Re: refurbishing Spider door panels

[Scott Fisher <sfisher71@domain.elided>]

--- Brad Karp <bkarp@domain.elided> wrote:
> The time has come for me to do something about the
> door panels on my '86 Spider Quad.[...]
> 
> I've had no luck whatsoever in finding replacement
> panels (either new or used in very good condition). 

I thought I'd seen some listed in the Vick Auto
catalog, but they list them for '79-'86 ("Grad to
'89").  

> So now I'm considering diving in and making new
> panels. I've read that it's not too hard a job:
> buy a new board for the panel, cut it in the same 
> pattern as the old board (using the old panel as a
> tracing model), and transfer the 
> upholstery to the new board.

That's pretty much exactly what I did when I did this
job on the passenger's door of the Junior several
years ago.  If you get a lot of damp, you might
consider either sealing the doorskin the way the
factory did, with heavy-gauge plastic behind the
board, or possibly by using a "water-seal" variety of
paint-on sealant.  (Has anyone done this?  It's
occurred to me as a potential solution for the
Portland area when I replace the door panels in my
Alfas.)

> 	2) If not, have you done this yourself, and 
> could you offer any wisdom you learned along the
way?

The most critical part of this procedure is lining up
the holes in the metal doorframe with the holes in
your vinyl before making the perforations.  To make
the holes in your door board, get a double-headed
machinist's scribe -- looks like a dental pick from
Hell, with one end bent at a 90-degree angle about
1/2" from the end.  Use the 90-degree end to line up
the point with the screw holes in the door frame, then
carefully press the door board over the sharp end of
the scribe to make your holes.

I seem to recall that I did the reasonable thing and
lined up one corner of the panel with the screw hole,
put in the screw there, and then lined up the
diagonally opposing corner, and then worked in a sort
of circular manner.  The theory was to keep the panel
aligned as I put in additional screws. 

> 3) What material should I use for the replacement
> door panel board?
> I want warp-resistance, and ideally, something
> that doesn't resonate too badly.

It shouldn't resonate -- remember, you'll not only
have it screwed down at the edges, you'll also have
door pulls, arm rests, and hardware through the middle
to keep it from buzzing.

> What have people 
> used in such a job in the past?

Fiberboard or MDF is the usual substance.  I remember
a friend who used thin plastic sheeting (1/8" or so)
and drilled/cut holes in that.  He wanted to avoid
having the fiberboard curl up when it got wet (see my
question about water-seal).  

The other tip is to take care when you stretch it into
place on the fiberboard, make sure it's smooth and
snug.  I remember at the time thinking back to my days
in book production and wondered if a can of spray
adhesive would have been useful to get it to stay put
as I smoothed it out, but I didn't try this.

But here's what I did (minus the "bright" ideas I had
before or since but didn't implement):

1.  Remove the door panel upholstery from the backing
board, noting how the upholstery is retained (probably
short staples into the fiberboard).  Remove any
plastic liner behind the backing board as well.  

2.  Cut the new door panel to shape, using the
original backing board as a template.  Cut out any
access holes (e.g., for door handles, window cranks,
etc.) at the same time.  (Tip: don't spend time
finishing up the edges, as you're only going to cover
them with upholstery; spend your time and attention
getting the dimensions right, and especially the
placement and shape of the handle mounting holes.)

If you are making a new plastic waterproofing sheet,
do so now.

3.  Test-fit the upholstery on the new door panel.  Go
by the original's wear/fold marks for fitment and
alignment.  You may find this step easier with an
assistant to grab one edge while you finesse the other
into place; if an assistant is not available, big
binder clamps (with a piece of fabric to protect the
upholstery) work quite well.

4.  Admire your handiwork. :-)

5.  If step 4 indicates that the panel is ready to be
fitted permanently, place the plastic waterproofing
sheet on the back of the fiberboard but overlap the
upholstery over it so that the plastic will not be
visible at the edges.  Carefully maintaining tension
with your binder clamps, staple the upholstery (tip:
pre-test the staples to make sure they're not too
long!) from the rear of the fiberboard.  Keep it snug
but not TOO tight or it can pucker.  Follow the
factory's original spacing and location.

6.  When you have stapled all the way around the edge,
hold the new panel up to the door.  Repeat step 4. 

7.  Using the 90-degree end of your double-headed
machinist's scribe, carefully line up a corner screw
hole in the metal door frame with the corresponding
screw hole in your original upholstery (now you see
why you use the 90-degree scribe -- the bend lets you
place the scribe on the screw hole and align the sharp
end with the place you want to make the hole in the
fiberboard).  While you and an assistant keep the door
panel aligned properly, carefully press the fiberboard
down onto the sharp end of the scribe, carefully
making a hole through the fiberboard.  

8.  Place a screw and trim washer (...I'm guessing --
I know all the door panels I've done have trim
washers, but I've never done a Quad) in the hole and
tighten it not quite all the way down.  You want a
little wiggle room to align all the rest of the screw
holes.  

9.  Move to the diagonally opposite corner.  Repeat
steps 7 and 8 till you run out of screw holes.

Now you've got a door panel that fits nicely on your
door frame.  There are a couple of likely differences
that this basic technique doesn't take into account
for your Quad, because I've never done one -- I
haven't accounted for the door pull hardware, arm
rest, or anything else that might be on a Quad's
doorskin that wasn't on a '74 Spider Veloce. 
(Speakers?  Power-window switch bezels?  I don't know
the Quad at all, except I like the seats. :-)

Reupholstering door panels is really pretty easy and
VERY rewarding, because it's something you look at all
the time.  It's one of the next tasks I need to
undertake on my Spider (though I need new upholstery
panels as well, as the chrome is peeling off the trim
strips.)

Best,

--Scott Fisher
  Tualatin, Oregon
.
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