VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND NEWER 1949-1954 Body mounting

Looking for tips on mounting the body of my 51 Belair. There are 4 pads that go on the frame just at/and forward of the frame kick-up. Should they be attached with something like 3M weatherstrip adhesive or just let the body compression hold them? Also when shimming I am guessing the shims go on top of the mounting pads and not underneath. Any and all advice is appreciated. Right now the body is resting on wood spacer blocks and I plan on putting the mounting pads in place then inserting the bolts and removing the blocks. I still have the doors off so no tightening will be done until they are installed. At least now it is only taking up less floor space in my garage .

My limited experience re-installing bodies/cabs on frames is that it does help to have the pads restrained. Even is you are using some type of guide pins the pad might rotate.

I'm not sure you need as aggressive a bond as the 3M weatherstrip adhesive provides but it definitely will work. One other method is to wrap masking tape around the pad and frame. Then you just cut it away at the top of the pad after the body is in place.

Thanks for the reply Rusty. I like the masking tape idea .

I need to say up front I have no experience in R&Ring car bodies. I do however have experience in the body work field having attended trade school as a lad and then working as a body man for some time following. If I understand Rusty's advise correctly there will be tape left in situ, between the body and pad. While that may make pad movement less of a risk, it also presents other issues. Namely that masking tape holds dirt and moisture. Holding excess dirt and moisture against body sheet metal is not a good idea. "Rust worms" love it.

I think I can get the tape just at the ends of the pads so the body does not sandwich them in. The only ones with the tape will be the four at the kick-up that just lay on the frame with no bolts thru them. All the others that have a bolt thru them may need a little adjustment but they will not go anywhere with the bolt thru them.