need some guidance

More of an art than a science - discuss metalworking and welding here.



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PostPosted: Tue Sep 06, 2016 11:47 pm
Hi All -

Ok what a first post. So here I am working on my 57 Cadillac. I had to do some rear window channel rust repair (cut, rust killer, replace, weld), and that seemed to go well for my current skill level. So I wanted to sand blast the window channels front and back, inner roof, outer roof and drip rails to confirm integrity and no rust / places for water to get in. I then planned on epoxy, 2k / high build primer, a week of blocking and when it was ready, paint and clear. Well i found a 1/4 inch of body filler covering an almost good repair. They decided to fill right over the pin holes and it's ugly. Disclaimer: I'm a guy in a garage with a welder, a compressor, decent set of tools, nicer paint gun and weekends. I don't have an English wheel, bead roller etc. How would you all recommend fixing this? I'm scared the welder will blow through if I try to spot weld the holes, and cutting out the bad stuff looks super tricky with a die grinder / air angle grinder. I want to do this right but I think I need next level / pro tools to do this most right way.. so I'm here for input. Thoughts? Thanks!

Alex
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roof body filler depth.jpg
most of roof body filler removed.jpg

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PostPosted: Wed Sep 07, 2016 6:15 pm
Have you considered cutting it out and welding in a patch? Some filler work is fine, but holes like that you really want to get rid of. Also, are there more elsewhere? Might be worth finding someone with an electronic mil gauge to go over the car to be sure, if you are not sure already.



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PostPosted: Wed Sep 07, 2016 10:10 pm
Hi Chris -

Yes I thought about cutting it out. But how do I create the perfect reproduction piece with all the bends / angles? The drip rail is roughly a 1/4" so it's tiny. The metal is also thin. around that area. I thought maybe after I sand blast that backside of the roof that maybe lead and then epoxy over that would work? I'm pretty nervous about cutting this out and welding it unless I'm missing a way to go about doing it. I can get more pictures if that'd help.

Alex

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PostPosted: Thu Sep 08, 2016 8:19 am
Judging from the picture that is not a real difficult repair.
You will want to keep your patch as small as possible meaning just remove the pin hole area.
Forming the patch may take being a little creative but I have found using a large diameter pipe to form slight curvatures to work very well. Just keep test fitting the patch until you are very happy with it. Nice tight fitting seams, matching contour etc.

Use some small pieces of the same thickness metal to practice on. Getting your welder set properly to handle thin metal BEFORE you attempt to weld your patch will make all the difference in the world. Learn to put small spot welds spaced evenly around the outside then repeat the process until the spots form a continuous weld. Keeping a wet cloth handy to keep the metal temperature down also helps.
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PostPosted: Thu Sep 08, 2016 9:13 pm
Thanks for the encouragement. I guess I'll give that a shot this weekend. Thanks for the tip on how to form the steel with the pipe.

Alex



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PostPosted: Fri Sep 09, 2016 6:30 am
57-Cad wrote:Hi Chris -

Yes I thought about cutting it out. But how do I create the perfect reproduction piece with all the bends / angles? The drip rail is roughly a 1/4" so it's tiny. The metal is also thin. around that area. I thought maybe after I sand blast that backside of the roof that maybe lead and then epoxy over that would work? I'm pretty nervous about cutting this out and welding it unless I'm missing a way to go about doing it. I can get more pictures if that'd help.

Alex

The drip rail is a separate piece from the roof, and it looks like the drip rail is just pitted and could be filled. Other wise it sounds like the rest is mostly unknown, so you need to clean it good inside and out, then take some good pictures and post them.



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PostPosted: Thu Nov 10, 2016 9:38 pm
Thanks for the help all! I ended up getting a piece of square tube in a close to the same gauge, cutting out a quarter of it and fitting / welding it in. It's not perfect but it's really really close and it's new metal. I sandblasted the rest of the roof too. I've since skim coated the whole roof and have just finished blocking it all. It took 3 gallon cans of 3M platinum filler. Hoping to epoxy over the body work then high build primer over that tomorrow / this weekend. It's been some work. Maybe color and clear next week if i don't find any problems.

Alex
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