How much is too much? I have a new prodject that needs alot of tlc were it was chopped and it looks like it will need more filler than any car I have built so far (some places 1/4 to 1/2'')
It sounds like they must have gotten some warpage during the weld up. This can be corrected but I hope you have access to cutting & welding equipment. You may be able to shrink & strech some of it with body tools but 1/4 inch may have to cut something loose to straiten it out then reweld it.
If applied cleanly and correctly. You can pile that stuff to the moon. I restored a bunch of junk that needed tons of mud. I use to get people all the time telling me that, you'll hit a bump and it'll explode, yadda, yadda, yadda. BS! I had a rep that use to come by from Dynatron (Manufacturers of body filler) He'd show me 8' statues made out of the stuff that has been outside for years. It can fail at a 16th of an inch or 2"s. Anyone having any doubts about how strong it is. Make up enough to fill up an empty paper towel roll. Pour it in nice to avoid as many air pockets as possible. Give it a day and whack it against the edge of the bench as hard as you can. Then question how strong it is. It's all in the prep work. Don
I had some 1/4 panel damage that I did not paying attention on my 1968 Firebird. I took it to a bodyshop and they said they straigtened it really good. This was back in 1980. I racked up another 300,000 in 25 years and the repair still looked flawless but rust was eating up other areas of the quarter panel. I finally replaced the quarter with a new one in 2004 and much to my surprise, the old panel had body filler 3/4" thick!!!!!!!! This was 24 year old technology that lasted 24 years on a daily driver that faced the elements every day. Not that I recommend it this thick but it showed me that it can be done and last.
Doing the metal work is the best. If thats not gonna happen, and you need to use a lot of bondo, use it. I make molds for vaccuum forming and some are as big as a suitcase requiring several gallons of the stuff. No problem. Prep the metal correctly. No dust between layers. Put it on in layers, or it will crack when it cures. If you want to, you can use the fiber reinforced filler. It has strands of fiberglass in it and it holds itself together very well. Use the best sutff you can find, dont skimp on the money. Dont use too much hardener, if it cures too fast its not as strong. You can also use epoxy with fillers you add into it to make it thick and flexible. Get it at a boat supply. This stuff is as strong as anything. You wont believe how well it sticks. Put one drop under a clamp foot and you will be taking it off with a hammer. Good luck.
pretty much agree with above. If you do it right it can be pretty thick and last. Sometimes you just don't have a choice because a panel needs replacement and you don't want to or cant afford to replace it, just mud it. Its mostly in what you put it over, any rust at all will just keep going. The best way is to treat the rust with rust-mort or something along those lines, metal etch it and epoxy prime the whole panel wet on wet with a few good coats, wait a day or two and just rough it up with 80 without going through the epoxy or as little as possible, and put the bondo over that. Its just plastic and has no corrosion protection so if you have questionable metal its good to get something that chemically stops the rust first.
As said before, I think 1/8" is the standard exceptable rule. BUT I must admit, that I have (and continue to do) things with bondo that are not supposed to be done. If you do it right you can use a crap load of it and it will hold up. I wont say which car it is because no one has ever noticed, but one of my rides has rocker panels almost entirely made from bondo and scrap metal. Almost 4 years parking outside and it looks perfect....but if you do have the skill and tools to do metal work, go that route. -Dean
Yes. You could sculpt an entire 1932 ford coupe out of bondo. Throw some fiberglass tires on it and get some real nice pinstriped Stickers off ebay, stick those bastards all over it. I think I might just go ahead and sculpt right up my dead grandmother. REGARDLESS of this fact, that is not what anyone with any self respect as a mechanic/bodyman would want to do. Everyone must hone their skills as METAL workers. In addition, its a real kick in the balls when youre stripping down your project and discover its all bondo/spray expansion foam/fiberglass from a shitty amateur resto done when Jimmy Carter was president.
As mentioned above, just because you slap it on super thick and it will work doesn't mean you should. If you can fix the metal do it, or if you know some who can, have them do it. It does suck when your tearing into a new project and find out it covered in Bondo. I have a '94 Chevy Pickup(the only thing somewhat trad. is the engine 425 olds) I'm building up right now, the passangers side of the box had filler slapped on any where from 1/8inch, to 2inches. I ended up having to buy a new box. Anyways good luck with the project, please don't do what Boyd was good at and cover it in filler. Even though there were a select few of the bondo monsters Boyd kicked out that were somewhat cool.
Everyone knows you can't build a REAL hot rod with bondo... You have to use endangered Barn Owl TURDS... But only as a skim-coat...
Yeah after the mouse bones decompose. You really should pick the bones out though for maximum durability.
LOL Thanks guys! I feel a bit better I know this truck is going to be ok not great but hey my total budget is like 2500 or so and all i have so far is a cab a fucked frame working 350 350 combo junk rear suspension some crazy 10 bolt cad rearend but hey I'm only in about 750. btw anyone selling a front end setup cheap?
If you have a area that you just can't get the metal work right on then get some Metal-to-metal filler, or at least some short strand fiberglass filler. Either one of these are a lot harder than standard lightweight fillers. Most fillers that fail are a result of improper use. Most don't know that standard "bondo" will absorb water...it's main ingr. is Talc....Baby Powder..... Keeping it dry until it is sealed is very important.
congrats elwood you pulled the mud monkeys out from the real body men here, but as ive always said its your ride not mine guys build it how you want or are able just dont try and pawn a putty sponsered ride off on someone else or you wont have too many loyale customers.
I have always tried to use it thin my self (less than a 1/4 inch thick) ,and not use it at all on corners of panels.I worked at a body shop one summer as a teenager and the bodyman there would use it to over an inch thick and he never had anyone bring a car back from it cracking or coming loose to my knowlage.He applied it in thin coats ,ruffing it up before the next coat with 40 grit paper.I think alot depends on the prep as others have said and the qaulity of filler used .The shrink factor plays a big part .Another big problem is moisture getting to it from the back through weld seams and dent puller holes.I always go over weld seems with "All Metal" aluminum epoxy before adding filler...
if you dont redo the body work then try bondo with kitty hair in it smoth it and skim coat of bondo over that and youll be set
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