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Quarter Panel and Door Skin Replacement

2K views 1 reply 2 participants last post by  William Donati 
#1 ·
I need some advice from all those experienced Mopar gurus out there. Somehow, life, work, and time have all aligned and I'm finally getting to work on my 76 Dart (again).

As I've spent the last few months trying to figure out a direction for the car, I decided that I want a '69 Dart. As my 76 needs some TLC, which includes quarter panels, some serious dent removal and proper body work (which does not include using 3/4" of body filler cover up rust...I'm not bitter about that at all :banghead). I figured since I was going to replace the quarters, I might as well install the rear sheet metal (and tail light panel) for the '69 Dart while I'm at it.

Now, I'm sure some will argue that it would be cheaper (and better for what little sanity I have left) to just buy a '69 Dart. Well I respect that opinion, but the money tree has been picked plum clean these days and frankly the only things needing to be done to my Dart are cosmetic. So I would like to use what I already have and just do a little nippin' and tuckin'.

I've read some articles on quarter panel replacement and I was wondering if any of you have some additional tips that could help me make it through this type of project. Additionally, the door skins are a little rough, and I was wondering if the door skins for a '69 Dart would fit on my '76? All the articles I've read seem to agree that the '67-'76 Dart (excl. Dart Sport and Demon) were all 111" wheelbase. I asked the folks at YearOne and they told me that they've never tried to do this so they couldn't help me. Have any of you tried this or do you think it would work?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
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#2 ·
Getting door skins, quarter panels, and other patch panels needs lot of practice. backing strip is the best option for connecting the old and new metal. First make a cut across the damaged area and clean the work area. Cut backing strip to the length needed. Use the drill bit 3/16" to make evenly spaced holes in the original metal. Slide your backing strip under original metal and clamp the two pieces together. Avoid blow-through when making spot welds. Begin test fitting replacement metal. Refit the panel and plug weld it to the backing strip. Slowly spot weld the seam between the new and old metal. For technical know-how collect info from window and door replacement services they might provide info in this regard. Try with clera windows ( https://www.clerawindows.com/doors ) . Once seam welded up, you can grind any "proud" welds down and proceed with sealer or filler.
 
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