Rust repair time......

[coronet1965]

So now that the car is functional again its time to turn my attention to the rust. This is a new adventure for me so what are some obstacles to watch out for in fixing the lower front fender and lower rears quarters? The guy I bought the car from gave me all the patch panels for the car also. And then theres the biggest project the drivers floor board is all rotted away, and I'm also converting the car to a manual so I figured fix the floor while Im down there putting in the tunnel hump. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

http://www.flickr.com/photos/69994661@N03/6923506841/in/photostream

 

[Polara Pat]

I assume that you know how to weld. If you are not super confident with welding sheetmetal then I would start with the floors since they will be covered by carpet. The floors, like most of the body panels on our cars are spot welded to the body and sub-frame so you need to drill all of the old ones out. Pain in the *** job but it helps with the rigidity of the unibody. You should use fat rosette welds with the new floors to replicate these. Let us know when that's done and we can move onto the body panels. Take your time and do short "stitch welds" to avoid warping the metal. Seam seal and undercoat or prime when you're done.

 

[65affair]

Rust repair

Polara Pat is right... get comfortable with welding sheet metal, lot of tack welding to minimize warping. use a spot weld drill to drill out the spot welds. use a good one! take your time! don't grind welds to aggressively that also will warp metal. start on the floor is a good tip to get use to sheet metal. I butt weld everything, however many people overlap. any questions i am also in wisconsin.

 

[Donny]

#1 on the list; Media Blast the car. #2 Hope there's something left to work with if it's bad rusty now, at least then you'll know what you're dealing with! #3 GOOD LUCK! #3.5 Post pics!

 

[Propwash]

If you're not going to butt-weld, get yourself a decent flange tool or air flange gun. One with 1/16" offset.. For plug weld size in the new metal, drill 5/16" holes to fill. Blair tools has the best Spot weld cutter's in my book. Before you go blowing tons of cash on Cleco's and Vise grips, buy yourself a box of #10 sheetmetal screws. Along with a couple panel clamp type grips, they work great for pulling/holding two panels tight together for welding. When you start welding across a seam, do not just start at one side and work all the way down, good way to end up with a warp when you reach the end. Spot tac it across, work on one side, switch to the other. Also allows the metal to cool down on either side in between welding (less risk of warp). I always try to weld both sides of a seam if I can. The visable side can be brought back down flush, while leaving some reinforcement on the backside. Otherwise you may end up with less metal/support than the surrounding areas. Smooth the sides of any reinforcement so it doesn't create a lip/edge for dirt/debris to settle and start to collect and possibly rust.
Creating your own patches? 20 GA is almost identical to the original thickness of our OEM sheetmetal.

I guess I could go on and on, but these a just a few things that come to mind. Crazy how many Wisconsin guys are on here now a days...I'm about 2 hours north of ya..

 

[Ron 73]

"20 GA is almost identical to the original thickness of our OEM sheetmetal."
Thank you, I wish i would have known that when i put in a 8-8 patch on my floor when i was doing my car, I got 17 and used it, it isint that much nor that big, but ill remember this!

Good luck Coronet 1965!!!

 

[Propwash]

No problem Ron...At least you went thicker than stock. Better to have more than not enough. I found the 22GA just a bit too flimsy and the 18GA just a bit too beefy, but have used 18GA here and there

 

[Donny]

Or, Diamond Plate is good for the floors! (old joke, not at or on you or your Coronet)

 

[coronet1965]

Thanks for all the advice I'm going to wait till it gets a bit warmer in Wisconsin to start on all this. This is going to be a learning experience for me thats for sure.