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Floorboard Metal Repair How To


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What is the conventional wisdom when remiving the tranny cover and seeing this? Shall I hust ignore it, clean the rust off and Por paint it? Replace it? Add material? Don't know a thing about adding material and likely welding, but I'm not afraid to learn and may even be willing and possibly able to purchase some welding equipment if it's not too expensive?

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it appears you basic panel is in pretty good shape, just the border in an area or so that could easily be cut and new metal cut/shaped and welded in place duplicating the bad section removed. as for the rst out section of the rolled bead, same principle, cut out the old and weld in the new...old car hoods and the like are heavy enough metal and often has recesses and depression that will allow easier fabrication of replacement sections.

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most would use a mig welder hobart makes a good low cost welder. make sure when miging that your metal is sanded or ground to a shine finnish your weld will be much better and your mig should be an argon mig I think you will like it better than a non argon mig. go on you tube and watch some videos on patch panel repair and you will get an idear if you feel you are up to it.  A floor is a good place to start to learn because most of what you do will not be seen. Thats my two cents worth  others I am sure have some good input too.  Neil

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fast/easy and does older metal to new without burnout (wire punching through with the MIG) the weld is malleable and not oxygen brittled, allowing you to hammer dolly if needed with less fear or chance of cracking...for me it is also a very universal tool for shaping, cutting if needed, of course. weld, braze, sweat and solder if needed. you can heat stuck bolts and nuts for easy removal, blow a blind hole and the list goes on and on...PLUS, with the torch I have I can do aluminum, cast iron and whole lot more, the MIG is so limited in comparison. 

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I have torches and a mig if you dont know what you are doing you can burn thru with a mig or a torch. Most people choose a mig for sheet metal repair on cars a rookie is more less likely to warp the sheet metal with a mig. go to a body shop and watch what tool they use most .  I worked 24 years in body shops doing auto glass repair and watched the experts do lots of repairs over the years did I ever see a body man use a torch to weld sheet metal yes I did but very rarely  and you know the shop had torches but they chose the mig.. 

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If that is the only metal repair you need to make, forget welding it yourself. Go ahead and cut out the bad place, and fab your  repair panel, then take it to a welding shop. If you want to learn welding, take a class at a community college before you invest in any equipment. After completing the welding class you will know what you want. Now you are guessing. If you buy welding equipment of any kind now and attempt to fix that panel, you will probably end up with something you don’t want. Good welding takes knowledge and practice. Right now you have neither.

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No chance any donor trucks close? That’s #1 in my book, replace and when not possible repair...and if your worried about welding it, you can use Por 15 and dip fibreglass sheeting into it and  repair the spots that way, it’s worked for me a time or two and is very very strong and durable repair.  A cheap mig welder can be a bad learning tool and cause more pain then joy...if your not welding with a gas mig, you will burn up that old metal instantly 

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Number one, shops that repair new cars and work insurance claims MUST use the MIG ....but many repairs are no longer welded except for a spot type weld as full panel is replaced and often any cut and half panels are epoxied.   Keep in mind that many production shop NEVER work the older rusted bodies we are messing with.

 

as for the Cobra torch...it is very versatile and the one I spoke of for a number of specialty welds....however...my experience is the torch is clumsy and heavy and not user friendly for most spaces where your access is limited....the weight alone will place it aside for most work about the shop and you haul it out for those special applications.

 

side note added.........................I have said this many time in the past, correct size tip in oxy/acet. welding is everything....correct backing and placing of heat sinks is everything when welding.  proper cut patches with weld clamps allow for proper puddling...technique and lots of practice...it is the same with about any skill, it is learned..some get it quicker than others but all can learn it in time and with practice.  Get your fundamentals in place first.

 

on my profile under albums is the ADO16 project...you can see first hand the ease in which  the oxygen/acetylene setup can make repairs...

Edited by Plymouthy Adams
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6 minutes ago, Plymouthy Adams said:

as for the Cobra torch...it is very versatile and the one I spoke of for a number of specialty welds....however...my experience is the torch is clumsy and heavy and not user friendly for most spaces where your access is limited....the weight alone will place it aside for most work about the shop and you haul it out for those special applications.

Thats good info to think about. I have been wanting to get a mig, thinking a quality 220v may be out of price range for now.

And I have no tools at this point, need to start from scratch. I thought the cobra might be good versatile for basic body work, plus having the torch cutting and heating rusted bolts etc...

Then pick up a ac 220 buzz box, convert it to dc/tig and would get me by until can get the right welder.

Anyways thats a plan, not pulled the trigger yet and still kicking it around.

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1 minute ago, Los_Control said:

Thats good info to think about. I have been wanting to get a mig, thinking a quality 220v may be out of price range for now.

And I have no tools at this point, need to start from scratch. I thought the cobra might be good versatile for basic body work, plus having the torch cutting and heating rusted bolts etc...

Then pick up a ac 220 buzz box, convert it to dc/tig and would get me by until can get the right welder.

Anyways thats a plan, not pulled the trigger yet and still kicking it around.

will not talk you out of the Henrob 2000 by Cobra...and while a small amount of coin for jumping in, buy it as a package deal you can come out ok...buy it a piece here or a piece there the price really goes up.  Again I find the torch heavy and bulky for most body repairs where you standing on your head or working in a corner...the basic setup of tanks and hoses are the same for either torch...a good Victor Jr. torch would be all you need for basic work about the shop and are inexpensive.  The secret as I said many times is in the tips.   Most kits come with a #1 tip and that is WAAAAAAAAAY to large a tip for welding sheet metal.....an 0 is so so, the 00 is my most go to for sheet metal on cars....and the 000 you can weld tin cans and AC ducting with a beautiful bead...albeit when you go that small your weld wire should be the proper size.  ALSO use the tig steel rods for welding in 1/8; 3/32; 1/16 as needed as they are copper coated, flow easy, no splatter or sparking...when doing your tin cans, use the .030 copper coated mig wire.....remember it is the welding in absence of oxygen that you get the brittled metal....

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I purchased a 120v Lincoln Weld-Pak 100 I can barely see the puddles when I'm using even with the lightest filter in my mask. I end up pulling my stick welder out and clean the whole piece  with a Fibre-disc in a grinder. 

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The fact you are on a site like this one, means you have an interest in the art of creation. Metal fab, engine building, wiring/intruments, upholstrey, suspension geometry, paint, metal treatment, and even glass.......There are alot of trades in that there truck, finding one that really does it for you is gonna go a long way if you really go after it.

 

Metal Shaping

Engine Building

Automotive painting

Frame building/suspension

Automotive electronics and wiring

Transmissions and Running gear

Automotive Testing and Racing

 

To have a complete fabrication shop only means you have to love a few of the trades....the rest are friends of yours. To have everything needed to do a vehicle front to back in a home shop, one would have to invest a ton. I sometimes feel understanding someone's trade and respecting their investments and abilities is as important as respecting your own abilities.  When I see someone's super cool ride, I know its his, but I also know he made some friends along the way who helped build it.

 

Oh damn....I think I just ranted....sorry about that.

 

48D

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