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Dutch door removal

3K views 9 replies 4 participants last post by  gavio 
#1 ·
So after years of having a dutch door that someone backed into, I bought a replacement to install.

I'll try to tackle it this weekend… Rather than trial and error, I thought I'd ask here for advice on how to go about this. Any special tool I should get? It seems straight forward, not sure about the wiring, if I must remove the interior panel and replace the fasteners.. etc

My initial thought is using my air hammer to drive out the hinge pins, or if needed, dremel cutting wheels to cut the pins.
 
#3 ·
Yep, the pins are the hardest part.... I've read posts where a few folks got them to drive out with an air chisel, but many couldn't get them out even that way... If it doesn't work, then cutting the pins is effective, though tedious.... The top 3/8 inch of the pin is serrated, and that's what keeps it in so tight.... I got that part out on mine by drilling it out from the top so that section was just a hollow shells, than it drove out easily...

Before undoing the pins, remove the door panel, then you can see the wiring harness running inside through a large springy sleeve - undo the clip that holds the spring, unplug the wires, undo the door stop, and all that's left is those pins...

Good luck
 
#5 ·
Wow…. well, I'll see this weekend.. In all the time I've owned the van, I've regularly hit the hinges with oil.. with any luck, they aren't' seized.
I'll probably take off the rear bumper to get better access.
I've got dremel cut off wheels if needed, and some Map gas if needed. I wouldn't mind having to repaint the van hinge.
I'll give the air hammer a try before anything else.

How would the Eastwood door pin tool be? Hate to buy a $30 tool for a one time use, but if it saves that much trouble, I might.
 
#6 ·
I almost bought the Eastwood tool, but at the last moment had the stroke of genius to measure the actual hinge - turns out it's a little too big to fit in the jaws of the tool....

Also, the reason the pins stick so bad is the serrated part at the top - doesn't matter if the hinge is rusty, or old, or whatever, that's just a ridiculously tight fit.... As with most manufactured things, tolerances vary, so some are slightly less tight than others...
 
#7 ·
Well, no luck with driving them out… Haven't even got to the door on my van, still removing the last bit of hinge pin on the door I bought from a junkyard… ( They just cut the van hinge frame )…

I ended up sawing through the pin to get the center out. Then I used a Map torch to heat the hinge… I got the bottom part driven out, but the top part wouldn't budge.

So far I've drilled through the hinge pin with progressively bigger bits. I think that's the best I can do on it at this point. At least the lower hinge is clean and removed well.

I'm hoping to just saw through the pins on my van and remove the dented door. I shouldn't have to drive out or torch anything that way.
 
#9 ·
Well, I did finally get the new door on…. Had to sawz all the old door pins out, easy enough….
To get the stuck pin out of this new door, I ended up drilling through with progressively larger bits until only a shell of the pin remained.. came right out, easy but took some time.

Made the mistake of removing the three bolts on the inner hinge/ slide stop… the nut plate fell into the body.. I didn't realize that would happen…
Rather than drilling a bunch of rivets to retrieve the nut plate, I just tapped 3 holes and bought new hardware… worked fine.

Next I'll reattach the molding. Will add a pic of the old door soon… or just imagine a good door.. with a huge dent.
 

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