Not a fan of pounding them out so Anyone have an opinion on using the door pin press tool that all the catalogs sell? Asking before I spend the 30.bucks
I used one for my rusty old 34 pickup. I was surprised but it did work. Just might have to soak good in penetrant and add heat and take your time using it.
You can make one that works better. Soak the pins while you building one. Take you air chisel and weld a piece of a 1/4 inch punch to one of the straight chisels. Soaked pin maybe some lite heat and hit it with the air chisel. Was a thread here are the barn showing the process to build. Son made one that worked great.
I’ve always used a punch in an air chisel . or get a heavy duty welders/fabrication clamp with a hunk of pipe on one end and the correct punch on the other and drive it out with an impact gun. A make shift pin press. Always worked for me.
I don't know where it was made but the door pin press that I purchased from Bob Drake cracked and fell apart when I was trying to press out the pin on my '46 Woodie. I removed the entire hinge assembly and soaked it in penetrating oil for a week and pressed it out using a hydraulic press.
Wasn't there an article posted from that new magazine Brian Brennan was supposedly starting that showed how to make one? I believe it was sometime last fall.
This works with a good old heavy duty C clamp....new overseas cheap stuff will bend. Credit: Bob Johnson You will need a "C" Clamp the larger the better, a 1/2" socket, metal washer with a 1/2" hole, leather or rubber washer with a 1/2" hole, 1/4" bolt (cut off). The "C" Clamp has to be large enough to span the socket, washers, hinge, and bolt. The 1/2" socket should be tall enough to receive the pin when it is pushed up by the bolt. You can start with a regular socket and then use a deep well when extra height is needed. The metal washer distributes the pressure evenly around the hinge, it should have a hole bigger than the hinge pin head. The rubber/leather washer will help keep the paint on the hinge intact. It should also have a hole just larger than the hinge pin head. The 1/4" bolt forces the pin up into the socket. It is cut off to about 1/4" to 1/2" length. If you were to use a longer bolt it might not stay in place when the pressure is applied. This procedure is used if the pin is stuck and can not be removed with just penetrating oil and tapping. The drawing below shows the setup. Make sure that everything is lined up vertically. You should start with a regular 1/2" socket and a 1/4" bolt that is no longer than 1/2" long. Apply pressure and the pin should move upward. If it does not you can tap on the top or bottom of the "C" Clamp to help. As the pin is driven up into the socket eventually the 1/4" bolt head will reach the hinge. You can then remove the bolt. Most of the time the pin can now be tapped out. If it is still stuck then use a longer 1/4" bolt and continue driving the pin up with the "C" Clamp. You may need a deep walled 1/2" socket if the top of the hinge pin hits the "C" Clamp.
This is what I do , but with a welders clamp it has a nut on the end so you can use an impact gun and drive seized ones out fairly easy.
I have the store bought pin tool and it works OK. Bought it mostly to do bottom hinges because of running boards being in the way for much manipulation of a punch or hammer. The tough part of getting them out is usually getting them to start to move. I put the pin under tension and give the tool a light smack with a brass hammer. That usually gets them started. Once the lock splines are free of the top of the hinge, they come out pretty easy. For me, it was worth adding it to my tool box.
I have used Drakes tool with success more than a few times , soakem first = penetrating oil , Heat and allow to cool if you have to .
Yep - used Drakes for a few 30/31 A stuff and a 39/40 and it finally met it's match with the pins they supply - still guess it was the factory pin that was no longer a straight as an arrow that caused the pin to break. You get that after being in a door hinge for about 80 yrs !
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