Thread: body work, patch panels questions

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so as far as i can find certain parts for my corvair only come in fiberglass wheel lips and a valance panel. question for you body work guys as this is my 1st crack at true body work besides floors and non body angle patch panels, is how do you make this work using glass wheel lips to the steel body without making it look totally terrible. not going to be a barret jackson show piece it will be a driver but also would like to look half decent

Do a search on Yahoo. I found several places that "say" they have Corvair patch panels Fenders and fenderwells. floor pans and others. Good luck.

Scooter, Does anyone around there have any parts cars? I like to cut wheel openings out of junk fenders to use as patch panels. Hank

To answer your initial question................there is a bonding agent(hi strength glue) that Eastwood sells that can attach glass to metal.

corvairs are hard to come by up here, ok thanks for the info on the eastwood product. i would almost rather try to use the glass lips as they wouldnt rust. some places claim to have patch panels but i always end up finding the wrong ones for my application.

'glass and steel don't expand and contract at the same rate......'glass on steel has never been an ideal combination, eventually it's going to crack......

Here's a thread on making wheel well lips for a gasser build. Start at page 5, go through to page 8 where they get welded in...

Projects Austin Speed Shop - RoadFarmer 1955 Chevy Gasser Build - Page 5 - THE H.A.M.B.

This thread shows making wheel opening repairs with a bead roller...

36 Ford front fender surgery - Metal Meet Forums

hmmmm the rears are the worst. the front i suppose i could use a die like that 55 chevy guy did, i would like to do good enough that when the time comes to sell it its not a mjaor strike against it. but i will be keeping this one around for awhile. dave i was afraid of that seem some things like that before but thought it was just bad work. you know dave we could slap a straight axle under this un with a blown sbc? haha. back to the topic at hand, thanks for info so far guys

Even if you can't find a Corvair specific patch panel, find something that has about the same arch, opening width, and offset, go with it. If you want a unique look, take a look at a pair of '68-'69 Maro patch panels...... Nice radius, nice opening size, and a nice flare to it if you want to go a bit wider on rear tread. Heck, just get the wheel openings that trip your trigger, whittle away everything that doesn't fit, add a dash of ping & ding, weld in place!!!!!!

Have you checked with this guy? Clark's Corvair Parts - Clark's Corvair - Search Looks like he might have both fiberglas & steel stuff. Not sure what year you're looking for.....

Here's a whole bunch of patch panels! 5 corvair's all 4 $ 1000

to bad those are all the wrong body style lol. yeah i dont know dave i like the stock stuff

yes have the clarks catalogs must of missed that page swear there was only glass left as its stuff that takes a group to get parts made up a "run of parts" if you will.

Originally Posted by gassersrule_196

to bad those are all the wrong body style lol. yeah i dont know dave i like the stock stuff

STOCK??????? Man, restoring is boring! Back to doing a bit on the '57 now and again...... Still can't make up my mind on chassis and suspension stuff.... Think I'll just get the Cutlass done, work on the 'Maro, and think on the '57 stuff some more...

That Corvair really needs one of the Subaru pancake engines....Friend of mine put one in his Vanagon, runs like a top and pulls fairly strong, too!

stock as in the wheel lips nope motor staying put. i didnt get this one to mod around with. to much work to do anything other than stock on these cars haha.