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Topic: Patching those huge rust holes... (Read 4363 times) previous topic - next topic

Patching those huge rust holes...

What would you body experts suggest to patch large rust holes?  Fresh fiberglass with sheet metal rivited on top, Or Rivited sheet metal with fiberglass on top to seal?

Or any other techniques?  Mind you I can't do any techniques involving welding :( ....

Re: Patching those huge rust holes...

Reply #1 –
With that much cancer i'd say get a new rear quater panel and find someone who knows how to weld put it on. That's a lot to have repair with fiberglass, especially since there's more rust than you can see there.
Temporarily Foxless? Ride the Bull...

Re: Patching those huge rust holes...

Reply #2 –
My quarter panel look exactly like yours....  Dont waste you time patching it....
IMHO, If you plan to keep the car and want to corectly take care of it, you better do what Nirvanagod said....

If you dont, dont waste your time and money and drive it until it dies.....

Re: Patching those huge rust holes...

Reply #3 –
i did have an idea till i saw the rust over the wheel well. ,, you could patch work it but snip away up to the best metal and weld up with coathangers.  use baking soda/water mix as flux to dip the rod. when you cut away the metal,,tap the outter edges of your new hole inwards a tinny tiny bit so you can lay the new metal in place. this will require less bondo to cover the seem.

it can be done and in this case,, either is looking hard and patchwork seems the quickest and best way out.

Re: Patching those huge rust holes...

Reply #4 –
Well it's a drive till it dies case (but with this many holes I don't think it'll pass inspection).  And want to get it on the road cheap as possible.

I've already tin snipped all the weak rusted areas out before winter came.

I'll probably just patch it with the sheet metal now, and lay a strip of fiberglass around the edges.  Level most of it with bondo, and coat the bottom half of the cat flat black.

Probably gonna experement w/ fender flares for the rear, since parts of it are rusted out.

Again I don't know howto weld, or know anybody that does.

Re: Patching those huge rust holes...

Reply #5 –
wouldn't that POR15 stuff stop the rust from spreading, and any new rust from forming? at least that might prevent any more damage until you figure somethin out

Re: Patching those huge rust holes...

Reply #6 –
If your just looking for something quick and dirty, patch it from the inside with sheet metal pop riveted in, skim coat it with bondo to smooth it out, then a heavy coating of paintable rubber undercoating, then paint. That'll keep it good and hidden for a few years, i've done this many times but would never do it to a vehicle I liked.
1980 birds X 3, 1982 bird, 1984 XR7, 1988 TC

Re: Patching those huge rust holes...

Reply #7 –
Quote from: zpyro
wouldn't that POR15 stuff stop the rust from spreading, and any new rust from forming? at least that might prevent any more damage until you figure somethin out

Eastwood's Rust Encapsulator works better....
Long live the 4-eyes!  - '83 Tbird Turbo - '85 Marquis LTS - '86 LTD Wagon

Re: Patching those huge rust holes...

Reply #8 –
oh, and by the way

a friend of mine up in minerva ohio does off roading.  his jeep was full of holes and he discovered a quick fix for this stuff and you cant even tell it.

he used spary styro foam up in the hole (he went through two whole cans.!!!

it dried and the styro foam excreted out like some fungus :giggle:  Anyway, he shaved off the excess and formed the shape he needed with a file,razor blade,knive ect.  then he added his bondo and prep'd it up and painted. 

looks good actually, you cant tell where the bad spots are at all.


id say in your case you might wanna spray it from the inside but be warned now if you havent used this stuff
it expands as it dries but i dont know the ratio,, all i know is that i went through several cans working in between my logs on my house under the sinks and cabinets and it really does swell.  Id guess its like 20:1 ,,just guessing.  A dab of it the size of a quarter would swell up to be a tennis ball size when dry.

***DO NOT TOUCH WHITH YOUR BARE HANDS when wet***

this stuff sticks to anything and is very very hard to come off.

if you do it this way,, heck, youll be done and piss can primed in less than an afternoons time.

Re: Patching those huge rust holes...

Reply #9 –
Another way to use the Expand Foam would be to tape over the holes on the outside and then spray it in there. I 've done this to seal many things the tape holds the shape of the panel and the foam conforms to it. This way there is less work to make it look right. Not saying that this is a permanet fix but a quick and eazy one.
84 Turbo coupe 2.3T Modded with 88 upper and lower intake, 88 injectors, E6 manifold, T3-4 AR.60 turbo, 31X12X3 FMIC, Homemade MBC , Greddy knock off BPV.
4 eyes see better than 2! 
Da Bird!

FreeBird

Re: Patching those huge rust holes...

Reply #10 –
as a body man I cringe, shame on you people!!! LOL, welding is not hard, buy a cheap welder from harbor freight and some sheet metal from an old junker and go to town, teach yourself!  You can find info on the internet or the library, it is not really that hard and it works SO much better.  But by the way, buy a wire feed welder, they dont burn through as bad on sheet metal.  :-)  Good luck.

Re: Patching those huge rust holes...

Reply #11 –
I would put some kind of a shell on the inside of that styrofoam though. I have done a lot of body work in the past, and when it isn't applicable to weld, we would lay down a sheet of fiberglass on the inside of the hole, to provide structure. Use the styro to quickly fill in the low spots and give you something easy to shape. Skim over w/bondo and then a glaze. Prime, and paint, and u should be ok for a little. warning, though, paint can paint scuffs off really easy. it'll look good for a little while though (~ a year)


-George

Re: Patching those huge rust holes...

Reply #12 –
Ensanity, I have recently started with MIG (I had only used ARC in the past.)  Anyhow, i started working with it the other day, and it confuses the hell out of me. What would you suggest for the following? My beads are very sporratic and I get a lot of little spots. None of my welds as of yet have held either. I don't think its my arc or my bead itself, but its possible. I was thinking more along the lines of I don't have my power settings right. Any ideas?

Re: Patching those huge rust holes...

Reply #13 –
Sounds kinda like your wire speed is too slow, got pics? Read HERE for some tips. Good luck, welding is fun :D
1980 birds X 3, 1982 bird, 1984 XR7, 1988 TC

Re: Patching those huge rust holes...

Reply #14 –
I filled the holes in my engine bay on my stang with a wire feed welder (dunno if it's tig or mig, i have no clue wtf those mean :p) and i just messed with the wire speed and power settings til i got it close enough to not burn through the metal