Another piece of tin ready to weld in...

[DarrylD]

Things are really progressing well with my left longitudinal repair! I've got the new rear floorpan test fit and the patch panels trimmed-down and all ready to weld in:




And the rotten heater tube has been replaced with some "sculpted" flexible exhaust tubing



I might just get this this car off to the painter by June yet!

[randywebb]

You know, working on a real car is really going to cut into your animation time...

[al lkosmal]

That is looking good Darryl.

[724doorE]

Thats looking good!

Did you buy the spendy longitudinal panel or hammer out your own. IF hammered, it ollks sweet!

[ianc]

Looks sweet Darryl! Almost too good to paint,

ianc

[syncroid]

Man! That is some serious craftsmanship! Hats off to ya! Nice!

[Dan in Pasadena]

Daryl, Yes terrific as usual. What is happening there in that last inch where the patch meets the original metal? I assume that is where you ground the undercoating off the parent metal...but it almost looks like something else. I want to know if you cut that out of your donor too. Not that it would lessen my admiration for what you've done in the slightest.

[Bobboloo]

Fantastic work Darryl. I can't wait for the next set of pics.

[DarrylD]

I've gotta say, I am thrilled with how this rust repair is going and how solid the car will be when I get done. Showing you guys who appreciate the effort required is all part of the fun, I always appreciate the positive feedback.

Hey Dennis! I didn't make this replacement panel, if I was that talented you would be looking at pictures of my '58 Speedster restoration! The rear longitudinal replacement piece is spendy but with my "preferred customer" discount at Stoddards, it came to about $250 per side. I would say about 60% of the replacement panel was wasted (thank goodness) since my car is so solid above the "water pooling" zone.



Hey Dan! What you're looking at is original steel mating with patch only. I'll be needing to remove more of the undercoating away to blend in the repair work. First pass was minimal with with a plumber's propane torch and box-cutting knife, then shined-up with a steel brush on my drill. The reason the width of exposed original steel is different in front of and behind the torsion bar tube hole is because for the front seam I made a spot-weld flange and the rear seam is a butt-weld. The butt-weld will be hidden behind the spring plate so it wasn't necessary to "hide" the seam like the forward weld. I think the result will be a patch that cannot be detected without media blasting to find it.

Here's my project blog if you would like more information: http://members.aol.com/darryld/912.htm

[Dan in Pasadena]

Daryl, Thanks for the info. Very thoughtful work. I must not be getting something... Do you have a closeup of the flange to be spot welded? Will this approach, when done be as strong as the butt welded opposite end? Is it welded out further after the spots welds or...? Or maybe it doesn't need to be...sorry for my ignorance of our basic Porsche tub.

P.S. What kind of a welding setup are you using?

[DarrylD]

Hey Dan!

I call it a "spotweld flange" but it is just an overlapping of the sheetmetal using a pneumatic flange making tool like this:



The result is a nice gap within which to perform a weld:



The weld is stronger than a buttweld that has been ground flush with the surrounding surface because of the double thickness of material behind it. You end up with an invisible weld on the side that shows.

Clear?

[DarrylD]

BTW: I have a Miller 175 MIG welder, 220-volts is the ticket.

[DarrylD]

Here's the panel welded in, welds dressed and a light coat of 3M weld-thru primer!



I left the weld bead untouched where the wheelhouse support pressing will be welded on, just behind the lockpost.

I'm pretty happy with how this turned out!

[DW SD]

Originally posted by DarrylD
Hey Dan!

I call it a "spotweld flange" but it is just an overlapping of the sheetmetal using a pneumatic flange making tool like this:



The result is a nice gap within which to perform a weld:



The weld is stronger than a buttweld that has been ground flush with the surrounding surface because of the double thickness of material behind it. You end up with an invisible weld on the side that shows.

Clear?

Darryl,
Cool tool! Can you show it in action? I'm not picturing how it works. Maybe before and after shot or one in progress? I have the same welder! Good choice!

Doug

[Jeff Alton]

I have the same welder as well. My work doesn't look quite like your's so I guess it is not my equipment!

Cheers

[DarrylD]

Hey Doug!

Here's a close-up photo of the flange on a inner rocker patch panel I made to go under the A-pillar pressing.



The pneumatic flange maker simply makes that bend you see.

[DW SD]

Darryl,
Thanks for the on demand - pictures!

Cool! Once welded in, how do you keep the lapped section from rusting? Do you use weld-through before hand? OR some of the rust encapsulator to "wick" into the joint?

Doug

[DarrylD]

Hey Doug!

If I can reach the back side of the seam, I use a 3M™ Ultrapro™ Autobody Sealant (08300) that comes in a tube for use in a caulk gun. If I can't get to the back side, I spray Wurth protective wax into the cavity.

[Classic]

WOW,

I mean wow, Darryl that is some amazing workmanship.

[Dan in Pasadena]

Originally posted by DarrylD
Here's the panel welded in, welds dressed and a light coat of 3M weld-thru primer!

No extra charge for the slice of American cheese on top?! Kidding of course. Excellent job as usual Daryl.

That pneumatic flange tool - how wide a flange does it make with each press and I am wondering if it comes with optional jaws to give you wider or more narrow flanged areas? Looks like a killer-good tool. Thanks for sharing. By the way, how do you flange if you need to do a curved area? Successive passes with narrow jaws or do you just butt weld in those areas? Seems like it might be easier than to use this tool. Take care Daryl, Dan