So, I removed my doors to put new door rubber and anti-rattle kit. I also gave them a little CLR scrubbing. I yanked the first one off and was pondering how to get the door back on. Rich from the Missouri Chapter suggested using a cherry picker.
So, here is how I got them on and adjusted them using the cherry picker. Has anyone done any other handy methods? When I did it many years ago I muscled it into place with the hinges attached to the door and used jack stands to help me hold it.

I used a gait belt to hold it to the cherry picker. A gait belt is wide and sturdy with a metal clasp to hold it in place. It worked great.




Getting the door into the hinges was a challenge. The lower one was difficult to line up. It was much easier the second door. Having a spud wrench helped lining up the bolts.



Next was aligning the door. It was sagging too much. I added some body shims on the bottom hinge to move it up a bit but it was still low.


I started with a jack stand then I thought of the cherry picker again. I used a tie down strap on the end of the door. That gave me fine adjustments to raise the back of the door.


Now at first, stupid me tried adjusting it with the top hinge tightened. Well of course that didn't work very well. Once I loosened the top hinge as well, I was able to get the adjustment I needed for the door to close smoothly.
The gaps are pretty good as well. Not perfect, but probably as good as they were in the 50's. Their tolerances weren't quite as tight as they are now.

 

This is how I hung the doors back on my 49. Good job Joe

 

As they say Joe. "Necessity is the mother of invention."

 

I use a door/bumper jack. Automotive Door and Bumper Jack - Innovative Tools & Technologies I have a cheaper HF version. Nice job with the hoist, your back will thank you.

 

The floor jack option is possibly a little much for someone who's only doing it a few times but for painted doors very handy . The larger one is similar to what I have although I do run a home bodyshop .

 

That door jack would be a must if you did this on a regular basis.
I looked back at pictures and I installed the doors back in 2014. I used jack stands and a bench with lots of grunting and groaning as I muscled it into place. I'm not a super strong guy.
This worked, but the cherry picker was wonderful.

 

Back in 1999 when I put the weather stripping on the doors of my 54 after it was painted I carried the doors from the garage into the house and down the steps to my basement workshop because it was cold , very cold in the garage. Then I carried them up and put them in place by myself. I was stronger then. I did use blocks of wood on the running boards.

It's no fun getting old. Sometimes now I feel like Samson of the Bible after he had his strength taken from him!

 

Its not that you were stronger back then. True fact, things are getting heavier now. Gravity is getting stronger.

 

We get older we have to think smarter.

 

Early on in my restoration I literally "hung" the doors on this temporary support. I was checking the fit prior to body work.

Built an attachment for the floor jack to install them once painted.

 

I usually work by myself when working on my vehicles and also doing the work in the shop for my business.

I build industrial control systems which entails working on flat subpanel, mounting components and wiring components. After I'm done doing that I have to install the panels in the enclosures. Some of these enclosures are rather big, 6'x4', or larger. I use my forklift and some custom made lifting straps with bent "L" hooks on the ends. Sometimes I don't have much room to maneuver the forklift so I have laid the sub-panels on my two post lift, raised it all the way up and then slide the prone enclosure on the floor under the sub-panel. I lower the sub-panel just above the enclosure, hook the straps to the sub-panel, lift the sub-panel up, push the lift arms out of the way and then lower the sub-panel into the enclosure. Wish I had pictures of how I do it, it's kind of hard to explain.

What gets me is I've done this kind of stuff all by myself for years but when I have help in the shop everything comes to a stop and no matter how many are in the shop they all stop what they're doing and come to "help" me so now I have 2-3 guys doing what I've done by myself for years.

 

Bob (turnrjr), your red 54 looks great. Have you shown us pictures lately? Please do.

 

I had to come up with something to get the doors off my 66 Mustang. From my stack of miscellaneous metal, I came up with this.

 

Any thoughts on using paint sticks to shim around the door or ripping some shims off a 2x4 the appropriate thickness ? Popsickle sticks - I can accomplish 2 things at once !

 

Hi EBEAR, would you happen to have a link for this one?

Jim