ST Door top studs/bolts?

[Jeff B]

I recently broke down 2 sets of ST doors and tops.
Those of you who have taken the studs out of a door that never had its window removed in 20+ years know what I'm talking about.
The Land Rover method of bolt/sleeve obviously sucks.

So, any ideas?



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[meatblanket]

Take them off more frequently?

And before putting them back on coat with anti-seize.

 

[chris snell]

I still don't think that's enough, especially if your windows are leaky. I put brand new AB stainless studs into my window tops and put tons of anti-sieze on them before my trip last spring. By fall, they were almost impossible to remove. I had to use heat and a ton of hammering. Granted, the doors were already rusted. If water gets trapped there and you have rust, even anti-seize and SS won't help you.

I never had this problem in years of running the GCR studs. Water just drained out the bottom of them.

 

[meatblanket]

Also you may want to check the condition of your door seals. If they are junk a lot more water gets in.

 

[Jeff B]

Yeah, I can't imagine the windows on a ST not being leaky...

Water will get under that seal. It's inevitable.


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[down_shift]

PB Blaster Silicone spray under the seal and drill a drain hole through the AB SS nuts. Later I installed a small grommet at the base of the AB SS studs. It seals the hole through the door nicely. The nuts no longer weep.
The windows come out each year w/out issues.

 

[kshep]

I threw the sleeves away and just used the bolts. Didn't rattle anymore than it did before.

 

[javelinadave]

I swear the sleeves make things worse not better.

 

[chuckc4]

I swear the sleeves make things worse not better.

Agree! Rust from outside the sleeve pushes the sleeve in on itself and rust from the bolt inside the sleeve expands outward. While a new seal between the door top and bottom will help keep the parts from rattling it is not going got keep water out -- I think a little bit of water seeps into the area from the window channels too.

 

[DChapman]

Are the door tops steel or aluminum?

 

[javelinadave]

Aluminum

 

[DChapman]

Jeff is going to bring a door by next weekend. What it sounds like is that the upper window frame, and the lower door are aluminum. However, it also sounds like the doors and frame are reinforced with steel and these pins are actually making contact with steel where they pass through the door. Does that sound correct?

What I'm getting at is, stainless steel and carbon steel do not get along. If stainless comes in contact with steel some corrosion will occur. This would explain why folks have trouble getting the pins out over a period of time. Add water to the mix and it only gets a lot worse.

The same is true with aluminum and steel, however to a lesser degree. It could be that aluminum pins and a smear of antiseize may be the fix.

When Jeff brings the door and hardware by we'll come up with a fix.

 

[DChapman]

Can someone accurately measure the diameter of a new(er) pin? As in with dial calipers... I have a pin but it's rusty.

 

[chris snell]

Aluminum might be a possibility, although there will still be corrosion because of the dissimilarity.

 

[nas90tdi]

I would worry about the aluminum pins distorting too easily. I have the old GCR stainless pins in mine. I usually don't have too much issue with them.

And, yes, you are correct. There is a steel sleeve in the door. I keep mine coted with anti seize both in the window frame and the nuts on the bottom. I am currently using a long all thread connection nut on mine. It hangs down farther and makes it easier to get to. I never liked the quick-nuts. You can't actually get them very tight.

 

[chris snell]

Agreed, my old GCR pins never corroded much or bound up so long as I kept the anti-seize on them. Much different from the AB pins, which are a mess.