Replacing floorboards/body work
 

Ok guys,
I have been very lucky recently to meet someone with knowledge of body work, and will help me out for free. Anyways, he told me the list of things we need are:

Unispoter
Sanding block
Grinder
D/A - "Dual Action" (a cutting tool to cut the metal panels off)
Sand paper
Bondo
Primer
Paint

My questions:
1.) Isn't Bondo frowned upon on this site?
2.) Is a there anything special about a unispoter because I have a welder that works on acetylene, will that be fine?
3.) I'm having troubling finding information about this "D/A" tool?

I need to get these tools before we start work. The kid never did Porsches, but he went to school for body work and says he can help me out. It's free because he wants to take many pictures to show people his experience when he opens a business in a few years.

I'm going to replace inner/outer rocker panels, jack stand and tube, rocker support, pull 2 dents out, and his friend will clean the wiring up in the engine bay.

If there are any sites I can send him with pictures to help him see what we are looking at that would be good too, so feel free to post links.

Car is a 1969 911T

I don't have a firm opinion on bondo, but think about the classified ad down the road if you ever see it:

"Porsche 1969 911T....some bondo...."

For some that's a red flag.

Good luck with the project and thanks for saving an early 911!

I attended an open house today at Willhoit 356 Restoration in Long Beach. I viewed 3 cars that were currently bare metal and I got into a lengthy discussion with the in house painter. We were looking at lots of lead in the cars, some factory and some repair. All plastic had been removed.

However, the painter uses plastic filler in very small quantities and in very thin layers to finish the cars. The ones already painted and being assembled looked nothing short of fabulous. Willhoit's reputation and the number of show winners they have turned out are credentials enough.

So, the conclusion from one restorer is to leave any lead in good shape, prime with polyesther primer and finish the blocking of the car with polyesther filler. Anything more than a 32nd of an inch was worked out in the metal. BTW, they are not afraid to weld in new panels. About a fourth to a third of the cars ready for paint was new metal. And no acid dipping allowed. Just thought I'd throw those tidbits in.

There did not appear to be any loss in the value of these cars due to thye methods used. Quite a few 356 notables were present, they all can't be wrong.

Me thinks the issue with Bondo is not that it is a bad product but, for some, the easy way out is to pile it on instead of working the metal. Since many of us have had bad experiences with "bondo" cars, we try to aviod it.

But as Milt notes, all cars have filler (Bondo, lead) to get the curves right.

Anyone who tells you that a car has no filler is lying.

To touch on the tool question. You can get a dual action (DA) sander, which usually means that it is orbital, spinning and rotating. You can use a die grinder with a cut off wheel, or a cut-off tool, which is usually just a bigger die grinder with a guard on it. For cutting out panel sections, an air reciprocating saw is nice too.

I have not heard of a unispotter, that may be a brand name for a spot welder. Most spot welders are really cheap, that hook to an arc welder, or really expensive. You should check out www.eastwood.com. They carry all types. If you buy new rockers, jack points etc. it would be hard for someone with training to mess it up.

Paul

There was a Rolls Royce in the old storage shop with literally over an inch of bondo on the B-pillar to rear-quarter connection. Nasty stuff, but on the surface it was smooth.

The problem is when bondo dries and gets cold, it contracts at a different rate than the thin high quality steel Porsche uses, and cracks the paint adhered to both of them.

I think the old hot-rod used brazed lead melted into the seams to even them out but there are probably several options to build up slight imperfection in two surfaces to make the surfaces as one.

Paint shops in constantly hot and dry climates are probably going to give a better result due to better operator-error margin in the rust department while different coats of whatever are drying.