How do I replace the door hinges (not just the pins)?

[rpinkstn]

What's the correct procedure and technique for replacing the door hinges on an '86 K5?

I've searched the forums and found plenty of threads discussing replacing the pins, but I need/want to replace the entire hinge assemblies on my driver's door. The pin holes in the upper hinge are wollowed-out so badly I went ahead and ordered replacement hinges from LMC.

I've seen some discussion about having to remove the fender to get to all the bolts, but someone also mentioned a tool that can access the obstructed bolt(s) without removing the fender. Does such a tool exist?

I'll probably be doing all the work solo - is there a trick or technique to support the door while removing and reinstalling the hinges? I've seen bodyshops use a door-jack which was pretty slick, but I don't have access to one of those.

Any input is appreciated!

 

[owenst7]

I promise you I'm no body guy, so consider that I'm not worried about the body lines matching up perfectly afterward. Hopefully a smarter guy than myself like Ryoken or someone will give you some more info if there's time-saving tricks for that stuff.

There's three bolts on each hinge that bolt to the door. My doors are manual crank, and I'm a pretty skinny guy. I can simply unbolt the lower, and then the upper hinge with a ratchet while resting the bottom of the door on my knee. I have used a plastic garbage can instead of my knee when doing pins on my '96 (which has electric everything and is too heavy for me to lift easily). You could stack milk crates and wood too I suppose, or lift the truck up on jackstands or something.

If you have open rafters in your garage, I have used ratchet straps through the window frame before to do door pins by myself on heavy doors.

I personally would cut the wires and put a connector on there, but there's probably enough slack in the wires to move the door away a couple inches, assuming you have a way to support it while you work. You should be able to get to the hinge bolts on the A pillar just fine with the door moved away a couple inches.

My hinges are always bent from smashing in to rocks, so I always thread all the bolts in a few threads and then adjust the door to where it will close smoothly (or as close as I'll ever get mine), and then open the door carefully while supporting the bottom, and lean over and tighten the bolts. I suppose this is where you would remove the fender on a nice-looking truck, because that would allow you to tighten those bolts while the door is closed. That way, you could put a rag or something under the corner of the door until you lined up the body line, and then you cold tighten those bolts with it in place.

You might be able to get things pretty close if you trace around the hinges with a sharpie or something before you remove them. Of course, if you put a different hinge on there, chances are it will be a little off.

If you just need to do pins and bushings, there is a writeup here http://coloradok5.com/doorhingepins.shtml that pretty much goes over the same procedure.

 

[rpinkstn]

owenst7 -

thanks for the reply. I'm going to take a look at this over the weekend. I may try to rig up some 2x4's to hang the door from while I swap out the hinges.

thanks!

 

[RAY]

when I did mine, I used ratchet straps around the rafters. Also, I seem to recall that there is a bolt on the inside that is under the dash for the top hinge. It was a bear to get at, had to pull the a/c duct work, but it is doable with a ratchet and extensions. Hope this helps.