotorhead22]

I had to re-create my door panel tops with fiberglass due to the hot sun baking the old ones. I used cloth first and it was too flimsy so I added 1708 glass. This is rough cut still more trimming to do

 

[90sickfox]

Interesting. This is to cover the top vinyl portion of the door panel ?

 

[rotorhead22]

Interesting. This is to cover the top vinyl portion of the door panel ?

No this is to replace the old tops that are crumbling. I am pretty much creating new door panels and using the original armrests. More then likely I will use after market speaker covers because I had to Dremel off the fasteners to remove the old covers. No map pockets or carpet for the bottoms. It’s time consuming however after rebuilding my boat floor this was a piece of cake

 

[rotorhead22]

Here’s the new panels cut out using the old cardboard one for a stencil

 

[rotorhead22]

Had take a break from trimming the fiberglass and painted the dash. I waiting for the heater core and replacing that while this is all out

 

[rotorhead22]

And so now I’ve earned my heater core replacement badge. What a PITA. Wasn’t too bad though, I’ve had worse parts to replace on Huey’s and Blackhawks however I Wasn’t 61 years old back then. The kicker is that it’s already been changed but they didn’t wipe down the old rust stains trailing down the fire wall

 

[rotorhead22]

So it’s been awhile since I posted on this particular project. I’ve had hernia surgery and went right into total left knee replacement and need some time to heal up. Been watching all of thse car rebuild shows and limped out to the garage and started again.

 

[limp]

So it’s been awhile since I posted on this particular project. I’ve had hernia surgery and went right into total left knee replacement and need some time to heal up. Been watching all of thse car rebuild shows and limped out to the garage and started again.

Sucks getting old.....

 

[rotorhead22]

Sucks getting old.....

I’m getting rebuilt

 

[rotorhead22]

Looking for opinions on speaker covers old or round?

 

[General karthief]

The one on the left gets my vote.

 

[manicmechanic007]

Good luck with that hernia limp
Man, I got stories about mine
Rest up, you'll be fine

 

[rotorhead22]

Good luck with that hernia limp
Man, I got stories about mine
Rest up, you'll be fine

It’s healed pretty nicely

 

[rednotch]

I've never seen the tops go bad unless crushed, its the only metal part of the panels. mostly its the fiber board that's water damaged or the fabric is trashed. I like the factory grill beter. Noticed in your pics the white christmas tree clips seem to be stapled in the wrong way on the new panels, round end of them clips into the fiber board, pointed end hold it to the 8mm holes stamped in the door

 

[rotorhead22]

I had to remove the tops of the Christmas trees and re-staple because I used hard board which is about twice as thick as the original stuff. My plastic tops were sooner brittle and just crumbled due to years in the Florida sun. I have also used a moving blanket cut to fit under the vinyl. The whole idea was to deaden sound. It’s taken twice as long to build however it’s been a good learning experience

 

[rotorhead22]

Looks a bit plain after I finally installed it however it is quiet. I think I’m going to disarm the electric door lock because I locked myself out

 

[90sickfox]

Panel looks good after all that work. I'd rather spend the time than to spend the outrageous money they want for new panels.

My LMR door lock actuators have been working great for a while now. There is a write up here for using better actuators.

 

[rednotch]

Looks good

 

[rednotch]

Panel looks good after all that work. I'd rather spend the time than to spend the outrageous money they want for new panels.

My LMR door lock actuators have been working great for a while now. There is a write up here for using better actuators.

REM auto has a decent remake of the fiber board to rebuild stock ones for those that don't have a router. The repop upholstery stuff has jumped too much in price for substandard quality in my opinion, the panels acme and tmi sell fit poorly. They both use a molded thin abs sheet vs.fiber board. If you want better sound deadening noico sound deadener is pretty cheap and works well.