Ever had one of those days where you chase an issue for what seems like forever, only to find out it's someone elses fault?! Well that's what ended up happening with the repro hinges on the 68 Camaro project....
Although I was able to get the door reasonably-well lined up with the quarter, the leading edge still wouldn't quite sit even with the front fender for some reason, which is obviously a critical spot that needs to be addressed. After re-checking factory measurements to ensure the door post is properly positioned (no previous damage here), we decided to see if the repor hinges could be the problem:
Although the door bolt holes were off compared to the originals, slotting the door bolt holes in the door didn't help much and looking into the door gap, we could see that the hinge-edge was butting up against the door inner, not allowing it to be adjusted inward enough. So after a bunch of effing around.... we compared the old and new hinges against each other:
Check out all that extra material! That is what is holding the door from sitting inward enough to be flush with the fender. On the next 2 photo's, check out the portion of the hinge next to my thumb:
You can see how the OER repro hinge is WAY off the original. The extra material is what is butting up against the door, stopping it from sliding in enough so the door lines up with the fender.... So a call to the supplier got me another set on the way, but still...this is why repro parts get such a BAD name!
Time to call CamaroDepot.ca and see what they can do to help....
In the meantime - lets get this quarter started!
Don't forget to check out my website at www.E-tekRestorations.com !