Was able to get the rocker fully installed today. As you can see, I lap welded it to the remaining portion of the original rocker. I'm aware that this isn't the right way to do it, but after considering the options, I decided that this route will work just fine for me. To keep from distorting the panel I spread my tacks about every 4" or so, work from one end of the panel to the other and go back and do it again beside the previous tacks. Once I had about an inch or less of tacks stacked up, I pulled out the die grinder and knocked the welds about 90% of the way down: not trying to dress the welds at this point, just makes it easier to control the heat build up later on. Less heat means fewer warped spots in the finished product.

IMG_20180304_153431285 by Ryan Mazingo, on Flickr

With the top fully welded in place and all the tacks knocked down most of the way I started dressing the welds. Not quite perfect here, but it's much better than when I started. When dressing welds, resist the urge to tip the grinder at an angle, and constantly move across the length of the weld. Keeping the grinder flat against the surface ensures you're only removing the high spots and not digging scars into the panel that will require filler later on.

IMG_20180304_170213386 by Ryan Mazingo, on Flickr

I also filled all the Cleco holes and ground them smooth. I also resisted the urge to make the front piece that's missing. I'll be much happier with the results if I bend the flange on the same break as I used to make the main panel, otherwise the radius of the bends might not match exactly. Simple realizations, like this, can save your work from looking like you don't know what you're doing, even if you really don't know what you're doing.

IMG_20180304_170150805 by Ryan Mazingo, on Flickr