MG MGB and MGB GT Tech Talk
I'm having the crack of doom in my driver's door fixed correctly by a body shop. I plan on gutting the door myself prior to drop off. I have read various articles pertaining to this subject and have found differences in the procedure. My question: Is it necessary to remove the side glass or not? Any constructive advise would be appreciated.
Since the vent window has to come out I think the side window will as well. I stripped mine during resto.
The repairer really needs to work in the trailing corner where the lip meets the vent-frame. Make sure he cleans up and shapes that corner really well or the vent-window frame won't fit properly. Might leave the vent-window frame with the repairer so he can test-fit.
You need to ensure the repairer welds thru the crack and into the backing plate as well as tacking the backing plate to the rest of the door panel. The backing plate doesn't need to be that large but must be VERY well secured so it doesn't flex.
Metal sparks from grinding or welding will crate pits/flaws on any glass they come in contact with. So if glass isn't removed, it has to be protected/shielded somehow.
An amplification on Clay's comments.
The crack initiates right in the corner of the window opening where the outer skin is folded to make the seating surface for the window seal.
To ensure that the crack does not reappear, this area should be reinforced with a weld bead on the inside of the panel strengthening the area of the bend and removing the stress riser. The bead is then carefully filed to give a rounded edge to this folded area rather than a sharp edge. This is right where the vent window fits into the door so would be very difficult to work on with the window in place.