Body door latch replacement

[Dodgebawl]

Attached is a picture of someone elses truck showing the < shaped latch that is rivited to the truck body. These latches on my truck are worn out. How can replacement latches be installed and is there a source for them other than from a salvaged truck? Thanks for your help.

[HanksB3B]

Can't say that I've been there. done that but I had what I think was a trickier problem (the welded part that receives the door arm closer or stops was disintegrated).

The reason I'm telling you this is that most of the metal on our trucks is pretty simple and I would guess a good metal fabricator would be able to make almost anything.

Before you go and grind the tops of those rivets down. I'd ask if someone has a picture of what that part of the truck is supposed to look like (I'll take a pic tomorrow if one doesn't appear by then). Maybe it's just a matter of removing some disintegrated rubber part and replacing it (not sure)

If you have no alternative then carefully removing what is left of the metal leaves you with two choices:

1. Finding someone that can re-make the part could do the trick. I guess if you can live with pop-rivets, you could install the new part and go from there.

2. Getting lucky and finding one of the guys on this forum that is willing to part with the part from some old doors that are of no use.

Good Luck and Welcome to the best place to start.

Hank

[Scruffy49]

Passenger side on my truck works great, door closes and can be locked shut. Driver's side? Won't even close all the way, and the hinges are not worn.

For the amount of scut work to weld in and recountour the stock latches I'm seriously considering converting to modern bearclaw latches and being done with it.

Or to stay kind of original, cutting a set out of a junk pre-67 Sweptline door and jamb.

But bearclaws are safer. Somebody makes them that work with our original inner/outer handles and rods. Can't remember who offhand but they advertise in Street Rodder.

[wendleburger]

On my '49, that fitting is mounted to a plate that screws into the a recess in the jamb.

If you can find a donor with that style of fitting you could probably retrofit it into your jambs.

[MMcKinney]

Yes there is a source. These are the same part as the Ford truck uses. I have already replaced mine. Its realy not a latch, its a locator to line the door with the door frame. And yes the the part that is on the door frame that it mates with is avaliabe too and it is a Ford part too. I'll try to look it up and see if I can get a web shot photo of them.

MMcKinney

Caldwell, ID

[MMcKinney]

Well here is the photo out of the cataloge, their web site search stinks and I can not get the photo to come up even with the correct part number. So here goes.

The place is Sacramento Vintage Ford 1-888-367-3100, in there F-1 & F-100 1948-1966 truck catalog.

Female Door Dovetail Kit 6333-2-8 (1948-52 pr) 24.00

Male Dovetail Polished Stainless Steel 6333-18 (1948-52 ea) 8.95

Repair kit for Female Dovetail 6333-9 (1948-52 ea door) 8.00

I bought the the male dovetail and the female dovetail repair kit and they were a direct match with the springs and all. You will need to call them and make an order. You might be able to find them at a different company as well, but I could not seem to find them any where else. See what you find.

MMcKinney

Caldwell, ID

[HanksB3B]

Ever if it is a Ferd! And to think after I misplaced my Door Check arms I paid $25 for a set of rusty ones from a remote junk yard in somewhere in Montana. I'll tell my wife the polished S.S. Male Dovetail will make a perfect Stocking Stuffer for me next Christmas. (I apologize to you snow birds if I reminded you) Down here it's perfect bike riding weather down by the beach. There's really something good about being unemployed. I've lived in California for almost 30 years, up at 5:30, in the office till 5:30 an hour and a half commute , and home by 7:00-7:30 pm. Now it's more like up at 7:30 down to the beach by 9:00 cruise in my truck to do local errands, work on my truck, or put the top down in my 350z and go for a ride. God willing, It's going to be a great summer full of long rides on my CF bike, surfing, hiking. I sort of hope no one hires me and ruins it all. I haven't felt so carefree and de-stressed since I was 15.

Hank

[Scruffy49]

Being back on the farm is doing wonders for me. Losing weight, down to a pack or less a day (instead of 3-4 packs while driving semis), work is being done to both of my old trucks (49 B1B-108 and 69 D100-128). Stress level is basically in the basement.

My wife is trying to find me an off farm real job but wants me to spend most of my time helping her father (who is 85) get things caught up, repaired, pruned, etc.

Sleep in, have coffee, spend the rest of the day running the chainsaws, front end loader, mowing the orchards, whatever else needs to be done.

And I still have time to make parts for my 49 to adapt modern components off a complete (wrecked) 92 Ranger.

It's like the almost 10 years I wasted back in western Washington never happened.

[Dave72dt]

Everytning I need to do to complete my truck has an expense related to it so unemployed and lack of income has some distinct disadvantages and when the income riuns out, stress level goes WAY up. Granted, there's a lot of time available but even things that take mostly time have expenses involved. Body work has materials expense, rust repair also. Welder ran out of wire yesterday, bondo can is down to where I can see the bottom, have about enough primer left to reprime the bed sides that are facing up for round 2 of blocking. After 3 years of temp jobs, something permanent may have finally come around for me so some of the bigger ticket items may finally get taken care of.

[Dave72dt]

Dennis Carpenter also has them, likely LMC and any of the myriad of Ford parts distributors.

[Dodgebawl]

Thanks MMcKinney for the source and kit information. I called SVF and their Female Door Dove Tail Kit attaches with screws whereas the ones on my truck are riveted in place. I do not see that there would be a problem in drilling out the rivets and installing the new kits with screws. One of MMcKinney's attachments shows a picture of Door Check Brackets. One of mine is broken. Does anyone know if these brackets will work on the B1B or if brackets are available specifically for the B1B?

[MMcKinney]

I have the door check arms as you see in the catalog and they are very close to the factory 53 Dodge truck version. They do not have "click" mechanism to hold the door open which is a realy nice feature. I bought 2 arms from vintage Ford and never used them as I was lucky and found 2 good orginal arms and fixed them to work correctly. The dovetails and parts were realy the items I was after.

My dovetails are rivited in as well and they seemed good so I just bought the repair kit and 2 dovetails and they are an exact match to the orginal Dodge part.

I got lucky and found the dovetail parts when I was looking for sun visor parts hoping that there would be a close match for the 53 Dodge truck. I see now that people are working on that problem now as well.

MMckinney

[Scruffy49]

If you want to run modern safety latches instead. Inside and outside handle kits, new rods, bearclaw latches, install kits, etc.

Kinda pricey but if your stock stuff is beyond shot or you are doing a custom build anyway...

If you add a V8 and run the old style latches frame flex can pop the door open...

[Dodgebawl]

MMcKinney, did you have to drill out the rivets and take out the door locator to install the dovetail repair kit? I have examined the door locator closely and do not see how to repair it otherwise. Your instruction will be greatly appreciated.

[MMcKinney]

The repair kit just comes with the 2 metal wedge parts and 2 springs. To get the wedgs out of the door just push "in" on wedge and "lift up" on the bottom wedge. The top wedge is exactly the same, push in and swing the wedge down past the metal tab. When you get the orginal wedge out you should have a spring that holds the wedge up against the doors dovetail. Replace the springs and reinstall the new "metal" wedges and your done. Should take about 3-5 minutes. I think the orginal wedges are plastic, where the repair kits are metal.

If your "wedge holder" (the part that is rivited to the inside of the door jam) is damaged then you will have to change out the whole container and then reinstall the wedges. This part I did not do, but I have a bad wedge keeper and I may need to replace it witha new holder.

Get back to me if you still have trouble.

MMcKinney