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Old Jan 24, 2021 | 12:33 PM
  #1  
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Door Alignment

I took my truck in and had new cab and radiator bushings put on. When I got it back the doors are misaligned a little, and hang up on the front quarter panel by about 1/8” when I open it.

What is the easiest way to adjust this so it doesn’t catch?

Also, The new bushings fixed a “dent line” adjustment from the bed to the door on the drivers side, but not the passenger side. Is there an easy way to get the cab and bed better aligned?

 
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Old Jan 24, 2021 | 12:51 PM
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Just like with a car you have to start at the back and work forward.

Take the striker off the rear jam. adjust your door to fit the top-bottom and rear of your door opening, ignore the front. once this is adjusted reinstall your striker where it your closing depth is correct and the door opens and shuts nicely. now adjust your fender to fit the front of the door. then adjust the hood and the rest of the front end.

This is the only want to do it properly.
 
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Old Jan 24, 2021 | 02:33 PM
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Be careful removing the striker, as I think a few members have had the retaining plates fall down inside the B pillar.
 
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Old Jan 24, 2021 | 04:00 PM
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Something is wrong if the retainer plate falls out. it's caged.
 
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Old Jan 24, 2021 | 04:01 PM
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We just fixed a similar issue. Last weekend we pulled the drivers front fender to fix/patch a leak. When we put the fender back on, it was hitting the door edge like in your picture. We tried to adjust both, but finally realized that the door hinge pins were the problem.

So this week after getting a hinge pin repair kit, we replace the pins and bushings. We had to beat some rain last night, but luckily after getting the door hung it no longer interferes and closes much better.

My suggestion is that if you open the door slightly and pull up on the lower back corner and you feel play in the hinge pins, you will just be spinning your wheels trying to get is adjusted.

If your hinge pins are good, follow these steps that I came up with when we replaced our door seals and had to readjust the passenger door.

Note it requires pulling the front fender to access all hinge mounting bolts.

After searching other threads and getting some help, I have arrived at a simpler method for aligning doors. We did this after installing new door weather stripping.
  1. At least a 2 Man Job.
  2. Pull front fender. (You can clean/repair and paint the area while it is off)
  3. Remove Striker bolt
  4. Have helper support open door while you loosen all 6 hinge to door bolts
  5. Carefully close door.
  6. Have helper hold door in opening while you loosen all 6 hinge to pillar bolts. This allows everything to move freely up/down, in/out, forward/backward.
  7. Have helper(s) align door in opening, while you make fine adjustments to gaps etc...by bumping hinges and pulling/pushing on the door.
  8. Once you are happy, tighten one bottom hinge to pillar bolt, then one top to pillar hinge bolt.
  9. Then tighten one bottom hinge to door bolt and then the one top hinge to door bolt you can get to.
  10. While helper continues to hold door in place, tighten the remaining bolts.
  11. Slowly/carefully open door and tighten the 2 top hinge to door bolts.
  12. Reinstall striker bolt.
  13. Reinstall front fender.

We tried some of the other methods in other threads and kept going back and forth (hinge to pillar then hinge to door) several times and once we got it set in one plane, the adjustment in the other would throw it off.

I have seen a post or two that says you can do it with the fender on, but with this method whomever is holding the door will really appreciate you being able to get to the bolts quickly.

My estimate is the time it takes to remove the fender is the time saved by not going back and forth so many times.

If you need a hinge pin kit, check for these: Dorman 703-264. It comes with 2 pins and 8 bushings. 4 are too small, 4 are just right.

Be careful if you order a pin kit online. I ordered a kit from NPD and the pins were too short and the bushings too small.

If you need any clarification on the above steps, PM me.

Good Luck.

Also check out my post in the "What have you done" thread.
 
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Old Jan 24, 2021 | 05:20 PM
  #6  
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Originally Posted by John89
We just fixed a similar issue. Last weekend we pulled the drivers front fender to fix/patch a leak. When we put the fender back on, it was hitting the door edge like in your picture. We tried to adjust both, but finally realized that the door hinge pins were the problem.

So this week after getting a hinge pin repair kit, we replace the pins and bushings. We had to beat some rain last night, but luckily after getting the door hung it no longer interferes and closes much better.

My suggestion is that if you open the door slightly and pull up on the lower back corner and you feel play in the hinge pins, you will just be spinning your wheels trying to get is adjusted.

If your hinge pins are good, follow these steps that I came up with when we replaced our door seals and had to readjust the passenger door.

Note it requires pulling the front fender to access all hinge mounting bolts.

After searching other threads and getting some help, I have arrived at a simpler method for aligning doors. We did this after installing new door weather stripping.
  1. At least a 2 Man Job.
  2. Pull front fender. (You can clean/repair and paint the area while it is off)
  3. Remove Striker bolt
  4. Have helper support open door while you loosen all 6 hinge to door bolts
  5. Carefully close door.
  6. Have helper hold door in opening while you loosen all 6 hinge to pillar bolts. This allows everything to move freely up/down, in/out, forward/backward.
  7. Have helper(s) align door in opening, while you make fine adjustments to gaps etc...by bumping hinges and pulling/pushing on the door.
  8. Once you are happy, tighten one bottom hinge to pillar bolt, then one top to pillar hinge bolt.
  9. Then tighten one bottom hinge to door bolt and then the one top hinge to door bolt you can get to.
  10. While helper continues to hold door in place, tighten the remaining bolts.
  11. Slowly/carefully open door and tighten the 2 top hinge to door bolts.
  12. Reinstall striker bolt.
  13. Reinstall front fender.

We tried some of the other methods in other threads and kept going back and forth (hinge to pillar then hinge to door) several times and once we got it set in one plane, the adjustment in the other would throw it off.

I have seen a post or two that says you can do it with the fender on, but with this method whomever is holding the door will really appreciate you being able to get to the bolts quickly.

My estimate is the time it takes to remove the fender is the time saved by not going back and forth so many times.

If you need a hinge pin kit, check for these: Dorman 703-264. It comes with 2 pins and 8 bushings. 4 are too small, 4 are just right.

Be careful if you order a pin kit online. I ordered a kit from NPD and the pins were too short and the bushings too small.

If you need any clarification on the above steps, PM me.

Good Luck.

Also check out my post in the "What have you done" thread.

awesome thanks

it was chilly outside today so I simply loosened the bottoms bolt on the fender and adjusted it out of the way for now

when I get a warm day going to do it right

thAnks for the procedure
 
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Old Jan 24, 2021 | 05:25 PM
  #7  
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Originally Posted by John89
We just fixed a similar issue. Last weekend we pulled the drivers front fender to fix/patch a leak. When we put the fender back on, it was hitting the door edge like in your picture. We tried to adjust both, but finally realized that the door hinge pins were the problem.

So this week after getting a hinge pin repair kit, we replace the pins and bushings. We had to beat some rain last night, but luckily after getting the door hung it no longer interferes and closes much better.

My suggestion is that if you open the door slightly and pull up on the lower back corner and you feel play in the hinge pins, you will just be spinning your wheels trying to get is adjusted.

If your hinge pins are good, follow these steps that I came up with when we replaced our door seals and had to readjust the passenger door.

Note it requires pulling the front fender to access all hinge mounting bolts.

After searching other threads and getting some help, I have arrived at a simpler method for aligning doors. We did this after installing new door weather stripping.
  1. At least a 2 Man Job.
  2. Pull front fender. (You can clean/repair and paint the area while it is off)
  3. Remove Striker bolt
  4. Have helper support open door while you loosen all 6 hinge to door bolts
  5. Carefully close door.
  6. Have helper hold door in opening while you loosen all 6 hinge to pillar bolts. This allows everything to move freely up/down, in/out, forward/backward.
  7. Have helper(s) align door in opening, while you make fine adjustments to gaps etc...by bumping hinges and pulling/pushing on the door.
  8. Once you are happy, tighten one bottom hinge to pillar bolt, then one top to pillar hinge bolt.
  9. Then tighten one bottom hinge to door bolt and then the one top hinge to door bolt you can get to.
  10. While helper continues to hold door in place, tighten the remaining bolts.
  11. Slowly/carefully open door and tighten the 2 top hinge to door bolts.
  12. Reinstall striker bolt.
  13. Reinstall front fender.

We tried some of the other methods in other threads and kept going back and forth (hinge to pillar then hinge to door) several times and once we got it set in one plane, the adjustment in the other would throw it off.

I have seen a post or two that says you can do it with the fender on, but with this method whomever is holding the door will really appreciate you being able to get to the bolts quickly.

My estimate is the time it takes to remove the fender is the time saved by not going back and forth so many times.

If you need a hinge pin kit, check for these: Dorman 703-264. It comes with 2 pins and 8 bushings. 4 are too small, 4 are just right.

Be careful if you order a pin kit online. I ordered a kit from NPD and the pins were too short and the bushings too small.

If you need any clarification on the above steps, PM me.

Good Luck.

Also check out my post in the "What have you done" thread.

awesome thanks

it was chilly outside today so I simply loosened the bottoms bolt on the fender and adjusted it out of the way for now

when I get a warm day going to do it right

thAnks for the procedure
 
Reply
Old Jan 25, 2021 | 10:43 AM
  #8  
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From: NE Texas
You can also work around the helper using a jack with a piece of 2x4 laid across the top and soft wood wedges under the door when closing. Takes longer but if you do not have an assistant, gotta do what ya gotta do.
 
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Old Jan 25, 2021 | 12:38 PM
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Originally Posted by Colemater
I took my truck in and had new cab and radiator bushings put on. When I got it back the doors are misaligned a little, and hang up on the front quarter panel by about 1/8” when I open it.

What is the easiest way to adjust this so it doesn’t catch?
Sounds like when they set your new radiator mounts, they didn't shim them UP enough.

I think you need to make sure the radiator support is shimmed up enough to make the front fenders align with the cab.
Then, work on the doors.

You can look at the doors and tell if they fit the cab. The gap will be about equal on top, on the handle side and on bottom.
If the front is the only place where the gap is off, then the fender is wrong....

Just my $.02.




 
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