ST162-7254182 "Dirty Deeds" Edited

Re: ST162-7254182

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Re: ST162-7254182

WARNING
CONTAINS
GRAPHIC
&
SHOCKING
IMAGES

First thing to do is to make a pattern so when I cut out the fender I have an idea of
the shape to make the new one.


I measured key points from the edge of the paper to the back pillar for the drivers door


I made a pattern for the rear quarter panel by taping a piece of paper on the fender and
then running my dirty dirty dirty fingers along the edges. I also marked with pen any bends
or curve ends.


Made the pattern more permenant with a pen


Also made profiles of the back half of the rear fender


And the front half of the rear fender and I also end up with 1 piece that is a profile of both


Then I made cuts in the rocker panel


I put pieces of cardboard in the rocker panel cuts so I could get profiles at various locations
along the rocker panel


Then I started to cut out various rusty bits, this is a rough cut of the rear quarter panel


This is just a preliminary cut to see whats inside and the best way to repair it. Bad news is
the total length of the cut I was going through both bondo & metal. Theirs a good 1/16 to
1/8 inch of bondo all over the fender. I make straight cuts because its easiest for me to make
straight cuts in new metal. Its quite the hack job but I told you it was going to get ugly.


Now that I got the fender and rear quarter cut out I'll start with the rocker repairs while I
think about the best way to repair the rear fender and strut tower and quarter panel. The
main condition for repairs is to get back to good solid metal everywhere and make sure
that the interior space is totally sealed.


I use 14 gauge sheet metal when I repair rocker panels so although I have a 36" sheet
metal bender at 14 guage a piece about 12" long is the max I can bend.


A new piece made to fit. I extended the bottom lip to 1". The original lip was 1/2". So
this should have the visual effect of lowering the body 1/2".


From there I worked backwards to the front of the rear fender making 2 more pieces.
Now I can weld in these 2 last pieces. Remove the first piece I bent and cut out another
12" section working towards the front fender. When I have that piece cut out I'll weld in
the first piece I cut and make a new piece for the new 12" cut out........ until I get to
the front of the rocker panel, then I'll sandblast inside and then work my way back with
the exterior pieces. I.m not planning on putting those rocker panel covers back on that
came with the GTS so I'll curve these panels as best as I can with the metal bender.


Thats where I stopped for tonight. I also removed all of the old unused gas and brake
lines that some previous owner had replaced but had also left the old crap.


And I took off the rear bumper cause I knew it had issues when I pulled this pile of crap
out of it.


The GOOD


The BAD


The UGLY ....thats the foam pad thats behind the metal bumper. The top half
of the metal bumper has totally rusted away in the center......
Thats just nasty

 

Re: ST162-7254182

I got most of the inside of the rocker panel done yesterday. Ran out of gas
for the mig welder so I wasted a couple of hours getting it refilled.


Thats as far as I'm going to cut the rocker, the rest is still in good shape. So
a couple more pieces and I'll probably do the drivers side floor next. Before I
do the outside covers for the rocker panel I want to sandblast everything first

 

Re: ST162-7254182

I have decided to paint the car black so instead of doing auxiliary pieces in red I'm going
to do them in an aluminum paint. So no work on the rockers today just a pile of painting

 

Re: ST162-7254182

Yes it would be easier but I'm useing 14 guage steel for frame and floor repairs and its 0.0747" thick.
It would be comparable to the thickness of a Canadian or American dime. Very hard to bend. So about
a 12" length is the maximum I can bend with my sheet metal bender. I think most cars today are useing
20-22 guage sheet metal for body panels and 22 guage is 0.0299 that can be bent a lot easier so for the
outer side of the new rocker panel I may make it in bigger sections but I'm still limited to 36" thats the
biggest piece my sheet metal bender can fit.

I could drag my oxy/acetalyne setup down to the sheet metal bender to heat the 14 guage up along the seam
I want to bend and then I could do it in larger pieces but I normally get smaller pieces of metal from Renfrew
Steel they let me go through their pile of cut up pieces left over from bigger projects so I normally grab pieces
1' to 2' long & 1' to 2' wide. It makes it easier for me to store and handle the steel.

 

Re: ST162-7254182

Well I decided to start on the fender today so I put the pattern back over the
fender so I could trace the cut mark. Then I divided the pattern into smaller
bits and used printer paper to make individual patterns and transfered them to
strips of metal I had cut. I cut strips of metal instead of marking everything out
on a bigger piece of steel cause it makes it easier for me to cut the parts out.


Body filler all over this panel. Pretty much right from the back of the door all the way
to the rear bumper. In some cases the filler is 1/4" thick. Unfortuneatly not the way to
do bodywork but thats what I'm stuck with.


I cut the curved bits out first with a jig saw and then I can do the straight cuts
on my metal shear.


I was considering going wide body and flaring the rear fenders out an inch or two but
I would have had to modify this part of the rear strut tower and its about all thats left
of the strut tower that is actually in good shape.


In order to repair the inner fender I decided to shape & fit the outer fender pieces first
so I started with what I thought was the hardest piece.






Even this piece of metal did not require very much bending.


Now that I have the outer fender shaped I can make the inner fender. First I mark the
cut on the inside on a piece of cardboard and cut that shape out.


Then I put the outer piece back in place and trace out the outer edge and cut out
the pattern


Transfered to metal and cut out and bent up


Clamped to the outer piece ready to be spot welded in place


From the inside. I don't mind if theirs a small gap, with the mig welder you can easilly fill
small holes or gaps between panels.

 

Re: ST162-7254182

Just what I didn't want and the main reason I was waiting to sand blast the vehicle outside
was to avoid a pile of dust but I had to get rid of enough body filler to give me a weldable
seam.


The front of the fender cleaned up all the way to the back of the door




Back to the replacement metal. Heres a view of the inner and outer fender pieces as they fit
together


The first inner fender piece has been tack welded in place.


Since the first inner fender piece has been tack welded in place I can now clamp the outer
piece to it.


A second inner fender piece has been cut and tack welded in place. I could now weld the outer
piece in place but I'm going to do the whole inner fender first and probably sandblast
everything before I weld the outer pieces on.


Heres a good example of how well a mig welder can fill gaps. I put a spot weld in to hold the 2
pieces in place and had to fill a gap of about 1/8"