Newbie - be gentle please...

[Underwoj]

So I got my first project truck - 1970 Chevy SWB

First thing I'd like to do is get all the lines straightened up - and biggest one is the drivers door... It won't fully shut. There bout a half inch gap when I shut the door. The hinge looks good along with the striker. Gotta shut it hard but it does engage and lock. What would you first check for this to get it to fully shut?

Thanks guys!!!

[quick60]

I had that happen on a truck I was looking at and couldnt figure it out. Come to find out the seller had put new rockers on OVER the old ones, in addition to new rubber seals thus making the fit tighter. I was told this by a painter who refused to paint it because he didnt want his name associated with the truck due to the body work performed on it.

May not be your issue but it possible I guess.

[TBONE1964]

Hello and Welcome to the most awesome 67 - 72 Chevy / GMC truck site on the planet. You are in the right spot and I will be the first to tell you, you need more photos of the truck. It will come like a freight train the comments about no pic's, so be warned.

To answer your question I have a question. Is the door an aftermarket or original GM metal. Do you have new aftermarket door seals?

Either of the above will cause a door to shut hard. Have you tried to adjust the striker plate in a little?

Just some thoughts

['68 Short Step]

mine was hard to shut so I loosened the 4 bolts on the striker plate on the cab and played with it until it shut better. Give it a try

[Underwoj]

Wow yawl are fast!!

So I think it's the original...looks identical to the passengers side...but I guess that means they could both not be original? Where are the rockers located? I did try the 4 bolts and loosened the striker and moved it further in a bit but then it wouldn't catch when I shut the door. Could the door be sitting a little low? There are scrape marks on the skid plate.

Oh and here are some more pics

[Underwoj]

Pic

[Underwoj]

Pic2

[Underwoj]

Pic3

[Underwoj]

Pic4

[zicc1835]

welcome and nice truck ....the rockers are what you r calling the skid plates unless your talking about what holds the carpet down ill try to pull a picture and post it like quick60said they may have replaced new rockers over old take some pictures some closeups of the gap all around especially at the top of the door that will tell you if it needs to go up at all but if new gaskets and not adjusted right could cause it to not close complete you may have moved that striker in a little too far

[quick60]

WOW nice truck!!!! I like it. What zicc said. Its the bottom of the door opening. I have never heard of anyone doing that before but I trust what I was told to be true so maybe some of the more experienced can chime in. I suppose someone just flipping trucks would do that but from the looks of what you have I cant see that being the case.

I do notice the color of both your doors do not match the fenders or the bed so they may be replacement off a donor truck, reskinned, or something else.

[Underwoj]

Oooh yea those! I did check the rockers and that drivers side IS sticking up some! Gonna try and remove that and see what happens. Do you have to take off that door sill plate to remove the threshold (rocker) plate?

[quick60]

Dosent look like there is any interference in the chrome. You would see it scuffing if it was hitting.

[Underwoj]

There is a lil scuffing...I attached pic.

And thanks guys for all the nice compliments!!! I can't wait to get it back to the original beauty it used to be

[PanelDeland]

WELCOME!!! Try opening the door and then lifting it on the latch end.If you can feel any play at all,you need to either rebuild the hinges or replace them.After that,it's just adjusting until it closes without dragging and latches well.

[Underwoj]

Oh no! There's a really nice gap at the top and no gap on the passengers side door

Does that mean new hinges?

[mmiddle]

Welcome form a fellow Texan. There are a lot of us from the DFW region on here.

The hinges may not be bad, just misadjusted.

[Underwoj]

Hi and thanks Texan! Ok thanks...I can check those hinges. Do you just feel for play? Should I get that 'butta' tool?

[zicc1835]

you need to pull up and down on the door to see if there is play in the hinge open the door and pick up on the handle side ife they are worn u will see the hinges moving if not you gots lots of adjusting to do thats a whole nother story i suggest you find someone close to you another member on the board who is willing to show u how to adjust the doors or read the FAQs it takes patience

[hugger6933]

Just stand behind the door with it open all the way and lift up on it and see how much slack you have in it. If you have much more than any, your gonna need hinge rebuilds or replacments and I would suggest that is what you opt for. Also a lot of times when a door sticks out a little and people decide that they want to adjust their door the first natural inclination is to loosen the stricker plate and move it inward. Most of the time that will make matters worse. Since the latch is a two catch system it often needs a little move towards the outboard side to make the door shut better. See some times it might only be on one latch position and if the latch was moved out a bit both would catch ,Get it? Not always the case but it does happen so keep that in mind if you have tried everything else. Now in the pic of the door it looks to me like the door may need to come up at the front some to tighten the gap at the top of the cab and the door. Is the fender to door gap even? Are the body lines lined up there on the fender and door at the front? Check that out and take care of that when changing the door hinges. Good luck, if you need more help I normally hang out here or over at the paint and body section, probably more so over there cause I get a lot of questions over there. I own a body shop and have since 1987. so if you need more help holler back. Jim AKA. Hugger

[wreckedchevy]

I've had to swap out my doors 3 times (long story). to adjust mine I loosened the screws on the striker plate just enough that it an move with force but not on it's own, then moved it all the way outwards. then I latched the door, held the button down and gave the door a nice body check open and tighten the screws down worked perfect for me every time. but sounds like you have some hinge issues/adjustments to deal with first

[White70C20]

Welcome! That is a nice truck you have there.

As far as your door is concerned, I would adjust the hinges and the striker. Looks like you have a good project on your hands.

[Underwoj]

hi all and thanks for all the input - I really appreciate it!! I am going to check those hinges and pins and try the stiker adjustment. yawl really know your stuff!

soooo...when you replace the hinges - that front fender has to come off? I saw in some of the other threads there is a bolt that has to be unscrewed from the inside? ...thru the dashboard interface?

BTW - the passenger side is perfect! the top of the door comes all the way up to the top of the truck and it closes nicely ...maybe I can look at the hinges on the passenger side door and stiker plate and mimic those on the drivers side?