Gull Wing Door: Looking for tips & suggestions

[FlyingCloud3]

I am interested in building a roughly 3' x 8' gull-wing door in one side on my 1960 Safari, similar to this:


I am wondering what my options are for fabricating the curved studs.

And I'm not sure what kind of stock to use to make the frames.

And there are many other details like seals, hinges, door lifting struts, latches, etc...

I would appreciate any suggestions folks might have.

Thanks!

[gouchodon]

Have a look at
http://www.stonewellbodies.com
They've been manufacturing tig welded all aluminum custom truck bodies and trailers for the farrier and vet industry for a long time.
If nothing else you'll have some good creative fodder. Lots of detailed pics.
If you had a preexisting straight stud you could pie cut it, bend it, tig weld the cuts back together and voila. All you'd really need is the radius of the curve, length of curve, etc. plug those into your favorite cad software n let the computer figure out your cuts.
Hope that helps.

[AWCHIEF]

OP, you might want to consult with one of the companies that does Airstream foodcart conversions or directly with AIRSTREAM. Last time I visited Jackson Center they had several European foodcart models on the assembly line.

[FlyingCloud3]

thanks for the ideas!
those vet/farrier bodies are really nice!
It's cool to incorporate some solid aluminum components with these custom projects.
I like the idea of using some square tubing for the framing of the door itself if I can figure out how to bend it. I'm hoping I can just heat it up and work the curve into it by pulling it against a makeshift die with a little leverage.
I will talk to some of those great fabricators out there and see if they can point me in the right direction.
Thanks again!