How would you bend this frame back?

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Sistering means attaching a flat piece to another piece.

In woodworking, if you had a floor joist that was rotten or had too many holes in it you would put another joist right next to it and attach the two together.

If you had the correct shape you could cut it out of a flat piece of 18 gauge plate steel and have it welded to the existing bow forcing the existing bow back into shape.

One of you photos looks like the bow is cracked where it is bent. Doesn't look like it could be streightned easily.

Most likely the top will have to be removed from the bow to make a repair.

And yes there is some material in the bow that the top can be stapled to, mine (67 dart) has a hard board like material
 
Dana67Dart said:
Sistering means attaching a flat piece to another piece.

In woodworking, if you had a floor joist that was rotten or had too many holes in it you would put another joist right next to it and attach the two together.

If you had the correct shape you could cut it out of a flat piece of 18 gauge plate steel and have it welded to the existing bow forcing the existing bow back into shape.

One of you photos looks like the bow is cracked where it is bent. Doesn't look like it could be streightned easily.

Most likely the top will have to be removed from the bow to make a repair.

And yes there is some material in the bow that the top can be stapled to, mine (67 dart) has a hard board like material
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tutorial. I do speak wood. Kern Dog offered a spare frame bow he has. That is starting to look like the way to go.

On to figuring out how to rebuild the rusted fresh air intake under the dash while I wait for top parts. I found a hole rusted through in the fresh air tub, and more rust where the heater and driver's side fresh air boxes connect.

And I thought that when I bought this car I was going to wax it, lube the hinges and drive it into the sunset. HA!

:lol::lol:
 
Take that bow off and take to good blacksmith or fab shop, they could make a new corner piece to match the good corner then replace the bad corner. My brother in SD would enjoy doing it, especially for a Mopar.
 
Duggie said:
Kern Dog offered a spare frame bow he has. That is starting to look like the way to go
Click to expand...
That would be the way to go. A good top shop MAY be able to replace it without removing the top. (Key word is MAY)
Duggie said:
And I thought that when I bought this car I was going to wax it, lube the hinges and drive it into the sunset. HA
Click to expand...
50 plus years, convertible, the Pacific North West - where you don't get a tan in summer you get a rust! Poor rust protection from the OEM, etc, etc, etc.

It is truly amazing that any of our cars are still on the road!
 
3406pk said:
Take that bow off and take to good blacksmith or fab shop, they could make a new corner piece to match the good corner then replace the bad corner. My brother in SD would enjoy doing it, especially for a Mopar.
Click to expand...

If the offer doesn't work out with Kern Dog, I'd love to talk to your brother!

Dana67Dart said:
50 plus years, convertible, the Pacific North West - where you don't get a tan in summer you get a rust! Poor rust protection from the OEM, etc, etc, etc.

It is truly amazing that any of our cars are still on the road!
Click to expand...

Was a Cali car, then the last 20 years and under 2K miles in Rhode Island. A dentist kept it in a warehouse and drove it to the beach during the summer. I gotta tell ya though, we've got the fever! I'm having a blast turning this garage queen into a regular driver. After working on it like a mad man for three months and driving it down the the coast to Cali with the little woman, we're hooked! Don't know if I can make it water tight enough to make it a daily NW driver, but it can be a weekly driver for sure.
:steering:
 
Duggie said:
To start with, you guys that can rebuild a convertible top out of nothing are so far ahead of me, I can hardly relate. Hopefully this fix isn't too far over my head.:D

Somewhere in this car's life, a heavy politician must have sat on the top frame while doing the parade wave. The frame bow closest to the rear window looks bent.
View attachment 1715653227

I'm wondering if the fix is to remove the rear bow and lay it on my bench top. Trace the drivers side, flip the frame over, and try to strong arm the bent - passenger side back to match the tracing of the driver's side. Assuming the driver's side is the proper shape...

Yes/No?
Click to expand...
check & make sure you havent had an adjustment bolt slide before you bend anything
 
Thanks Rodney. It's definitely kinked. I did pull the two set screws, thinking I could pull the damaged part without risk of destroying the old canvas top. No confidence in that happening!

There is enough other stuff to do, I figure I'll wait until the top is toast to pursue it further...
 
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