Early Vent Door Hinge Repairs (and Kryptonite rivets)

Haven't found a circa ABody yet with intact door hinges on the vent/heater boxes. Not sure yet how to repair the hinges, but I have an idea in mind. First off, decided to remove the door. Those are definitely not aluminum rivets, had to fight tooth and nail with various drill bits and Dremel tool accessories. What's the secret, how do you all repair the hinges anyway?

I would think a good dremel wheel would cut them right off. I would call it a cut-off wheel, no idea what Dremel calls them. When the rivets are the strongest part of the assembly, you do have to be careful

Anyone fabricated new hinges and/or doors?

When I did mine on my 68 Dart, I zapped it with a MIG tack in a couple places. They held fine after carefully sanding them down.

mopowers said:

When I did mine on my 68 Dart, I zapped it with a MIG tack in a couple places. They held fine after carefully sanding them down.

Click to expand...

I plan on doing the same thing with mine.

Mine were broke also, I brazed mine together with a torch. It turned out way better than expected. I agree with the kryptonite rivets.

I'll say this again... some vendor should create a replacement cover with a vent that has a screen to open/close/direct air flow to replace the factories POS barn door.

I have had good luck welding also , like mopowers . Take you time and a spot weld at a time. The heat from welding helps loosen the stuck hinge too.

My 64 Val did not have a driver side door, only a balled up towel stuffed in the cavity. It was never a high priority for me so it was like that for a few years before I fixed it last summer. I rebuilt the heater box at the same time.

Anyway I bought some 65 Barracuda seats ($50) from a member down in Virginia a few years ago. Road trip there and back same day. He was parting the cuda so I bought the driver side airbox for $5 which hints at the condition it was in.

One hinge was broken and the other had a cracked hinge leaf but at least I had a door! I use a Dremel with a cut-off wheel to grind through the rivet heads. (I've done the same on my 68) Then push the rivet body through. I carefully mig welded the cracked hinge leaf and ground it smooth. Then I welded the broken ear that looked exactly like yours. Work the hinges back and forth with penetrating oil to free them up.

Next I repaired the holes in the plastic airbox using JB Weld reinforced with fiberglass mesh. Ground that smooth and drilled new holes using the hinge as a template.
I attached the repaired doors to the boxes with screws and nuts.
Make sure to keep the hinges lubed and they'll hold up forever.
I'll try to get some pictures later.

I also recommend The DMT rebuild kit. Good stuff.

Personally, I love the fresh doors. Lots air on warm summer days.