I was thinking the same thing! :) Amazing tight and perfect cut with just these babies!
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...SL._SX522_.jpg
Printable View
I was thinking the same thing! :) Amazing tight and perfect cut with just these babies!
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...SL._SX522_.jpg
Well I thought we were done spraying yellow paint when the welding cart was complete, but I guess it's been long overdue. It's been quite a while that we've seen any bus repairs, but one got the side skirt panel mangled up enough that the county's transportation dept took it out of service. It was raining so I didn't get pictures of the bus today, so I'll have to get that in a few days.
Picked up some stainless #12 screws and Kyle media blasted the heads for adhesion for paint...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1609.jpg
SPI Epoxy primer mixed as sealer...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1606.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1607.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1608.jpg
Some BASF Urethane applied...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1612.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1613.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1614.jpg
The rub strip at the bottom of the skirt panel was pretty mangled as well, the new comes in a stock 10' length, so it will need to be cut to size and drilled prior to black paint. We also have a brace behind the skirt that was pushed back a ways, it will need to be pulled out and re-welded. More to come...
oops... double post
Got some pictures this evening of the damage...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1615.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1616.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1618.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1620.jpg
Now for the rub strip.. It was cut to size and holes drilled per the original. (had to straighten it a bit to transfer the holes) Here's the SPI epoxy:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1622.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1623.jpg
....and the black urethane..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1625.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1627.jpg
Should get all the parts put back together tomorrow, all ready for inspection..
Parts all re-assembled, ready for inspection..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1628.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1631.jpg
excellent repair.
Now that the bus parts are out of the way, tonight we worked on getting the front fenders ready for epoxy primer, just a few more items to cross off the list. An earlier repair to resolve some rust on the top of the fenders.........
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture366.jpg
.........when checking the gap to the hood recently we noticed it was slightly wide at these spots where the weld had pulled. Shown here with the straight edge....
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1632.jpg
Time to make a tool that will reach between the inner fender brace for a bit of bumping...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1634.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1635.jpg
The shortened hammer comes in handy again...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1636.jpg
A few good raps along the area brought it out nicely.
Next, we have some early model fender emblems to install on the front fenders, so we needed to fill the old holes...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1637.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1639.jpg
Three separate quick zaps were used (about a minute in between) to minimize the heat introduced into the panel for filling the slotted holes. Note minimal HAZ..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1641.jpg
Holes laid out and drilled for the new emblem...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1646.jpg
Other fender...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1647.jpg
Note minimal weld bead height using EZ Grind..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1650.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1651.jpg
Next, we had one more minor adjustment to do to the driver door lower corner. It was tweaked inward slightly and needed some adjustment. I recently noticed one of my hole punches was broken, and it looks like it will work for what we need, in conjunction with the vise grip dent puller...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1652.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1653.jpg
Kyle started media blasting the inside of the driver's fender.... A bit of a squeeze in a 58" wide blast cabinet..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1655.jpg
Rather tight to the door!
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1656.jpg
Until next time.....
I once blasted a 64 C10 grill in a three foot cabinet.
I just let it hang out the open door, and angled the beads into the cabinet.
The mess was minimal.
Nice work on the bus! Once again, great shaping tools to fix the patched area. I need to get some ez grind to try on sheet metal projects.
While I was doing the family thing today at an FLL robotics competition, Kyle worked some more on prepping the front fenders for priming..
One down......
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1657.jpg
One to go....
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1659.jpg
Another issue that plagues most of the trifive Chevrolets is cracking at the leaded joint at the top of the A pillar.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1660.jpg
A look at the other side shows a gap that is quite a stretch to expect a good permanent repair regardless of the filler used..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1661.jpg
At over 1/4" wide, something we will need to address...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1662.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1663.jpg
So we'll attempt a repair similar to the radius-ing that was done on the rear tailgate, using STEEL..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture345.jpg
Until next time....
While Kyle continued media blasting fenders, I worked on closed up a gaping hole....
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1673.jpg
A couple weak spots dictated a bigger hole. Here the radius was added from the A pillar to beneath the drip rail..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1675.jpg
Test fit
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1676.jpg
Welded in place.....
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1679.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1680.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1682.jpg
Used a torch and wire brush to clean off the other side, looks like this gap was a factory deal, and we have another radius to install..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1683.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1684.jpg
I guess the old saying "they don't build'em like they used to" doesn't hold water once again! It always makes me smile when you see what was let out the door from the factories and no-one would ever know what was hidden under the body work...
As always thanks for sharing your talents and the pics, it is helpful to learn by viewing!
Goes to show why most of these cars eventually showed cracks in that area..
More progress, although it doesn't appear like much, progress just the same...
Door skins had been left "loose" on the inner door to allow twisting/tweaking for fitment within the door opening. Drilled some 3/16 holes from flange into inner door and plug welded. I've had many people ask how well the epoxy primer holds up to the heat of plug welds, here is a good indicator. It shows discoloration at the surface, but note the nice green primer underneath where the grinding wheel went through the paint..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1688.jpg
Parts ready for epoxy primer..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1690.jpg
These are the stiffeners for inside the door skin that go behind the door handle. The inside of the door will be sprayed, as well as these parts, and allowed to flash. Then another application on both and they'll get bolted in place, letting the epoxy primer act as an adhesive to hold in place and seal to the door skin. Once door handles are bolted on they will be there for good..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1691.jpg
This car has belt line trim that goes around the perimeter at the bottom of the windows, which needed to be added to the new door skins. I had saved a piece from the old door skins to get the locations correct. Here's the layout of the slots for the stainless attaching hardware, we'll get that finished next time..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1689.jpg
Nice work as always.
Thanks!
Why is it when you're getting ready to mix primer you find other issues to fix?? More minor tweaks so that hopefully we can spray this afternoon...
A crack that looks to be from some previous body damage.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1692.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1694.jpg
A post dolly is used to provide an off dolly effect, and the body hammer is struck on the "high" spot.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1695.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1697.jpg
Used a copper backing since we're so close to the edge and the metal has been fatigued. Filled the crack and dressed the weld...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1698.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1699.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1700.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1702.jpg
Then I noticed a low spot on the fender's bodyline crease...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1703.jpg
Time to lose another Craftsman chisel to become a body tool...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1704.jpg
....the rod was heated and bent around, then finished welding.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1705.jpg
Placed the fender on the large shot bag and used the dead blow hammer to apply the persuasive force...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1707.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1708.jpg
Much better with a more consistent crown across the fender..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1709.jpg
Wow you continue to dazzle us with your repairs!
Yes, the desires for perfection in your work and your innovations on how to achieve it plus your willingness to share the process with all of us never ceases to amaze me! Not only does the front side of your repairs always look flawless but you make the back side look flawless, too!!! :eek: You raise the bar every time. Perhaps, if I spent many years under your tutelage, I could also master such perfection but in the meantime, you certainly help me raise the standard of what I find acceptable for my capabilities. So, thanks again, Robert!!:D:D
Thanks for the comments guys. I'd say most of you have these fancy tools in stock, you just didn't know it! :LOL:
We have primer! Sprayed the SPI epoxy tonight, later this week we'll spray the doors and outside of the fenders and hood. Then we can assemble the front end and block across the adjacent panels..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1710.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1711.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1713.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1714.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1715.jpg
One of our projects for tonight was to make a stand to hold the doors for painting. I have some heavy duty "tripods" on casters that have a 2" ID pipe on top with a setscrew, which works well for changing out various fixtures for painting, as shown below on the left....
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture066.jpg
My thoughts were to make a similar "tree" to hold the doors, using the hinge mounts. Here's the prototype design...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16.../doorstand.jpg
Here's our CAD layout this evening (cardboard aided design). As the flat bar is a bit cheaper than the pipe, we altered the pattern slightly...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1717.jpg
While Kyle was working on the parts for the door "tree", I turned my attention to one of the doors that still needed some finesse. One of the problem areas on the 55 wagon is that apparently GM did not have sufficient quantity of passenger doors specific to the wagon for the assembly line, so the quick fix was to install doors from the 2 door sedan. The downside was that the rear of the door tapers off where the sedans roof starts to drop off to the back window. With the belt line trim details aligned, note what appears to be a sagging rear edge with a widening gap to the upper door opening.... Most people don't notice this detail..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1718.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1719.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1720.jpg
For comparison, the driver's door aligns well to the trim lines...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1721.jpg
To fix the passenger door, we plan on a sectioning and a lift kit, adding a wider patch in the B post of the door to make up the difference.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1722.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1723.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1724.jpg
This may just work yet.. Hope so, there's a big gap there..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1726.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1727.jpg
New section fabbed and fitted...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1728.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1730.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1731.jpg
Bottom seam welded in place...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1733.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1734.jpg
Yeah, this will be much better...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1737.jpg
One seam down, one to go...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1738.jpg
....and Kyle tackled his first welding project this evening..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1735.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1736.jpg
until next time, Merry Christmas to all!
Merry Christmas to you and your family as well!
Wow, I never noticed that, but man, was that way off! That is a lot better, great work!!!!
Your painting fixtures are way cool too! Thanks for sharing them! I also literally laughed at your CAD meaning! Mine's about the same. I'll have to use this on my friend who works in a fab shop and uses all the cool stuff daily! I call him a cheater! :LOL:
Merry Christmas MP&C! Thanks for the gifts you share with us all year too!
Took a while to catch up here ,, this thread will definitely help with my 37 when the time comes .. Thanks for such detail in your repairs ..
.
Thanks for all the comments fellas!
Had some time this evening so worked a bit more on the wagon..
Finished up the door paint fixture.. will be adding some ballast to the base..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1739.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1740.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1751.jpg
Just to compare the driver's door and fitment / body line alignment to what we had to modify on the passenger side:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1741.jpg
Paint stick gap width at the top rear, all body lines straight across, about as close as you can get to what should be there.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1742.jpg
Also needed to finish the slotted holes for the trim under the door's window.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1743.jpg
We'll use a carbide ball nose in the Dremel...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1744.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1745.jpg
Straightedge spanned across two slots for a more precise scribed line..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1748.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1746.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1750.jpg
Those carbide cutters leave some BAD slivers around I always wear gloves when using them
My hands are usually a magnet for those slivers, surprisingly they left me alone this time. Must have filled up the inside of the door!
Today Kyle worked on another paint fixture for the wagon, one to hold the front fenders, while I started on adding the weatherstrip and drain holes in the bottom of the driver's door. I had made new bottoms and hadn't gotten around to these holes just yet. I did save the old bottoms to use as patterns.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1768.jpg
The old was merely laid over the new and traced to get the horizontal alignment of the drain holes and weatherstrip holes. Then a more accurate measurement located the vertical dimension of the drain holes...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1769.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1770.jpg
After drilling, a couple of twirls by hand of a 3/8 bit worked nicely to de-bur the holes, inside and out..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1771.jpg
The end of the old section was cut out and trimmed to be able to use it as a scribing template..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1772.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1773.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1774.jpg
Using our same Dremel set up from the top slots.....
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1745.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1776.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1777.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1778.jpg
Kyle is getting the hang of this welding stuff.....
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1779.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1781.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1795.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1796.jpg
While he started media blasting the core support, I finished up the passenger door's "un-chop"
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1784.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1785.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1787.jpg
Outside done, now for the inside piece...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1789.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1790.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1792.jpg
Fitted:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1793.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1794.jpg
And that will do it for today....
Working on the inner part of the door's un-chopping today..
Tacked...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1817.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1818.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1819.jpg
Then I got on a roll, here's the welded and finished product...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1823.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1824.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1825.jpg
Much better fit..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1820.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1822.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1821.jpg
Very nice!
Thanks! I also took delivery on the ballast material today for the door paint stand. Without this it didn't care for the one door added at a time, and wanted to do a nose dive. This should work well!
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16..._151939467.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16..._152516692.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16..._152555150.jpg
That would be a bad deal! Nice counter weight. Would cinder blocks work as well?
Great Job on that door ! Want some to fix some more, I just happen to have some 40 Ford doors that need that kind of TLC ! again great job !
Today Kyle worked on prepping the driver's door for epoxy primer...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1829.jpg
Meanwhile, with the passenger door unchopped, I turned my attention to the slots for mounting the stainless trim and drain holes.. The old door's "window sill" was aligned and clamped in place to mark the slots..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1827.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1826.jpg
Then the slots are marked onto the new skin, and that location transposed down to the proper location..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1828.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1830.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1843.jpg
This is what happens when you pull the carbide cutter out too far while joining the holes...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1844.jpg
Weatherstrip holes drilled, drain holes laid out...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1845.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1846.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1847.jpg
Kyle has the driver's door scuffed and ready to go, once the passenger door is finished we can spray some more epoxy..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1848.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1849.jpg
Sneak preview of the powder coating, here's one of the inner fenders...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1867.jpg
Kyle working on more media blasting, we should have another batch for powder coating this weekend....
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1866.jpg
With the passenger door removed and out of the way, I worked on the radius-ing and repairing of the lead gap seam. First to check the radius of the completed driver's side with the Gatormeet radius gauge...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1851.jpg
Radius patch is bent using roll former dies in the Diacro press brake and checked to the radius gauge...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1852.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1850.jpg
The patch is trimmed for the fit to the A-pillar, and a horizontal tail is left to have something to hold on to while tacking in place. A score is added using the cutoff wheel so the excess can be snapped off after tacking...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1857.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1853.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1854.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1855.jpg
Welded and dressed..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1858.jpg
Roof skin patch trimmed and fitted...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1859.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1860.jpg
Welded...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1862.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1864.jpg
Welds dressed and radius checked...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1865.jpg
The idea of scoring the patch to make somewhere to hold it in place is one of the cleverest/simplest ideas I've seen in a long time.
When I think of how many times I've fought and cursed when 'precise cut' patches fall or move while I tried to tack them...
Thank-you very much for that.
(Sheesh! Why didn't I think of it?)
Oh; excellent work by the way!
Very impressive.
You make it look easy. Great work.
Thanks guys!
More progress on the wagon today. Kyle had finished the media blasting on the hood brace, so we had a few areas to address. As the hood ornament no longer exists, we didn't need the mounting holes going through the brace.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1868.jpg
A piece of brass flat bar is radius-ed to make an anvil..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1869.jpg
High spot is heated and tapped down with the hammer.. Then pick the next high spot and repeat....
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1871.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1872.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1873.jpg
Slot is welded closed, welds dressed, area media blasted once again...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1875.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1876.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1878.jpg
Kyle working on prepping the passenger door for primer... Sorry for the blurry picture, gonna have to fire the photographer!
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1874.jpg
The hood ornament hole in the cross brace was also welded closed and dressed...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1880.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1881.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1882.jpg
Next on the list were the stress cracks on the ends of the hood brace.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1883.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1884.jpg
Some 16 gauge CRS was used to make some stiffeners inside the corners...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1885.jpg
test fit..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1887.jpg
Plug welded in place and the flanges wrapped around... cracks repaired...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1888.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1889.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1890.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1892.jpg
Test fit to the hood...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1895.jpg
As always... NICE!
What he said.