Interior quarter panels

[Richard McDonel]

Just received a pair of interior quarter panels from Z Car Source for my '71 240.  Problem is that they're about 3/16" too tall as measured against the originals.  Not wanting to go through the hoops and expense of returning them - I'm in Canada - I'm going to try to make them work, and am wondering  if anyone else has had this issue?  I could cut a strip off the top (the bottom has the rivet holes), but they seem quite light and fragile.  How much cutting or bending with a heat gun can a guy get away with?  

Any thoughts or experiences would be appreciated.

Richard

[grannyknot]

That's good to know, I was thinking about buying some new ones if I don't paint my old ones. 

When having run into that problem before there are a few ways to solve it,  scissors or tin snips can work well if the material isn't too brittle, a dremel with a grinding stone works but usually leaves lots of little bumps that have to be sanded flush. The best method for me was a belt sander,  a hand held unit mounted upside down in the vice or a bench mounted it doesn't matter, you just use the leading edge of the drum to remove the material, so your panel is on an angle (tangent) and you move it in one smooth stroke in the opposite direction to the rotation of the sander.