I want to do metal repair, how do I get started.

Zymurgy

Zymurgy

Old Man with a Hat
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I have always wanted to do every aspect of a car restoration. The one thing I have never attempted was cutting out bad metal and welding in new. I am a decent MIG welder and have access to one. I realize it is a whole different animal, spot welding in thin gauge metal than welding some 1/4 in angle iron.

I was planning on getting some metal to practice on. Should I just buy some scrape from a junk yard? Are there any good books or DVDs to get me started? I have watched several you-tube videos so I basically know what I am getting myself into.

My goal is to repair the back fenders on my '66 300. It is nice and straight and the rust is not too consuming, but I haven't taken a sander to it yet to find out for sure.

Here is the driver side and the passenger side is a little worse.

Fender rust.jpg

Fender rust.jpg
 
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Not to be a smart *** but before you get started you must stop calling them rear fenders and learn to refer to them as quarter panels.
 
polara71 said:
Not to be a smart *** but before you get started you must stop calling them rear fenders and learn to refer to them as quarter panels.
Click to expand...

So does that mean when I look at the you-tube videos, steer away from the guys that refer to them as rear fenders because they are about as green as me on body repair? My turn to be a smart *** I have a British car and they refer to them as the rear wing, but I also have a boot, bonnet, and wind screen on my MGB.
 
I am not trying to be a smart ***...... There are cars that have rear fenders....., like a mdel A or a 48 Chrysler. Most everything pre 55 probaly had a rear fender.

When I hear guys call the quarter a fender I wince.
 
polara71 said:
I am not trying to be a smart ***...... There are cars that have rear fenders....., like a mdel A or a 48 Chrysler. Most everything pre 55 probaly had a rear fender.

When I hear guys call the quarter a fender I wince.
Click to expand...
Trust me no offence was taken. There are certain things that just drive us all nuts. For me being in MGB owner also, having my car called a Fiat, don't get that so much anymore because there aren't very many Fiats left.
 
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I'm surprised front fenders don't get called front quarters, after all, there are 4 quarters for every 1
 
Look around for some bodywork threads as you already did, and these minor spots are a good starting point. In general first attempts surely have a lot of room for improvements but one thing you can do right from the start is cutting out all of the weakened material, if inner reinforcements are rusted away you should cut as far up as to get to these panels as well.

Butt welding is best, for multi-layered components I'd recommend special primer that does not burn away or floats in these double layered areas. Just don't get to something like replacing larger parts of a frame rail or quarter panel f.e. in the first week :), there are some general rules when it comes to work in such areas, if you want to play "by the book", the manufacturers even gave you fixed rules as to where exactly you have to cut such parts to have proper stability and reaction to crash impact.
 
Zymurgy said:
I have always wanted to do every aspect of a car restoration. The one thing I have never attempted was cutting out bad metal and welding in new. I am a decent MIG welder and have access to one. I realize it is a whole different animal, spot welding in thin gauge metal than welding some 1/4 in angle iron.

I was planning on getting some metal to practice on. Should I just buy some scrape from a junk yard? Are there any good books or DVDs to get me started? I have watched several you-tube videos so I basically know what I am getting myself into.

My goal is to repair the back fenders on my '66 300. It is nice and straight and the rust is not too consuming, but I haven't taken a sander to it yet to find out for sure.

Here is the driver side and the passenger side is a little worse.

View attachment 5586
Click to expand...



I'll try to get you some more detailed pics of the process shortly. The problem I see is that with the fender skirts you're going to have reverse curves on the flange. Not going to be real easy with just hand tools but I think you can do it. Hell my repair was the first time I'd ever worked wit metal.


This is an ad for a metal repair DVD but it has some useful information an may provide some inspiration. By watching this video I was able to figure out my repair. It's short and if you have more questions i can assist with more resources. PM me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGElSHzm0q8

Before you start MAKE YOUR PATTERNS. Trust me know this from experience. And the patch I made was done with hand tools as I didn't have my shrinking stump before I finished. So the shrinking on the flange was done with tucking forks and a hammer. I can explain more later.
 
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67Monaco said:
I'll try to get you some more detailed pics of the process shortly. The problem I see is that with the fender skirts you're going to have reverse curves on the flange. Not going to be real easy with just hand tools but I think you can do it. Hell my repair was the first time I'd ever worked wit metal.


This is an ad for a metal repair DVD but it has some useful information an may provide some inspiration. By watching this video I was able to figure out my repair. It's short and if you have more questions i can assist with more resources. PM me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGElSHzm0q8

Before you start MAKE YOUR PATTERNS. Trust me know this from experience. And the patch I made was done with hand tools as I didn't have my shrinking stump before I finished. So the shrinking on the flange was done with tucking forks and a hammer. I can explain more later.
Click to expand...

Bill your the man! Thanks for the great information and all the extra info you sent me in the PM. This is what I love about the internet, everyone sharing their ideas and making it easier for everyone else.
 
You're welcome. It's a sickness. I give three to four weeks til you have a shrinking stump in the garage even though you won't really need it. Took me about a week and a half. I've used it a few times since for other projects. Also find myself going to local machine shops looking in their Drop/Scrap piles for stuff I can use for shaping.
 
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