Is this a mad idea?

[Ketzele]

My 1930s house has had every single original feature ripped out long ago, including the doors (my adjoining neighbour still has her original doors, they are beautiful ). Previous owner was a mad DIYer who tried everything and bodged everything [think: front door hung up on cupboard hinges, kitchen waste pipes fitted AROUND the broken dishwasher so it can't be removed without redoing the piping]. Anyway, hoping that was an entertaining enough preamble for this very very boring question:

The ugly doors have ugly bright gold handles. Ideally I'd like to replace them with something more 30s, but my odd-job-man-who-has-now-promoted-himself-to-mate-and-so-refuses-to-do-odd-jobs-anymore said something like oh no, that will be very difficult, bodger guy hung up all your doors upside down and that makes fitting the backplate very difficult. Or he may have been speaking Latvian for all the sense I could make of it.

Does anybody know what he means? Is it possible to hang a door the wrong way up? Is it complicated to change a door handle? wtf is a backplate?

And, here's the mad idea: do you think it would be possible to just spraypaint the existing handles a less glaring colour (I was thinking Rust-Oleum gun metal metallic) or is that all kinds of stupid?

I can’t see a problem with replacing your doors. New hollow doors do have solid bits where the hinges and locks go, so maybe that was what your friend meant.
You could replace them with reclaimed doors, but be aware they may be warped or have been altered in some way.
Door companies, some on line, or builders mearchants often have new internal door in traditional styles. IMO they are a safer replacements. It is expensive, but you could do a couple at a time.
As for the handles, I have successfully painted metal curtain pole endings grey ( huge red globes!) with Hammerite metal paint. It should work on door handles.

Is there no hope of developing a new hobby?

Architectural salvage yards have all sorts of doors and door furniture and you can spend many a happy afternoon exploring the latest finds.

Can you not replace the doors with something more in keeping with the house?

You could sort out each room, one by one over time.

I'm a bit stony broke, and having to prioritise the bits of the house that are actually falling apart, hence doing it myself, and not replacing the doors at this point. Long term plan: replace the doors, replace handles with authentic 30s handles.

Short term plan: paint! I'll definitely try Hammerite metal paint, many thanks. If I start with one, I guess the worst that can happen is that I have to replace one handle.

When we first visited our neighbours, I gasped over their beautiful doors with those hexagonal aged brass handles. Neighbour said they had wanted to get rid but couldn't afford new doors. I squeaked, "I'll buy them off you, or swap them for mine!" But I think I should have played it cooler, because she looked at me shrewdly and said maybe she'd keep them after all...