Roadster door latch busted

[40-A Twins]

Driver side door latch broke with the door closed. After disassembling the passenger side to look for an easy way to pop it open, the only choice was to chisel off the small swaged tab that holds the latch assembly together and pop it apart with a screwdriver. this worked out pretty well and the door finally opened. The actuator lever with square hole for the handle shaft broke off. Should I just buy another repro door latch or would an original be better ?
If anyone is wondering why the scorched primer in this area, well this door is a poorly made repro and the beltline upper contour did not match the body where the door overlaps. There was a gap big enough to stick my finger into at this corner so I heated it up and reshaped it with a hammer.

 

[Randy in ca]

Can't speak directly to the quality of the 1929 repro door latches, but the similar ones as used for 1928 (inside handle only) have worked flawlessly on my roadster for about 10 years now.

 

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

Repro door latches for open car are kinda poor in quality. Even the side curtain rod tab on the latch does not locate the rod correctly. Short term is to replace it with another repro, ...long term is to find original latch and restore it.

 

[Oldbluoval]

I may have a restored original
If u wish to talk, oldbluoval@gmail.com

 

[40-A Twins]

I decided to try fabricating a replacement part from steel. Machining the hub on my old SB lathe went quickly. Now comes the challenging part - how to line up little pieces for welding. I chose the risky method of clamping them right in the latch housing with a piece of copper to prevent everything getting fused together. It worked out pretty well and about all that is left is file the hole square to fit the door handle.
Kevin

 

[Oldbluoval]

For future reference, you can buy square holed sleeve bushings