I'm looking for suggestions on how to seal around the door hinges on my '38 Pontiac. I'm sure other cars of this error have the same situation. What is typically done? Body filler doesn't seem like a good candidate as it will probably crack. Also, do you guys typically paint the doors and hinges on the car or blow it apart and paint separately? I'm not looking to win the Riddler award. I just want a decent looking driver.
The way these cars were made, a bit of water was expected to come in the door at those little places. But it was engineered to run down the inside of the door and out the drain holes in the bottom of the door fram and out on the running board. Has long as the drain holes are good and clear you won’t have any issues with water getting into the p***enger compartment. As for painting. I like to unbolt the hinges if possible, and pan it ***embled. Always so paranoid about chipping the paint when trying get the hinge pin back in.
Yep, hinges were painted separate from the doors, nothing sealed them from the outside, but I guess you could put a thin bead of sealer around the opening. Nailhead got it right on the painting as well - that's how they were done originally from what I can see of original paint hinges - I can clearly see where they were bolted to the body and left open for paint, then the doors were hung later.
Yea, I can see how the water would run down inside the door and out the drains but on the body side that would be a problem. That would need to be sealed. Since the hinges are bolted to the body prior to painting, they could be sealed with dum-dum or something similar (seam sealer?). The door side couldn't be sealed until after paint and the doors were rehung, making it fully visible. I have to think about this. I'd prefer to keep the water out but I wouldn't want to see poorly applied sealer. Maybe I can find something that will blend in.
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