Bodywork

[RickL]

PATCH

here is the patch.

[tonkadoctor]

Patch is looking Great

Excellent job Rick, I couldn't have done a better job than that myself.

Take your time tack welding it and remember that it doesn't have to be welded solid as it will be "glassed" over when you grind down the tacks flush (just a little touch up dont grind too much), a 1/4" tack every inch is fine and work it from different areas to prevent heat buildup.

Cars coming off of the assembly line are only Tack welded together, very little is welded solid

If you want it welded solid take it to somebody with a TIG welder or keep adding little tacks here and there intil it is solid.

[RickL]

thanks

Thanks for the complement. Concerned about the gap at that lower right corner though.

Probably won't get a chance to weld it until next weekend.

Stay tuned.

Rick

[Alex]

RickL

Okay, you are giving me confidence now...
That is really looking good. I am hoping to start cutting out the rusted areas on my dripline this week. I have already bent some metal to the curvature of the ambulance roof... Thanks to the instructions earlier in this post. I used a piece of 6" schedule 40 PVC. It worked great. Just the right amount of curve, without bending the top and bottom all the way down to meet the PVC.

Thanks for posting the pics Rick.

[tonkadoctor]

Alex You Can Do IT

Alex, I get an email everytime someone makes a post here so any questions that you may have, I will try to answer or tell you the truth if I don't know, and that goes for anyone that may have questions for me.

Rick, that gap looks to be about 1/16" which is actually pretty small so you should be OK, just use 1 second zaps with your MIG and you should be fine. You really did your homework when you made that patch and it's top notch work as far as the fit is concerned and it shows how much trouble you went to to get it right.

[Alex]

Thanks Tonka... I appreciate it.

What setting would you use for tacking with a mig? Lower would be better I suppose? Or would it be better to hit it with a higher setting for a quicker tack? Can you do it with .30 wire or should I step down. I have some smaller wire at the shop but I cannot remember the exact size right now.

Thanks again... This thread is a real help

Alex

[RickL]

practice

Tonka,

Since I was taking pics and sharing with the group I figured it had better look good :-)

Plus second time around doing this.

What do you think of a flap sander on a 4 1/2" grinder. Too much heat buildup grinding the welds?

Rick

[tonkadoctor]

Smallest wire low amps

Alex,

Use the smallest wire you can find, I think the next one down is .23 or something like that, it will allow you to make a weld at a lower amperage setting.

Aviod FLUX core wire welding and use solid core wire with Gas. Flux core wire is for welding thicker plate metal.

Use as low of an amperage setting as you can and still make a weld. I can't tell you what setting to use as it will vary with different machines and I haven't welded in a few years.

If you try high heat to weld sheetmetal fast it is a recipe for alot of blown holes in your work!!!

Use the old pieces of sheetmetal that you cut out to practice on (butt welds, overlapped, T"s, Fillets, etc...) to set your amperage and gas flow and once your comfortable then make your welds on the truck.

[tonkadoctor]

Things Get Better w/ Practice

I would go with a grinding wheel on the tacks as it would only take a couple of seconds to dress up each Tack, you only need to knock off the high tips of the welds to flush them up and I don't think it will build as much heat as holding a flapper wheel on them for a minute a piece. besides the tacks will probably shred the sandpaper pretty quickly.

That's all for today, gotta get up pretty early tomorrow morning. Ask away I'll play catch up tomorrow evening.

[RickL]

progress

Broke out the welder and started tacking the metal today.

Here are some pictures

[Bruce]

Real Nice Job

Rick, You might need to think about a career change, looking sharp!

[tonkadoctor]

Looks Great Rick

Perfect. Now finish up that front edge as it will be the highest stressed point on the truck. Then relax and have a beverage of choice and give yourself an ataboy.

Almost time to grind the welds & mud them up.

When applying the body filler do it in thin smooth layers and once it starts to harden stop working it and let it harden.

It's alot easier and also faster to scuff up low smooth spots and apply another thin layer than it is to sand down thick, lumpy, rough bondo that was over worked while it was half hardened because you are trying to do it in one pass.

Use a long board sander to smooth out the body filler (hand or pnuematic) with a maximum of 80 grit paper to rough it in.

Stay in touch and I'll teach you some body & paint tricks so no one will be able to tell it was patched. (you know the low spot lines in filled patches that you can't see until after your done painting it and it sticks out like a sore thumb, well this is a critical area that is highly visible and it will really show an imperfection)

It's an easy trick that will only cost you a little time and makes a big difference in the finished product. Let me know when you are ready for primer and we'll start that lesson.

[RickL]

bodywork

Thanks, for the compliments. Main thing was taking my time and when I started to rush I put down the welding gun and called it a day. Been there done that.

I have not welded the front because the front left corner sits a little low. I will need to work on that probably tommorrow.

Along similar lines, I built my first hammerform and made a patch for the front fender in the usual rust out area. Not that hard to do and only cost $26 for the spot weld drill.

Rick

[Alex]

Rick that patch really does look great.
After seeing the job you are doing I am a bit reluctant to post pics of the work I did this week but it is functional for what I am doing, so I will bury my head and go ahead and post them.

I am patching holes along the dripline of the ambulance box. I chose to patch from behind only in areas of extreme rust damage. There are other areas that have pinholes rusted through but I don't feel competent enough to attempt to patch in a 5 foot length of 4 inch metal. I am planning on filling my patches with fiberglass enriched filler then topping with regular filler.

I have put together a page on my website showing the work I did this week... Go here to see the images.

Drip Line Rust Repair

As always your criticism is encouraged. I want this to come out right.

Thanks Greg

[RickL]

Thanks

Greg,

Refer back to the first series of pics when this started. I only took my time for this attempt and had great help.

This thread encompases all that is possible with the internet. Good teachers\helpers for those of us willing to listen and learn.

Virtual shop teacher looking over your shoulder.

Rick