Cab Corner/ Rocker fit

[Hawker7]

So I got my cab corner cut and welded on, but now the rocker won't fit all the up against the door jam. The rocker and cab corner are hitting at the bottom and it seems the only to get them to fit would be to cut one or the other?? Anyone else have this issue?

[lowriden58]

have you test fit the door yet?

[Hawker7]

I put the door back on and the bottom gap looks ok. I just need to get the rocker back far enough against the door jam.

[Hawker7]

I just noticed that when I shut the door the bottom of the door sticks out. Don't know if I put the cab corner on wrong, the door is mis-aligned, or the door is bent out.

[chev-obsession]

that same thing happened to mine. i just had to get it to fit the best i could. my passenger door sticks out about 1/4 of an inch.

[glock35ipsc]

Mine did that too. Check my build thread for what I did (link below in sig). There are a number of ways to go to make it fit. What I did was to make slices on the lip on the inside of the door jam, then tack each lip in place as I tweaked it to fit the door. I also had a large gap that had to be filled in with TIG wire.

Not many times these thing fit perfect out of the box.

[Richard8971]

If you are using repop sheetmetal... (and I am sure you are), do not be suprized if a little trimming or altering is needed to get them to fit correctly. It is very possible that the door needs to realigned to fit.

I put new rockers on my '67 stepper and I had to trim the new sheet metal to fit.

Don't stress, do what you need to do to get it to fit.

Don

[cdowns]

cut and fit is part of the fabrication process

[Hawker7]

Thanks, I think I have the idea now about how to fix the door gap problem, but still am unsure about the rocker and cab corner not fitting. Do the rockers need to be cut down sometimes?

[my67chevytruck]

sometimes the rockers need to be cut, rebent, sliced/diced , etc. how does the cab corner look without the rocker on? if you remove the rocker and close the door , does the bottom gap improve?

[Hart_Rod]

I had to cut the back of the rocker to fit also. How does the rocker fit on the front part of the door? They "dove" in on mine and I had to slice them to get it to match the door.

[glock35ipsc]

Here is what I did. First I made some slits so I could get the curve to match the door:



Then I tacked in some TIG wire to close the gap:




Then I cut a piece of sheet metal and welded to the TIG wire to fill that gap and make that area of the jam smooth again:

[68gmsee]

Many years ago, I did mine on my 69. I had to tweak mine the same as everyone has mentioned. But, I pre-installed my rockers using a few rivets rather than spot welding. This way I just drilled them out when I needed to take the rocker back off. Once I had it the way I wanted it, I was able to weld it up.

[glock35ipsc]

I did that too, but with 1/4" self tapping screws (first pic).

[Hawker7]

going to see this weekend if I can get the cab corner to match up on the door first, then I will work on the rocker. Of course I had a hard time getting the spot welds to work on the cab corner in the door jam area , and right after I got the last spot weld to stick I noticed the door gap issue. Guess I will have to drill out a bunch of spot welds before I start anything.

[hemihead]

I am in the same process but doing a few more repop pieces (kick panels, both door posts, inner rockers, etc)

Each and evry piece has had some massaging.

The cab corners I got even need some metal added where they meet the rocker as I had a 3/4" square hole yet!!!!

Not to worry keep fitting and massaging and it will come together.

[Hawker7]

I worked on the cab corner some more today. I messed around with the door and was able to get it aligned to where it fit the cab corner shape, so I lucked out there. Got the cab corner welded up, so I will be starting on the rocker next. Did not have good luck with my spot welds on the cab corner, but hopefully they will go better on the rocker.

[Hawker7]

I got the cab corner and rocker on, but am now left with a gap between the two. Do you think I should just try to seal the gap with something (maybe seam sealer) or leave it as it is? I put POR-15 inside the rockers so I’m not really concerned about rust. I also thought that if I leave the gap it gives the water some place to run out.

[splatrd]

You have to remember that you are dealing with reproduction parts that are not held to the tolerance of the originals. Also vehicles of that era never fit that well to begin with, why do you think they had to use so many shims. Another thing to consider is that as the cab supports, rockers and floor sheetmetal rusts away to nothing, the cab will settle under the weight. I did collision work for 10 years, and even factory parts would take a bit if tweaking to get the fit right. As far as the gap at the joint between the rocker and cab corner, I welded mine up solid to minimize water infiltration(thats why it rusted the first time).

[glock35ipsc]

This isn't a cut edge on the back side of the rocker panel, is it?

They should butt up pretty tightly together. Some people leave them just tightly fit together, some use seam sealer, some weld them solid too.

[Hawker7]

Originally Posted by glock35ipsc

This isn't a cut edge on the back side of the rocker panel, is it?

They should butt up pretty tightly together. Some people leave them just tightly fit together, some use seam sealer, some weld them solid too.

yes, I had to trim a good amount of the rocker off to make it fit. I already had the cab corner on and might have had too far forward.

[glock35ipsc]

Hmmm, if it were my truck, I would redo the cab corner and get another rocker. Otherwise, I would weld the two together and do the same to the other side. Did you hang the door when you did this to be sure there were no clearance issues and that the gap was consistent? Could be a problem if you have the cab corner so far forward that the rocker needed to be cut down to fit.

[Hawker7]

Originally Posted by glock35ipsc

Hmmm, if it were my truck, I would redo the cab corner and get another rocker. Otherwise, I would weld the two together and do the same to the other side. Did you hang the door when you did this to be sure there were no clearance issues and that the gap was consistent? Could be a problem if you have the cab corner so far forward that the rocker needed to be cut down to fit.

yep, the door is hung and shuts with no problems. The gaps aren't perfect but this my first project, and first time doing most of this work so I can live with that.

[glock35ipsc]

N/M, I saw that you did have the door on.

[Aarons72s]

Most aftermarket cab corners suck, and that is putting it nicely. The only ones that fit real good were made by tabco, dontt know if the ones they carry now are the good ones, made over here, or the ones that need alot of work, the ones made overseas. Most cab corners need to be rebent by hand, the lips have to be redone, trimed and so on. Always fit the cab corner and rocker with door installed. And try to get them as aligned as you can. I usually dril and screw them in until I get a fit I can live with.

As for rockers, the ones I used were older production tri-plus ones that fit great. I dont mess with rockers like some of the above do. If it doesnt fit really good with maybe a litle bending or trimming I reject the part. Lets just say I have rejected alot of them. The ones sold by lmc and certifit are pure junk. The certifit ones are usually bowed and as for the lmc ones I nowhere near corect, way off.

Oh here is how I mount rockers. I fill in the original drain holes, if still present. I then drill two 1/4" holes about 1/2" from the back lip. I then chamfer them. I then scuff and prime the rockers with a acid or epoxy primer. Then I scuff them and the rocker backing and apply bed liner. I finally glue and rivit the rocker into place. Trying to make it as rust proof as possible since no mater what water will get inside them.