Front door handle question??????

[grocerygetter]

For those of you that have dismantled your exterior front door handles to paint or whatever can you tell me what parts I would need to get a hold of to make a pattern of the working components? According to my manual there are two basic outside pieces the handle and lock bezel, lock cylinder, and a front door handle reinforcement. The handle appears to pivot when it is opened does it pivot in an opening in the door panel, the reinforcement component or what?

I would like to know which components I will need to reverse engineer the mechanism, the plan is to build a pair of custom handles of my design (yet to be determined) for my car. Once that is done and I have the geometry of the working mechanism and know the working envelope size of the handle it self I could machine customs of similar or different design for other people as well. Costs, I have no Idea but I would be machining them more than likely from 6061 Aluminum and at the moment don't know if they would require adding any wear components. With the aluminum you can polish, paint, anodize, or plate (chrome ) or even use plaid vinyl applique on them.

Brian

[Steve@Tasca]

I can fax you catalog illustrations or you can come by and pick them up.

Really your best bet would be to just buy the parts (new or used) and then theres no question.

If you just want an outside handle and end cap to reverse engineer it's about $25.00 for new and they fit all four doors.

The inner mechanisms are different from one door to another but run about $23.00 each.

[spots25]

are you personally going to be machining them, or have someone else do it? because if you're going to have someone else do it, it'll be a good couple hundred a handle

[grocerygetter]

are you personally going to be machining them, or have someone else do it? because if you're going to have someone else do it, it'll be a good couple hundred a handle

I am going to do it, model them using Solidworks, program them using Virtual Gibbs, and machining them at work after hours or on the weekend. You are right about the costs especially when programming/machining surfaces that are complex and three dimensional.

B

[grocerygetter]

I can fax you catalog illustrations or you can come by and pick them up.

Really your best bet would be to just buy the parts (new or used) and then theres no question.

If you just want an outside handle and end cap to reverse engineer it's about $25.00 for new and they fit all four doors.

The inner mechanisms are different from one door to another but run about $23.00 each.

Thanks Steve,

I planned on purchasing the handles to do it since I don't really want to rip the door of my daily driver apart that is why I am interested in what all is neccessary to create the working portion of the handle. Since I haven't taken one apart yet(I have a factory Ford 06 Focus manual with the exploded view) I was wondering if only the outside parts were needed and the external handle is a subassembly that pivots within its self or if the handle pivots on the door or the internal mechanism. This will be a winter project along with starting an intake manifold project for my DTEC. I'll probably pick the parts up in a month or so, are they normally stocked?

Brian

[Steve@Tasca]

I should have what you need in stock all the time.