Crewcab build

[Frizzle Fry]

Alright hopefully your roof will end-up looking better than this but here's the mspaint version of one possible approach...

Cut the front/lower edge off the rear doors and make an entire new front edge of the rear doors using the rear cab portion of the front door jam. In other words weld the striker section from the cab that would have been your B-Pilar to the front of the rear doors. Yes, this will make it so you have to open the front doors in order to open the rear doors, but I think that's the price of going pillarless. It will also simplify the weather-strip situation.

In this pic I also angled the rear window frame forward a bit to match the angle of the front door window frame reducing the "V" shape between the windows. If you do this you'll have to have custom wing windows cut. ...or just live with the "V" ...or tilt the front window frame back to match the rear... options

[PrerunnerRob]

Originally Posted by 62 C60

put the striker on the floor and put the latch at the bottom of the door.

just my

Too easy!

[PrerunnerRob]

Originally Posted by jonzcustomshop

ok . here is my thinking.
keep going as if there is a 1-2 inch filler panel between the door posts.

most 4 doors have a thicker middle post, so it shouldn't look wrong.

straighten out the rear edge of the front door to but up to the rear door.

add material to the rear of the rear post on the front door, and the front of the front post on the rear door.

See quick pic.
I still used the one with all the posts the same as the windshield.

Is your rear door going to be suicide still?
Are you planning for all the doors to open seperatley, or only rear if front are already open?

All the doors are going to open individually, I dont want to have to deal with people in the back not being able to get out----but it would prevent accidental door removal on the freeway!

[PrerunnerRob]

Originally Posted by jonzcustomshop

ok . here is my thinking.
keep going as if there is a 1-2 inch filler panel between the door posts.

most 4 doors have a thicker middle post, so it shouldn't look wrong.

straighten out the rear edge of the front door to but up to the rear door.

add material to the rear of the rear post on the front door, and the front of the front post on the rear door.

See quick pic.
I still used the one with all the posts the same as the windshield.

Is your rear door going to be suicide still?
Are you planning for all the doors to open seperatley, or only rear if front are already open?

Suicide on the rear, regular up front. If you look at your picture, the front of the rear door window frame, the door shoots strait down from there. I'm going to attempt to get some pictures so this is less confusing.

[Sam59]

Originally Posted by Frizzle Fry

Alright hopefully your roof will end-up looking better than this but here's the mspaint version of one possible approach...

Cut the front/lower edge off the rear doors and make an entire new front edge of the rear doors using the rear cab portion of the front door jam. In other words weld the striker section from the cab that would have been your B-Pilar to the front of the rear doors. Yes, this will make it so you have to open the front doors in order to open the rear doors, but I think that's the price of going pillarless. It will also simplify the weather-strip situation.

In this pic I also angled the rear window frame forward a bit to match the angle of the front door window frame reducing the "V" shape between the windows. If you do this you'll have to have custom wing windows cut. ...or just live with the "V" ...or tilt the front window frame back to match the rear... options

Haha thought that truck looked familiar

[PrerunnerRob]

I need some opinions please...
I'm debating the big or small back window thing again for about the 40th time, and I need to come to a decision somethime soon. It's going to be like a fishbowl insaide anyway with all of the door glass and windshield, so I'm thinking the big back window would not look out of place on it.
Any suggestions?
Oh, and my suicide hinges will be here next week...sweet!
Anyone ever try out the autoloc suicide hinge kit?

[TimE]

I vote for the Big Window. IMO, I think it would look better than the small window plus it would give you greater visibility once it's on the road.

[66Rick]

I vote big back window as well.

Being farther away visibility looking out the small window will be greatly reduced. Big back window will give you a better view overall as well as in the mirror. I don't think it will look out of place at all.

Another reason for the big back window, having the back window right behind your head is much different than 3 feet back. Remember you won't be able to just turn your head around to see when something is falling out of the bed.

[Stepside65]

Greater visibility with big back window will make your life alot easier when driving down the road and would fit perfectly with all the rest of the glass.

[greg64]

I'm with the others on the big back window. You'll be looking out a porthole with the rearview with a small window. Better for the folks in back too.

Not to skewer your previous plans, but how about fixing the rear doors and going with the suburban windows for the back passengers? Kind of a Subpickup. Probably not what you're going for, but I haven't seen it done either.

[Dinos63]

big back window, thats power that rolls up and down too

[joe231]

[PrerunnerRob]

Originally Posted by Dinos63

big back window, thats power that rolls up and down too

Damn dude, why do you have to ruin my plans with something better! I forsee more work on this area in the future!

[ClassicAutoResto]

Originally Posted by PrerunnerRob

Damn dude, why do you have to ruin my plans with something better! I forsee more work on this area in the future!

Robert, It's easy for us to come up with ideas when someone else is willing to execute them!!!! Jerry

[PrerunnerRob]

Sooooo.....
I made some progress, I think I just ate a door, but I had a feeling this was going to happen on the first one I did. I blame it on a sloppy cut on my part, and trying to get everything to line up at once, instead of building the inner and out seperately. Oh well, I have 2 extra doors to play with. Anyone know where I can get full height or partial door skins?


Obviously the cabs still have to come together alot more, but I'm slowly cutting away at them trying to peel apart the portions I need to remove layer by layer. I'm trying to prvent cutting too much off and do it right on the first shot.

[joe231]

Awesome, can't wait for more!!

[jonzcustomshop]

pm lilred66, he posted a link last week for a company that is doing full door skins.

[jonzcustomshop]

another thing that you could try with the door edge:
break the inner and outer door apart at the edge.
move your inner door (shorten) to where you want it.
leave about a 1/4 to 1/2 inch of the old door past the inner door edge. trim off the rest.
hammer and dolley your new edge around the inner door
spot weld back together.

there might be issues when you gert to the compound curves, you might need to make little cuts ando them a couple inches at a time.

the other method you could use, is to trim the skin off right on the edge of the inner door.
spot weld the skin to the inner door.
then use round rod to create a new door edge.(this is the same method that you could use to fix a bad door gap tat you can't adjust out.)

[PrerunnerRob]

Originally Posted by jonzcustomshop

another thing that you could try with the door edge:
break the inner and outer door apart at the edge.
move your inner door (shorten) to where you want it.
leave about a 1/4 to 1/2 inch of the old door past the inner door edge. trim off the rest.
hammer and dolley your new edge around the inner door
spot weld back together.

there might be issues when you gert to the compound curves, you might need to make little cuts ando them a couple inches at a time.

the other method you could use, is to trim the skin off right on the edge of the inner door.
spot weld the skin to the inner door.
then use round rod to create a new door edge.(this is the same method that you could use to fix a bad door gap tat you can't adjust out.)

Im thinking I'm goung to use this door as my ugly template for all the others, so I should be able to deskin it and get measurements to build the rest. All of my other doors are getting de-skinned, the inner door reworked, and then a new skin will be placed on top, hopefully using the portion between the handle indentation and mirror holes(did I mention I'm shaving the handles, I want to suicide aspect to be a surprise). One of my shop mates does high quality sheet metal work for a living, so I'll have hime reskin the door.

That rod idea is killer!

[ChiefRocka]

Originally Posted by PrerunnerRob

Im thinking I'm goung to use this door as my ugly template for all the others, so I should be able to deskin it and get measurements to build the rest. All of my other doors are getting de-skinned, the inner door reworked, and then a new skin will be placed on top, hopefully using the portion between the handle indentation and mirror holes(did I mention I'm shaving the handles, I want to suicide aspect to be a surprise). One of my shop mates does high quality sheet metal work for a living, so I'll have hime reskin the door.

That rod idea is killer!

Slowly but surely...looking good man.

Will you be at the shop later ??

I'll be at my shop from about 12:00 on today. I am throwing the 67 frame back together.

Later !!

[PrerunnerRob]

Originally Posted by ChiefRocka

Slowly but surely...looking good man.

Will you be at the shop later ??

I'll be at my shop from about 12:00 on today. I am throwing the 67 frame back together.

Later !!

Nope, I'm going to take out the dirt bikes to hollister with my girlfriend...it's been way to long to wait to go ride, so I'm going to be at Hollister all day

[Jonboy]

See if you can dig up some pics of a 57-58 Cadillac Eldo Brougham in the pillar area. They had a bracket that came up from the floor about 10 inches or so and held the striker for the rear doors. It was kind of triangular shaped, and the front of the rear door panel was notched out for it. They had conventional front doors and suicide rear doors. I would try to find a pic, but I'm not so good at finding stuff on the internet. This is a really cool build, though. Keep up the good work.

[pugs]

i understand you want the b-pillers area to match, now i take you are going rear suicide doors ok heres an idea for the rear doors, hope you can follow what im trying to say here, on a spare drivers side door, at the rear of the door at the top measure about 5" forward and mark it, ok then at the bottom of window opening measure 5" again and make the same seasurements to the bottom of the door say every 6" apart. then spilt the outter skin from the inner. now with the marks you made , you make cuts from one mark to the other. and then use the outter skin section you just cut away and transfer it to the passenger rear door. and if im looking and thinking about the right way this it should work. before you make any real cuts take a piece of cardboard and trace the rear of the drivers side door and cut along the trace line and cut it out and tape it to the rear passenger side door and see if you like the look

[PrerunnerRob]

Maybe I should clarify something, I will have an inner full height pillar, but the doors will close over it, without any filler between the 2 door edges. Like the picture of the teal one above(pillarless exterior), but will have an intewrnal one for everything to latch to.

[pugs]

if you understood what was i getting at in my ^ past post, align the cardboard cut out with the front passenger door with the minimal gap you need for clearence. i understand about the pillar, are you going to cap it off then to give it a clean look.