Hood Hinge Reassembly

[toddgilroy]

I searched the forum on this topic and did not see any "how-to" threads so I thought I would post this.

I had taken my hood hinges apart for a good cleaning, blasting and primer awhile back. Now I want to put my hood back on the car before it gets damaged sitting around the garage, but was struggling to get the hinges back together.

Nyles (~Tbird1044) had done the same thing and offered some advice through a private message, with some cautionary warnings about the safety (or lack thereof ) of this method.

I attached a come along to my workbench with a sturdy lag screw, then did the same to the hinge several feet away. Then used 1/8" wire rope and 2 quick links to "grab" the spring. Then just cranked on the come along until the spring had compressed far enough to get the pin inserted.

It did take a few "creative" touches to get it to work...For example, I mounted the hinge close enough to a sturdy metal shear to act as a brace to keep the hinge arms from moving too much.

I certainly wore some protective gear while doing it and would recommend the same for anyone trying it.

Here are some pictures...please reply with any suggestions or better, safer methods.

Thanks
Todd

[gregz]

Thanks Todd for the info and photos, that's quite the setup. I might have an idea for a spring compressor hopefully it works just wish I would have seen the problem before painting the hinge.