Door Latch Question?

[bobgreco]

When I close the doors on my 1929 pickup, the latch hits the painted egde of the body and chips the paint. How do i stop this from happneing?

Thanks!

Bob

 

[CCWKen]

What's the history of the body? Did this just start happening out of the blue or after you made some body repairs? Was the body damaged by an accident?

If the door gap, from top to bottom, is equal and the door aligns with the body lines there's several areas that affect the latch spacing--The hinge post, the hinges and the door itself.
1. Check that the hinges are not bent. Both legs should be straight.
2. Check the hinge mounting on the door frame. The hinge pockets should be straight or at a right angle to the door skin.
3. The hinge post could be bent. This occurs if the car was involved in an accident. That or someone tried to align the door using the "big hammer" method.

If the door gap is not equal or the door doesn't align with the body, then your mounting pads probably need to be replaced and/or the cowl adjusted. Follow the normal "Door alignment" procedure first then re-check latch spacing. In either case, the hinge legs need to be straight though.

 

[bobgreco]

Ken,

Thank you for your reply. Here are a few pictures of the latch. The door seems to be mounted correctly. Is the door supposed to overalp the body or be flush with it? Mine overalps the bod. Maybe that is my problem.

Thanks,

Bob

 

[Purdy Swoft]

Ken,

Thank you for your reply. Here are a few pictures of the latch. The door seems to be mounted correctly. Is the door supposed to overalp the body or be flush with it? Mine overalps the bod. Maybe that is my problem.

Thanks,

Bob

I can see that a screw is milling from the striker, this is probably the problem.

 

[Purdy Swoft]

I forgot to add, yes the doors are suppose to overlap at the rear.

 

[CCWKen]

Ditto what Purdy says about the overlap. Also, there should be rubber bumpers at the top and bottom of the door that will help keep the door from making contact with the body. The bumpers compress to hold the gap between the door and body so you don't get that scratch line.

I can see from the scratch line in the body that the door sits back a bit too far (overlap). This is an indication that the problem is on the hinge side. If there's no damage to the door along the hinge side, I would remove the hinges and straighten the legs. They're probably bent and this will cause the latch gap to close up as it moves the door to the rear.

 

[bobgreco]

Thanks for the responses. I will definitely look for the rubber bumpers to solve one of the problems.

I am not sure the pictures show it real well, but the latch sticks out the exact same distance as the edge of the door, so if there is overalp, which I now know there should be, the latch must hit the frame when the door closes. Is is possible the latch is not installed correctly? It sure seems like it is.

 

[CCWKen]

The only part the latch bolt should hit is the striker. It should clear the body. Something is odd about your latch and handle. What's that "goop" behind the handle? Are you sure that's the correct latch for a 29PU? I don't have photo. What's the other side (right) look like?

 

[Purdy Swoft]

Thanks for the responses. I will definitely look for the rubber bumpers to solve one of the problems.

I am not sure the pictures show it real well, but the latch sticks out the exact same distance as the edge of the door, so if there is overalp, which I now know there should be, the latch must hit the frame when the door closes. Is is possible the latch is not installed correctly? It sure seems like it is.

In my previous post I hit a wrong key, it should have been MISSING instead of milling. If you look at the picture of the striker on the door post you will see that the outer screw that holds the striker is missing. If you look close you can see the hole inside the slot that the screw would enter. This will probable be most of the problem. The best that I remember this screw is 1/4 X 20 threads per inch. This screw will pull the striker farther in to give better clearance. It may take a few tries to get the adjustment correct. Good luck. Purdy D. Swoft and the D stands for damn.

 

[Purdy Swoft]

One more thought. The best that I remember the screws that hold the striker don't need the flat washers. this causes the head of the screw to stick out too far and can cause interference. I don't remember the one that I once owned having washers under the strikers. Maybe sombody that owns one can give more input.

 

[bobgreco]

Thanks for all the suggestions. The "goop" by the door handle is actually a home made basket the previous owner installed. The correct one is on the list for the next order.