[igotachevyor2]

roy i looked through your site i may have missed it but i didnt see the how to on shaved door handels if you would can some one explain it to me how to actuate the door fill the holes etc i am by no means a pro at body work but i am d*mned and determined to do the whole truck my self by the way its a 76 gmc truck there will be only two holes to patch thanks in advance for the help

 

[Roy Newton- exprotech]

Brandon did you want to know how to fill the doors or how to make them work by remote. ROY

 

[igotachevyor2]

well........both i have never done a shaved door i have an idea on how but i dont have extra doors if i screw these up so any info will help thanks

 

[Glen Ferko]

Maybe I can help you out. I shaved the handles on both mine and my wife's Plymouths. I was too cheap to buy a module kit from the hot rod shop, so I used a keyless entry module from early '90's Buick or Chev car. I welded metal inside the doors to cover the handle holes and then filled the outside with fibreglass filler. I mounted the door lock motors towards the bottom of the doors and made rods to connect the motor to the door latch. I followed the wiring scematic for the module so the right button (which is the "unlock" button) on the keychain opens the right door, and the left button (which is the "lock" button) to open the left door. It works out that if you hit the "unlock" or right button twice, it pops both doors. I did , however, go to the rod shop to buy door poppers. If you need details on the wiring, I can help you with that also. By the way, the module and motors only cost me $100.00.

 

[Roy Newton- exprotech]

I have been busy and by the time I got back Glen answered your question. The neat part is I did mine the same way even down to the door lock module. The only thing I can add is I made the door pull longer so it would pull easyier. The other thing is I used the parts out of my donor car.Other then that they are made the same way. It is in the roys garage pages on how to do this. ROY

 

[57Chevyman]

As far as filling in the holes in the doors. Welding is only one way to make the patch stick. A friend of mine who is a bodyman says that it is much easier to glue it! They now make a 2 part adhesive designed to atach entire sections of unibodies after major colision repairs. The stuff was developed by chrystler corp and has been proven to be better than welds in crash tests of repaired cars. My friend used it to fill his marker lights and shave his door handles. It is faster and their is no chance of warping the panel like with welding.

 

[Roy Newton- exprotech]

I think me and glen kind of like the old ways we know the weld is going no where. The panel glue works but you better make sure you put it on a very clean surface. I mean no rust or amything. All it comes down to is old vs new I have seen them done both ways. ROY

[ December 14, 2001: Message edited by: Roy Newton- exprotech ]</p>

 

[57Chevyman]

Truth is I will most likely weld mine in as I have access to a mig. but for someone who does not it is a good option. I have often shaved chrome from daily drivers using fiberglass body filler and it works well. But my Wagon will be all metal.

 

[igotachevyor2]

thanks for the info i like the idea of welding better but as how i do not have access to a welder i will prolly look toward the adhesive and see just how good it is
thanks again

 

[sdar]

Just a couple of points to add. First, whenever the opportunity presents itself, I try to mount the bear claw latches and actuators on the door post to eliminate the need to run wires through the door. This does involve more work, but I like the way it looks when complete. The last point is that I always run a hidden cable from the bear claw latch in the door post, through the bottom of the cab and down the chassis. This "hidden" cable allows me to get into the vehicle in the event I ever get stuck with a dead battery. It also give me the ability to pop the door from the inside manually is needed.

 

[57Chevyman]

I was also planing to mount an aux cable in my 57 to operate my drivers door should I ever have a problem. One question that has since crossed my nind is what do I do with the door locks. How can I open my door if someone has locked them? Or do I simply eliminate them?

 

[sdar]

It's gonna take some doing to mount an aux cable if your latches are mounted in the doors. You will have to run the cable through the hinge post and then into the door to attach to your latch. I really don't see a need for locks when shaving the doors. If your locked door unlocks by pulling the inside handle, then you should be fine. Your remote actuator will pull the latch as if you pulled the handle from inside the car. You may want to consider a magnetic release instead of the aux cable. I haven't used the magnetic release before, but if you would like, I can research this more to see if it will help. Let me know.

 

[57Chevyman]

Stan,

The magnetic release is an interesting Idea. I would like more info if you can get it. My thought on the cable release was to use a shifter or brake cable from a ten speed bike. It was my intent to run it through the fire wall and front door post and into the front edge of the door mounting a small thumb lever inside the fender on the firewall. I was planing to guard the cable at the jam with a spring type guard. I thought if the cable were properly lubed before assy it would provide years of service and could flex through thousands of door swings.

 

[sdar]

Mike,
Sorry it took so long to get back to you. I've been a little under the weather lately.
I will look into the magnetic release and post what I find. I remember seeing it, i just need to remember who has them. I will get back to you and we can see if it will work.
If the magnetic switch doesn't work, I think that you plan will work fine. I've pulled some nice light-weight covered cables from the salvage yard that would be flexable enough to work through the door.

 

[38 special]

I've never tried it yet but a friend of mine down the street who does street rods takes a torch and melts clothes hangers into the shaved door handle holes. Has anyone ever tried that? It seems to work for him. I'd have to get more details about how he does it, if anyone is interested.

 

[awsum34]

A little more trouble to do but well worth it. If your going with the cable to open the door if the battery is dead. Put the latch on the body side and the stricker on the door. Then all you have to do is run the cable straight down the body and under the car.

Did this on my 34 chevy

 

[57Chevyman]

I think what your neighbor is doing is welding with a torch. I have done some of this but have not tried it on a body panel before. If you have access to a MIG welder you would be better off. The MIG is far less likely to warp the panel than an Oxy Gas welding process.

 

[dinger]

to fill small holes i have used solder with great success. buy some cheap wooden kitchen utensils, grind around the hole on both sides, use a small piece of galvanized metal to back it, either clamping the metal or have some one hold it in place, let the solder flow into the hole and a little on the backside of the metal, smooth with the wooden spoon or spatula, whatever one works best, grind it smooth. it's always best also to dimple the hole a bit to give more area for the solder to hold to. the galvanized metal should fall off, leaving a fairly smooth solder surface on the backside also

 

[gbovaird]

To fill small holes i have also taken a flat peice of copper pushed tight to the inside of the hole, and then mig welded that hole up . the weld will not stick to the copper but will still fill the hole. Regardless of what you use to fill the hole if it involves heat of any kind be extremely carefull not to put to much heat to the panel, it will warp alot easier and quicker than you would think.i like to keep a compressed air line and blow gun close by. I weld a LITTLE then i cool it down using the compressed air.There is also a putty you can put around the area which is supposed to soak up all the heat. It can be bought at welding supply stores, but i have never used it .
Good luck

 

[Crosleycrazy1]

When I shaved the handles on my '63 BelAir Wagon I used the stock latch assemby and the remote release system out of a Buick. To make sure I had a way in if the battery went dead I extended the release arm of the latch assembly and ran a long trunk release cable thru the firewall, door post and door to the arm. Use of late model "door poppers" helped kick the doors open.