2011 F150 Supercrew Cab Corner replacement Project Start

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



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PostPosted: Tue Dec 05, 2017 11:47 am
I have a lot of respect for Adhesives they still are not the same as welding.


Although welding in any type of patch leaves some exposed metal any type of glued/glassed in patch is a temp repair. Need to weld in the new metal!



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PostPosted: Tue Dec 05, 2017 12:12 pm
I'm sorry Mark I disagree

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQkBcfvy5O4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXTg9ZlNliU
Dennis B.
A&P Mechanic, FCC General radio Telephone Operator
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PostPosted: Tue Dec 05, 2017 9:38 pm
It looks like very little of the rockers will need replaced. I'll formulate more of a game plan when the rockers show up. As far as strength, are you worried about using adhesive in place of the spot welds? Steel rivets could be used on the bottom side if the rocker for added strength, or I could pay my neighbor to get his might set up. This truck is getting the rockers and cab corners coated with U-POL RAPTOR when the body work is complete, so it doesn't need to be perfect.

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PostPosted: Wed Dec 06, 2017 12:17 am
I realize the panel adhesives have come a long way but I still prefer to weld my patches in. Something about solid metal that appeals to me. :wink:
1968 Coronet R/T


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PostPosted: Wed Dec 06, 2017 12:26 am
If I owned a welder, was trained in welding, and had my garage wired for 210 I would be using a welder for this. The truck couldn't wait another winter though, neither could my sanity looking at it. I bought a temporary Ranger to drive around until my "nice" truck is back on the road. Sad that my 94 ranger has less rust than my 2011 F150, unless you're talking about the frame. The trucks have both lived in the same state, and have about the same mileage. Crappy rocker/ cab corner design on Fords part with this generation f150. :knockout:



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PostPosted: Wed Dec 06, 2017 6:36 am
i dont think thats limited to ford design. my nephews '12 GMC is showing paint bubbles on a cab corner.

ferd, iffen ya want to think about welding some time in the future, check out the hobart 140. its a 110v mig. can use gas or flux core wire. works great for sheetmetal welding.
come in handy when youre done with the 150 and decide to turn the ranger into a mean little pro touring truck. :)



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PostPosted: Wed Dec 06, 2017 7:20 am
tomsteve wrote:i dont think thats limited to ford design. my nephews '12 GMC is showing paint bubbles on a cab corner.

ferd, iffen ya want to think about welding some time in the future, check out the hobart 140. its a 110v mig. can use gas or flux core wire. works great for sheetmetal welding.
come in handy when youre done with the 150 and decide to turn the ranger into a mean little pro touring truck. :)

I think the real culprit may have been a leaking third brake light, supposedly common on this model. I bought the truck about 2 years ago with zero external signs of rust. If you look inside the rocker from where I cut, you can actually see a decreasing amount of rust the closer it gets to the b pillar. Water leaking in with no where to escape, so it made it's own drain holes! The third brake light is now well sealed but it was too late. The new sheet metal will likely have a drain hole in it, but hopefully only undercoating oil will be leaking from it.

Building and caging a ranger for offroad use has always been on my bucket list since I was 16. Unfortunately the one I'm currently driving is a 2wd regular cab long bed. Decent truck, but not the best off-road platform. I'll get a welder eventually, but I was amazed by the strength test videos on YouTube comparing the strength of adhesive vs welds vs rivets. the steel actually ripped before the adhesive failed. The adhesive just didn't fail.



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PostPosted: Wed Dec 06, 2017 12:04 pm
I'm sorry Mark I disagree


Adhesives have a huge roll in automotive assembly, we use them all the time and they are amazingly strong.

But for a novice doing a rust/patch panel they have no place.

Same for screws, pop rivets, zip ties, coat hangers, fiberglass, and paint stir sticks. I've seen them all and they are nothing compared to a neatly welded (TIG) patch panel.

Cheap can be expensive!



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PostPosted: Wed Dec 06, 2017 7:25 pm
The argument about Adhesives has been beat to death!
Too this very this day and age there are people who still believe that the Planet Earth is Flat as well as those that believe its Round. Just like their are people that believe in a higher Power, Bigfoot, Aliens and UFO's and then there are those that don't and never will.

I don't think you can ever make anyone believe in anything! They have to Take what information is provided to them and let them make up their own minds.
I don't think the OP had the intention of opening the can of worms of what comes up in the topic of Adhesives but rather what will work for his repair.

Adhesives are just another method of fastening two different pieces of material together.

On a side note I have seen Many a Mig welded panels on cars and trucks NONE are true welds! True welding is done when laying out a Flat bead on two pieces of metal melting two pieces together with the filler wire forming one piece.
All to often When Mig welding is done on sheet metal 18 gauge or less The two pieces are joined by quick repeated and successive zaps or spot welds over and over across the repair then over the top of each other that are then ground down grinding the mess down to what would appear as a Fully welded solid piece when in fact it is not,
This leaves a very porous Rock hard over heated crack & corrosion prone joint.

True welding of thin sheet metal is done by Gas welding or Tig welding very few have the knowledge, skill, experience or equipment to accomplish.
I am not saying Mig welding should never be performed on Cars/trucks metal Thick or Thin as there is always a Time and a Place for GMAW welding.

I feel and fear the technique and its overall acceptance as an an acceptable method of welding in the auto body repair industry has reduced a respected method of welding in an industry with no requirement for weld certifications has resulted in an overly used inferior practice for real welding further diminishing the need for truly skilled craftsmen in the industry.
Personally I have more faith in a Properly executed Adhesive repair Than any weld repair performed by an non certified welder.
Dennis B.
A&P Mechanic, FCC General radio Telephone Operator
Line Maintenance A&P Mechanic and MOC Tech specialist.



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PostPosted: Wed Dec 06, 2017 7:45 pm
I've seen many examples on the internet of people replacing corners and rockers THE WRONG WAY for sure. There are some real ugly messes out there that people are even proud enough to put on YouTube. like stuffing the rust holes with fiberglass and Bondo, welding new panels right over the old rusty crap and not even grinding welds. In the end my project may not be done like it would be in a shop, but it's going to get done and it won't look nearly as bad as examples I've seen. I just don't want any rust.
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