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Sun Jan 02, 2005 6:02 pm

Guys
I did a search, but I could not find a specific answer to my simple question.
What is the best way to remove the front door hinge pins?
I aquired a passenger side mirror that I wish to install, but I want to be clear on pin removal before I start beating on it like a mad man.
Thanks
:D

Sun Jan 02, 2005 6:18 pm

i just drilled the pin out.... but make sure you go in straight! (ask me what happens). i ended up having to change the hinge out because it got drilled. with the new hinge i got, it also had a pin in it, i just heated it up, put crap loads of some armorall lube stuff, and got a pointed chisel like thingie and beat the pin out with a hammer. good luck on it.

Sun Jan 02, 2005 6:22 pm

Seriously, the easiest way is with an air hammer...
It made real easy work of it! :)

Sun Jan 02, 2005 6:40 pm

My next door neighbour (bless his soul) has an air chisel and air. We can load a drift into the air chisel.
So do we just line up the drift and beat it up and out?
That easy (and that tough?)

Sun Jan 02, 2005 6:57 pm

I don't know about an air chisel, but if you have an attachment that is smaller than the size of the pin, then I'd go for it.
When I did mine, I took my door off and turned it over. Then put the hinge in a vice and let 'er rip...
Good Luck!

Sun Jan 02, 2005 7:01 pm

Thanks for the sage advice!
Tomorrow night, we drift!!
:D

Sun Jan 02, 2005 8:32 pm

soak the hinge with penetrating oil. I use Marvel Mystery oil.
I removed my door and placed the hinge on a block before hammering the pin out. that way I lessened the chance of loosinging the hinge where it mounts to the door.

Sun Jan 02, 2005 10:33 pm

Start with lots of Kroil, WD-40, or your favorite rust zapper. Soak, soak, and soak some more. If keeping the paint is not a problem, apply heat (such as propane torch) to the hinge. On mine I ground off the head of the old hinge pin (zapped part of the paint too :sad:) so I had a flat surface, pounded it down about 1/16" with a nice new flat punch, soaked it some more, and then pounded it up from the bottom. Repeated that a few times and it finally came right out. Damn tight! Lots of noise, the neighbors love it! Air hammer would have been a plus! It comes out the top due to the knurling at the top of the pin, don't try to hammer it down and out if you grind off the head. Good luck!! :x-mas:

Mon Jan 03, 2005 4:21 pm

An old fuel pump push rod work pretty damn good. On my 59 I soaked the hinge for a week and the pin came out rather easy with a 20oz ball pein.

Thu Nov 02, 2006 3:21 pm

ToolBox wrote: An old fuel pump push rod work pretty damn good. On my 59 I soaked the hinge for a week and the pin came out rather easy with a 20oz ball pein.

Older post...but lemmie get this straight.

I am adding a pass side mirror on the Kombi, it currently has a hinge pin in it.

So I should soak it, then hammer at it with a drift from the underside of the hinge and hammer the pin out the top?

Thu Nov 02, 2006 3:32 pm

You can do it that way, but an air chisel with a drift is really the way to go. When I did mine (at the time of this post) it took a couple seconds with the air chisel, no smacked knuckles, no missed swings, it was quick and painless.

Thu Nov 02, 2006 3:44 pm

I've got a body shop right across the street, so I guess I will bug them for a few dollars to get that sucka out for me with a chisel.

Thanks!

Thu Nov 02, 2006 3:47 pm

derv wrote: I've got a body shop right across the street, so I guess I will bug them for a few dollars to get that sucka out for me with a chisel.

Thanks!
Well, air chisel as the tool, but with a small drift for an attachment.

Thu Nov 02, 2006 5:05 pm

imho i would remove the door and support the hinge as you do all this beating. we usually turn the door upside down and place the hinge on the edge of a vise. some patina'd 50+ year old doors might not like the abuse of hammering. cool mirror could = saggy door. there is a press made to do this job on the car if you have a paint job to save
http://www.eastwoodco.com/jump.jsp?itemID=1689&itemType=PRODUCT

Thu Nov 02, 2006 5:10 pm

Removed ours in place with Kroil, a long drift and a mini-sledgehammer, in order to install mirror arms. It worked better to get them moving with the hammer and drift, and then finish the job with the air hammer. The problem with the air hammer is that things happen fast when you hit the trigger, and you stand a very good chance of air-hammering the hinge body or part of the door. After the pin starts moving, then there is a cavity there to keep the air hammer drift from bouncing around.

Thu Nov 02, 2006 7:51 pm

If you have access to a MIG, I'm telling you, weld a bead on the top of that pin. Then, it will slide right out with a drift! Easy as pie.

Thu Nov 02, 2006 8:07 pm

arthurnugen wrote: If you have access to a MIG, I'm telling you, weld a bead on the top of that pin. Then, it will slide right out with a drift! Easy as pie. very cool idea does it get hot enough to mess up the hinge paint

Thu Nov 02, 2006 10:27 pm

slow36hp wrote: arthurnugen wrote: If you have access to a MIG, I'm telling you, weld a bead on the top of that pin. Then, it will slide right out with a drift! Easy as pie. very cool idea does it get hot enough to mess up the hinge paint

Yes, a little, but you have to be careful! A lot of indiscriminate pounding with a drift or hammer will screw up the paint, too. Spray it with your favorite penetrant, wait a day, weld a (small) bead, and pound it!

Sat Nov 04, 2006 12:18 pm

I took mine to a local body shop and they knocked out the pin in seconds for a ten spot..........EZ

Sat Nov 04, 2006 1:46 pm

An air hammer is probably the best solution but make sure you back it up with something heavy, otherwise you move the pin and the hinge too, very bad. 2-3 feet of 3/4' water pipe would make a good bucking bar to hold firmly against the opposite end of the hinge from the hammer.