Period Perfect Panels For Vintage Ford Phaetons

DIY Custom Upholstery Panels For Wood Frame Doors

By Gerry Burger – Photography By the Author

Sometimes, Ole Henry had a tough time with change. In the Ford world, if something worked well, he was known to stick with it. Mechanical brakes and wood-framed bodies are two examples that come to mind. Today we’ll deal with the latter of those two.

02 Metal clips being used to secure wooden upholstery in a vintage car restoration project — The hidden upholstery clips do not “grab” the wood very well. We decided to use metal clips over the holes to hold the fasteners. Since we would need a lot of them, we laid out a piece of 22-gauge metal with colored lines denoting the different-sized holes.

Our project car is a 1936 Ford Phaeton that remained largely a wood-framed body with stamped steel panels nailed over the wood frame. The inner door panels were stapled and nailed into place, using a unique trim that provided a covered slot to hide the fasteners.

03 Stack of 22 gauge metal tabs produced for vintage car upholstery — After drilling the holes, we went to the metal shear and produced a stack of these simple tabs.

For our project car, we wanted a vintage feel, a look that may have been possible in the ’30s-50s. Our lack of sewing also prompted this simplistic design. All the materials used in this project were available prior to the ’60s.

04 Practicing mounting metal clips on scrap wood for vintage car restoration — We practiced mounting on pieces of scrap wood before ever taking a drill to our 86-year-old wood-framed doors.

Mounting The Door Panels

The first challenge was figuring out how to mount the panels to the wood frame doors. Chrome or stainless steel bevel-head upholstery screws and washers would have been period correct and the easy way to mount the panels. That was way too easy… we decided we wanted blind fasteners in the way of modern plastic upholstery door panel clips. It was still a relatively easy process that required some careful measuring, marking, and proper hole sizes. With panels shaped, the next problem is securing them to the wood frame.

05 Templates for door panels made from clear urethane for traditional upholstery — We made templates for our door panels using thick, clear urethane. We used that template to transfer to our traditional upholstery panelboard.

22 Gauge Receiver Solution

We have seen simple holes drilled into the wood frame to receive the plastic panel clips. While this works OK for one or two times, after test-fitting the panel several times, that 86-year-old wood allows the hole to grow and the clips lose their grip. Our longtime hot rod pal Lance Sorchik helped us find the solution. As per his suggestion, we made 22-GA sheet metal receivers to go over the holes we had drilled in the wood. Once again, careful measuring is imperative, and stay away from any vintage wood that appears cracked or otherwise compromised. Also, avoid things like door latches and hinges. Since our Ford Phaeton is a four-door, we quickly realized we would require many of these receiver plates. To that end, we took a piece of 22-gauge sheet metal and laid out holes to be drilled. We did all the drilling before shearing the individual plates. This is much easier than making one plate at a time.

06 Handheld metal shears used for cutting panelboard for vintage car door panels — We tried a couple of different saws, but in the end, we found these handheld metal shears did a great job cutting the panelboard.

Cutting The Door Panel Upholstery

With the mounting problem solved, we went about carefully cutting the door panels from the upholstery panel board. We took a page from Ole Henry’s playbook when we selected this material, after all, it worked well for at least 86 years. After precise panel fit, we marked the desired location for the panel clip holes and drilled them to the proper size for the clips. Next, we used small screws to hold the new panels firmly in place over the wood-frame doors. A transfer punch was used to center punch each hole location in the wood. We then removed the panel and set about first drilling a 1/8-inch pilot hole on each center punch mark.

07 Fitting the panel to the doors and kick panels of a vintage car — After fitting the panel to the doors and kick panels, we mounted them with temporary screws. Take your time getting a perfect fit on the panels.

Drilling Receiving Holes

Next, we drilled the clip with the proper size receiving holes in the wood. Be careful not to drill these holes too deep as precious finished sheet metal is behind the wood. We are reluctant to specify the hole size since panel clips of different sizes are available. Find the specified hole size for your clip and practice on a piece of scrap wood to ensure the clips grip well. Likewise, drill and test the sheet metal hole-to-clip fit on a piece of scrap metal, and finally, mount one of your clips to scrap wood for the final grip test.

08 Drilling holes for panel clips in the panelboard of a vintage car — We then drilled the proper-sized hole for our panel clips in the panelboard and into the structural wood. A wrap of masking tape on the drill bit tells you when you have reached the proper, safe depth. Do not risk drilling too deep, as precious sheet metal resides behind the wood.

Mounting The Receivers

With the holes drilled in the wood, it was time to mount the sheetmetal receivers precisely over the hole. We used a short bolt threaded into the wood to precisely align the sheet metal hole with the wood hole. A tiny pilot hole is drilled for each #4 screws before fastening the sheet metal in place. After each hole has a sheet metal cover, test-fit the door panel. If you work carefully, the panel should fit perfectly. After the proper fit is achieved, you can remove the panel and begin the actual upholstery.

09 Painted clips to prevent rust in a vintage car restoration project — We painted our clips to prevent rust. A 5/16-inch bolt was threaded into the wood to locate the clip perfectly. Then a hole was drilled and a number four screw was screwed in place. Then a second hole was drilled for the second screw.

Our design approach was simple. We wanted more than just a smooth door panel. Since we don’t sew, that meant using 1935 Ford stainless steel hood trim in combination with a map pocket that is actually a small, leather lady’s purse. Vintage wind lacing and stock door handles complete the look. We were pleased with the vintage flavor of the door panels and the way they blended with the 4-inch pleated seats. We also added a grab rope to the back of the front seat and some vintage ashtrays to add interest to the interior. Rubber floor mats complete the period-perfect statement. MR