Dr L-88

Has anyone successfully installed skins on 68-69 door panels, and if so, what is the trick?

oldalaskaman

a good heat gun to get them off, and patience and good adhesive to put them on. while you have them off , fix everything cause this is the last chance for it to be easy to get at.

Easy Mike

By "skin," do you mean fiberglass or vinyl?

oldalaskaman

excellent point

Easy Mike

Niether would be on my list of Favorite Things To Do.

SIXFOOTER

Door skins aren't to bad but there are a couple things to concider;
Replace worn hinge pins and bushings
Replace worn window rollers
Regulator ok? Nows the time.
Door Latch? clean and grease

Do you have the skins off yet? As stated above, a good heat gun and a thin sharp putty knife are your friends, go slow, you can get them off without a single crack. Heat the seam a few inches at a time, it will soften the glue, push the putty knife through and move on.
When putting the skins back on, do not squeeze out all the glue from the seam when you clamp it to the door frame. The door will not want to align with the body if you do. The factory may have had as much as 1/8" to 1/4" of bonding adhesive between the skin and frame. Test fit before glueing, maybe super glue small thin washers to the bonding area to space the skin from the frame when you glue it up. With a little paitence and finesse you can end up with nice even door gaps.

Dr L-88

Sorry I should have been more specific.........................I was referring to a vinly skin over the interior door panel.

Garys 68

Who sells 68 interior door skins?

Easy Mike

Thought maybe you were. You might want to do a search. Lots of folks have problems with fitting the skins and getting a nice result. Others appear not to have problems with them.

I skipped skins and went with replacement panels.

pawpaws toy

I tried using skins on a 77. Turned out terrible and ended up buying new panels.

7T1vette

I've done it...with reasonably successful results--and a LOT of stress from doing it. (photo below) I would NOT do it again, when I could buy 'basic' door panels and transfer my hardware over. Reskinning the door panels is the ultimate PITA job. If you are a good, competent DIY person with lots of patience and can stay calm in tough situations, you might be able to do it reasonably well. Otherwise, buy the door panels.

Dr L-88

Wilcox, a supporting vendor on here.

80Baby

Door skins - exterior.

Door panels - interior.

That's the ticket...

0Willcox Corvette

Ok.. I've done it.. over and over an over again..

AND I HATE IT! Yes you can save a buck.. but the success ratio is very low. This is not a job for a novice and as much as I'd love to sell you something I have to advise you to go with the panels.

I hate this phrase... but "Back in the Day".. this was the only way to get panels looking good when you had an odd color. Sure, panels were available from GM up until around 1988 in black and saddle only. So if you had say.. Red.. a skin was the only option unless you wanted to dye the panel.

So.. what is required... Yes a heat gun.. tons of patience.. Ice cubes <--- (you did read correctly and not for the whiskey) Silicone, and time.

Now... I'm sure some of you wonder why Ice Cubes.. and I'd be surprised if I don't get a "why didn't I think of that" under this post.

Just like doing dash pads upper or lower, door panels have cracks in them. (Lets face it, if they didn't have cracks you wouldn't be looking for skins). All cracks must be tended to when doing a skin! If you don't they will show through the new skin. So what I used to do is cut out as much of the crack as possible to make it level. I would then put silicone in the area I cleaned out and then spread the silicone with an ice cube.... The silicone won't stick to the cube and it will leave a very smooth repair in the crack..

Once all the cracks are fixed you are then ready for the skin. It is a must to make sure the skin is warm and pliable before attempting to install it too..

Boy.. do I need to keep going? I'm getting wore out just thinking of the amount of work required vs. buying new panels...

If you need more post again and I'll finish...

Willcox

7T1vette

Ernie...

Please stop. I'm starting to have flashbacks of that repair...and I think I'm still 'skin'-shocked.

thegavel

"The silicone won't stick to the cube and it will leave a very smooth repair in the crack.. "

Bloody Brilliant idea.... (for the Whiskey AND the silicone).
"Nice one" Ernie.

0Willcox Corvette

Charley, I was younger then and thought I could conquer anything that came my way... Really it was the only choice at the time. I remember watching Al's crew install a set at Fall Carlisle and I don't know what year that was... but while watching I was thinking that isn't so hard now...

I assure you my flashbacks are what stopped me dead in my tracks.

Ice... Now I use the ice for more "spirited" things...

7T1vette

Ice is "nice", when used appropriately.

Alan 71

Hi,
When I think of 'ice' I can only think of:
Old Grandad 114 / Kentucky Bourbon
Kim Basinger / 9 Weeks
Regards,
Alan

0Willcox Corvette

You lost 1/2 week there Alan.. I'm telling your wife now.. you'd better start figuring out how to explain that 1/2 week..