having issues getting the hood aligned. its way off. the front(near the headlights) of the hood is sitting down on the RH(passenger) fender. the back has a big gap and so does the other side. both fenders are reproduction as well as one of the hinges. (reused the springs). fender to door gaps are wide but that doesnt bother me that much. i did remove the core support and replaced the bushings. any suggestions?

 

Had the same issue after my son had the front end off his truck, I told him to loosen the core support. Then i pushed the front drivers side fender thus shifting everything to the right which brought it into allignment. Try the same move it in which ever direction it needs to go, see if that helps.

 

If that brings it into alignment then try to close the door gaps with the core support still loose. Get everything aligned and tighten everything just snug but still able to move it around until its good, then tighten it down.

 

You may need to shim your core support as I did to get what you want for gaps.

 

loosened the core support, pushed it to the right. the hood is still pretty much one-sided. big gap on one side and barely enough room to sit it down on the other. will shimming the lower part of the hood hinge correct this?

 

u tried pushing the hood over when open to bend the hinges a bit. unbolt the front latch plate and see if it closes properly.

you may need to check for square by cross measuring the opening. you should be able to get the same measurement diagonally from corner to corner of the hood opening or from similar points of reference cowl to core support . verifying equal length points right and left sides, harder to explain than do. But if you cannot "hone" it in panel alignment will not be possible until the problem is corrected

 

took the hood off, im goin to check for square soon then go from there

 

when you pushed the core over how are the door/fender gapes. thats what is wrong with aftermarket parts you never know if the measurements can be trusted or when its time to start trimming to fit

 

I would take the hood hinges off, lay the hood in place and with all the bolts loosened move everything around till it's lined up.

The measuring method will take forever and you'll wind up doing it this way anyway.