Im about to start repairing my sliding door. The bottom 6” of the outer and inner door are going to need replacing. What’s the best way to go about it? Do people normally cut out and replace the inner then cut away the outer skin and replace that? When looking at pics online I’ve noticed a few people, when re-welding the outer, just fit the joggled edge under the original skin then only use a few tack welds along the join before using filler. I suppose this with help prevent warping. I just thought the seam would be better fully welded?
You’d probably struggle to get the inner welded in with the outer still in place. It’s easier to remove the outer to fully assess the condition of the inner. With ours I marked the outer panel where I intended to cut and made a note of the measurement to the bottom edge. Chop away the outer and see how much of the inner needs replacing (as little as possible ideally as the klokker repair isn’t great). Repair the inner then the outer. I fully welded ours with a joggled edge and took it really slowly. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
One thing we found very helpful was to make a template with the curvature of the lower section of the door so you can use it to keep the profile correct. We didn’t do this with Gusbus and the lower door is slightly straighter than it should be, in Majors door rebuild we did the template and the door profile is closer to how it should be. There are some photos in Majors restoration thread.
Both above replies are good advice. I would add, that once you have tacked it all together, put the door back on and check it's fit with the sill and B and C posts. (With a new seal fitted).It takes patience to get it right, but it's worth the effort! Don't get the cheap outer skin as they don't have the correct curve in, and will make the job harder.
If it's of any help this bit of my resto details the sliding door repair (and outer is on the next page): A restoration for Iris - Sliding Door Repair
