Register now to get rid of these ads!

I need some Metal working advice. Warped rear quarter panel

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by WCRiot, Apr 7, 2011.

  1. carcrazyjohn
    Joined: Apr 16, 2008
    Posts: 4,841

    carcrazyjohn
    Member
    from trevose pa

    You could cut it out and put new steel in there ,,,,,Just take your time welding this time.Only where the oil canning is............
     
  2. gearhead1952
    Joined: Dec 17, 2006
    Posts: 308

    gearhead1952
    Member

    Looks to me like the oil can is caused by metal gathered up on the lower right corner of the gas filler patch. Grind the welds down on the backside of the filler opening patch so that the dolly will lay flat then hammer only on the weld. Yes it may crack and you may have to reweld. This is why I don't leave a gap when welding patch panels as the metal moves too much and having a **** weld limits movement. I turn up the heat so I get good penetration. Consider this good experience and keep trying.
     
  3. kenb
    Joined: Sep 19, 2008
    Posts: 88

    kenb
    Member Emeritus

    It looks like the tank filler patch to me too. If you watch your video near the end, you can see the vertical welds of the patch snapping in and out alternately as you rock the panel. A fair bit of shrinkage has occurred all the way around that patch, and nothing is going to sit right until this problem has been resolved first.

    When watching your video, I noticed that the bottom edge (where you are tugging it with your fingers) appears to be too long in relation to the surface area of material in the panel above it. This anomaly is caused by the shrinkage from the welding around the tank patch, which has slightly reduced the surface area of the metal in this area. Your oil-canning is the result of a disagreement between the surface area of the metal within the panel, and the perimeter edges that contain it.

    To correct it, you have to increase the surface area of the panel around the tank patch (by stretching the HAZ back out some more) until the material within that zone swells back out again and agrees with the length of that lower edge again.

    Two options. One option is to dress out the patch you have now, so that its contours match the rest of the surrounding area, close enough that you could run the palm of your hand over it and not really notice that there is a patch there except for a bit of extra resistance when your fingertips p*** over the welds.

    The other option is to cut that patch out too, which will get rid of all the original hard MIG welds and give you a clean slate to start from with your TIG. This would be my preferred option, because I think you might have as much trouble dressing that out as you experienced with the original lower section.

    It looks like you are well on your way to recovering this panel, I think you just need to rewind the process a little more and lose that last original patch before moving on. Since the welds weren't stretched out on the go as it was welded in, there's still a lot of nasty shrink stresses stored up in that area.

    Most importantly, don't panic! :) This is a very difficult job to do the first time around, so just take it easy and give yourself the time you need.

    Ken
     
    Last edited: Apr 24, 2011
  4. WCRiot
    Joined: Feb 20, 2009
    Posts: 193

    WCRiot
    Member

    I think I am leaning towards cutting out the gas tank patch and starting all over again. I have a bunch of lessons learned at this point...

    My last question is:
    Should i buy that quarter panel from the shop I found or should I buy another patch panel from somebody like, Chevs of the 40's?

    Does anyone have a good place to buy some quality patch panels from? I really cant remember where I bought that other patch from, but it was pretty ****py.
     
  5. oj
    Joined: Jul 27, 2008
    Posts: 6,589

    oj
    Member

    Man-O-man, i admire your resolve. That is a nasty bit of business there. I think you need to cut it out and start over but lets figure out where it went wrong so you don't repeat those particular mistakes and minimize the brand new ones, ok?
    Heat does impressive stuff to metal, but it is predictable and consistant. When it expands under heat the expansion rate is 1/2 of the contraction. In brief, about every 3" of weld expands approx .030 and it contracts about .060 when it cools.
    How does this apply to you? Have a look at your panel, the gas door weld shrank like crazy because of the closed, square shape and the 90deg corners sent stress all over the place. The parallel welds taht others commented on just trapped heat like crazy. The lateral weld going over and under the taillight had some big gaps before welding and that is why it is pulled in as great as it was, the gas door had excessive gaps as well. I don't know enough about the oilcan to comment, i just know that when i went to work on the original welds i would've left the oilcan for last and it might have disappeared by then anyway - i am thinking it was the 'effect' from some of the other tension, then again i am wrong quite often.
    To tig the new panels, i believe it'll take a good machine as the lesser models get goofy at strike. And it is all about the strike when doing panels.
    The panel fitment is everything, it cannot have any gaps or you will be right back to where you are now except that it'll be a tig'd mess as opposed to a mig'd one. It is those gaps that focus the heat, no gap=no heat ok? When you either tack or weld, you don't skip around! That creates heat. I fit my panels very tight, then take a flat face hammer and lightly tap down along both faces of the weld seam, this compresses the metal at the seam and raises each edge along the weld so i have a little extra metal to work with. I clamp the work piece and when i tack i have the heat a little high, i hammer the pedal and roll the tig across the seam and get off the pedal, move ahead a 1/2" repeat - no filler rod. You don't even have time to see the weld form (best practice on some s****, you have to have a lot of confidance to do this). I have a looksee after tacking - you can put your hand right on the sheetmetal it will be that cool. Then i start at one end and in one p*** i go to teh other end, no filler rod, just fusing the metal together and using that extra metal that you piled up with the hammer. You don't stop, linger, apply filler rod - nothing. When you set down your torch you'll be able to touch the panel - it will be warm no doubt, nothing like when you mig'd it. You do not 'jump around' when welding - that creates heat for evrytime you start/stop you linger and that will pinch the metal when it shrinks. If you go from one end to teh other in one p*** all the metal will have the same amount of heat/stress and when it cools it'll be nearly distortion free. What you want to see is a very narrow HAZ - heat affected zone.
    This morning i did a panel patch on a model 'a' and took pics for the file that i give the owner. I had problems with the weld, so i am not showing a 'perfect' piece of showcase work, this is real work and where i had a problem was that the gap spread on me in a couple places and i had to use filler rod. Those spots had extra heat and required more work.
    The first pic is the panel tacked in place, i taped a penny to teh seam so that should give you an idea how tiny the tacks should be. The panel is distortion free.
    The second pic shows the weld, i had problems and there is some slight distortion (note the width of the haz).
    The third pic to the left the seam (pride) has been touched with the grinder as i described in another post, to the right i have tinned and wiped the seam to prep for the lead.
    The 4th pic i am applying the lead.
    The 5th i have filed and DA'd the patch panel, the light color is teh lead where i had those problems (no surprise there!) I still have to touch it up a little but i haven't tyed it into the door jamb and the innerfender hasn't been replaced (do that tomorrow)
    Total time, about 2hrs. I use lead in places like taht because it is so quick.
    I hope i helped and not confused you, i know some of my advice contradicts what some of the others said.
     

    Attached Files:

    50DropTop likes this.
  6. WCRiot
    Joined: Feb 20, 2009
    Posts: 193

    WCRiot
    Member

    Man. I am really loosing my confidence here. I don't know if I am a good enough welder to tig weld these panels without making a bigger problem. I will try, but I don't think I will have much luck.

    I am seriously considering that Body adhesive "No Weld" bonding stuff. That may be the best bet for me as I am just amateur....
     
  7. atomickustom
    Joined: Aug 30, 2005
    Posts: 3,407

    atomickustom
    Member

    Don't give up, and don't try using the glue! (Several people have posted on here that on a hot day you can see the seam, no matter how well it was all finished when they painted their car.)

    When I chopped the top on my '53 Chevy I welded up the entire roof skin without any major warpage UNTIL I welded across the header over the windshield. I ended up creating a dent the size of my fist. I then turned that dent into an oilcan that I chased all around the roof of the car (at one spot it was bigger than a large pizza and the roof was concave rather than convex!)
    At that point I panicked and ended up doing more harm than good.
    Eventually I fixed it by bopping the roof with a pick hammer backed by a soft 2x4, replacing the original large dent with a series of dents in the same exact area. Every time I popped a dent, the oil can got smaller. I kept at it until the oil can was gone and then used body filler to cover the original goof.

    The moral to the story is that there is ALWAYS a way to fix whatever you mess up and sooner or later you'll get it done. In my case it wasn't really "right," but it worked and 10 years later I'm still driving the car.

    Metal stretches and metal shrinks. That's it.
    If you haven't done so, you might want to pick up a Ron Covell DVD or something similar to watch. That is where I learned to hammer and dolly with each round of tack welding. (A few tacks, wait to cool, then hammer-and-dolly flat BEFORE doing any more tack welding.) This made all the difference to me and would have saved my roof if I'd known that in the first place.

    It's not rocket science, and I certainly haven't mastered it, but the more you do it and the more you learn the easier it gets and the better you get. I just welded in a big patch panel on the front quarter of a '51 Chevy without any major problems. It would have been perfect if I had stopped more often to ding those tack welds. Slow is good.
     
  8. NO do not use metal adhesive. That's not what it's for. As stated above it will show lines. Learn to hammer weld with O/A. Best method for what your trying to do. MIG welding is the poorest choice for sheet metal. It got its start in the body shops for use on unibody repair of high strength metal. Our old cars are mild steel. No reason to mig. So take some time to learn, or pay someone who's already taken the time to learn. Save your mig for structural work, and inner structure.
     
  9. WCRiot
    Joined: Feb 20, 2009
    Posts: 193

    WCRiot
    Member

    I need to make a video of the new oil canning issue that came up. I still have the gas door patch installed. But, i cut out some fo the framing that was left on the inside of the material around the gas door patch. This framing would have been the tubing that travels intot he gas tank. I didn't remove it before, because I didn't think it was an issue, but since I need to hammer and dolly on a flat surface, i removed it.

    I am going to cut the gas door patch out tonight I will shoot a before and after video for demonstration purposes.

    My new patch panels should arrive from Chevs of the 40's pretty soon, they told me tomorrow but they are always later than they state.
     
  10. WCRiot
    Joined: Feb 20, 2009
    Posts: 193

    WCRiot
    Member

    I removed the gas filler door and made some new videos. Obviously the major "oil canning" issue has gone away. NOW, what I see are two things.

    1. Some distortion here and there that I can fix with a hammer and dolly
    2. NOT oil canning, but the piece of metal under the gas filler hole moves and does a "wave" motion. It almost seems like it wants to oil can but rather than popping in and out, it shifts along a 12inch length.
    Here are the videos as promised:

    <embed src="http://p.webshots.com/flash/smallplayer.swf?videoFile=http://videoserve.webshots.com/video/17967/3084693230100701182vQJWRv_v_0.flv&audio=on&displayImagePreview=http://videothumb08.webshots.com/thumb/17967/3084693230100701182vQJWRvstill_002_0.jpg&videoPageUrl=http://rides.webshots.com/video/3084693230100701182vQJWRv&autoPlay=false&shareLink=http://cards.webshots.com/ecard/personalize?photoId=3084693230100701182%26source=v" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350" quality="best" allowscriptaccess="always"></embed><br/><br/>MVI_0327.MOV

    <embed src="http://p.webshots.com/flash/smallplayer.swf?videoFile=http://videoserve.webshots.com/video/35289/3099128970100701182UjhBQc_v_0.flv&audio=on&displayImagePreview=http://videothumb10.webshots.com/thumb/35289/3099128970100701182UjhBQcstill_002_0.jpg&videoPageUrl=http://rides.webshots.com/video/3099128970100701182UjhBQc&autoPlay=false&shareLink=http://cards.webshots.com/ecard/personalize?photoId=3099128970100701182%26source=v" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350" quality="best" allowscriptaccess="always"></embed><br/><br/>MVI_0328.MOV
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 1, 2014
  11. kenb
    Joined: Sep 19, 2008
    Posts: 88

    kenb
    Member Emeritus

    Hey WC,

    That looks much better now doesn't it! The panel seems much happier, as most of the internal stresses have now been relieved.

    OK, onward to getting ready for your new parts. I'm ***uming that there is nothing but bare metal on the inside of the panel, with no attachments or structural material on the back side.

    To deal with that waviness, watch the second video again closely. Pay special attention to the two horizontal edges; the bottom of the gas cap opening, and the long bottom edge below it.

    I suspect the waviness is being caused by some shrunken metal left over from the bottom weld of the gas tank patch. Because of the previous welding, the bottom edge of the square patch hole is slightly shorter than the adjacent bottom edge of the panel. Note that the bottom edge of the cutout pretty much holds its form even when moving, while the bottom edge of the panel is more floppy. The floppiness suggests that the bottom edge of the panel is a little bit longer.

    Leave this longer bottom edge alone, as it's a valuable dimension remaining from the original shape that you want to preserve.

    For clarity, see the picture below, I'm referring specifically to the metal in the yellow stripe. "X" represents the length of the lower edge where it p***es through the area, and "X - minus shrinkage" represents the edge I think you might need to stretch out a little bit, until the length of that edge becomes equal to the "X" dimension.

    For starters, I'd grab a hammer and dolly, and try to stretch out the area of the old weld line along the bottom of the tank patch hole a little bit. Hammer "on dolly" so you can hear the ring of the dolly when you sandwich the metal between it and your hammer. The idea is to work evenly back and forth along this edge, with a view to making the material slightly thinner, and thus slightly longer as a desired side effect. This should equalize the length of the two edges where they p*** under your patch cutout and get rid of that waviness.

    To completely finish the job, you will likely have to repeat the process on the other three sides of the hole too. Since they were all welded in a similar way, they will have all shrunk about the same.

    PS - I rounded off the corners of the patch cutout in the picture, just to make sure I didn't forget to suggest using big rounded corners on patches from now on. Square cornered patches tend to amplify the shrinkage problems when welding, so lots of people recommend going with rounded corners.

    Ken
     

    Attached Files:

    • WC1.jpeg
      WC1.jpeg
      File size:
      15.1 KB
      Views:
      268
    Last edited: Apr 29, 2011
  12. kenb
    Joined: Sep 19, 2008
    Posts: 88

    kenb
    Member Emeritus

    WC,

    Since you are entering the "restoration of shape" phase of your repair, I figured this would be a good time to suggest making up a profile guage or two from the other side of the car. These guages will be your road-map for restoring the shape around your gas tank patch, as well as for setting up the proper positioning of the patch panels you have on the way.

    You can make as few or as many as you want depending on the need, spacing them as required to help reproduce the shape accurately from one side of the car to the other. I think at least a couple of these would be very helpful, as I suspect your left side quarter may have "sunk in" a little bit from the heat around the gas tank filler hole, and these profile guages will tell you exactly if/where you need to raise the lows back up. Making sure this area is prepared correctly ahead of time will make life much better for you when you start fitting up your new parts.

    I stole this picture from google, and then went at it with photoshop to demonstrate one way to make a profile guage for a quarter panel. I use light cardboard to reproduce the profile, and I usually set up the outside edge so that a level indicates vertical against it when it's in the proper position. Always make sure the car is sitting level first of course. :)

    Ken
     

    Attached Files:

    • WC2.jpeg
      WC2.jpeg
      File size:
      42.9 KB
      Views:
      191
    Last edited: Apr 29, 2011
  13. WCRiot
    Joined: Feb 20, 2009
    Posts: 193

    WCRiot
    Member

    New patch panel purchased from Chevs of the 40s
    This patch is SUPERB. the quality is 100x better than the first patch i purchased. It was longer which helpped my problem, but I still have some major issues to correct.
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    YOu can see from the following pictures that I have the patch panel all setup and aligned correctly, trimmed to the correct size. Everything came out pretty good. I will take more pictures of the setup eventually. But I want to try and get this warpage issue figured out.

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    Kenb. Thank you very much for your constant detailed replies. My picture above prove your ***umptions to be correct. Wouldn't you agree?

    I need to read your advice several times to make sure I understand what you are saying. Would you mind telling me what size I should have the hammer on?

    From what I understand/have experienced. I need to hammer on the exterior of the metal with my dolly on the inside to "stretch" the metal.

    Another thing I was even considering was, to cut a vertical slit from one of the vertical edges of the gas filler patch to all the metal to stress relieve even further. From there, I would weld everything back together. I would use the patch to guide the rest of the metal to the correct shape.

    I am feeling alot better about things now that this good quality patch panel has arrived.

    There are some other issues that I need to address but we can get to that once I have the metal straightened out.
     
  14. WCRiot
    Joined: Feb 20, 2009
    Posts: 193

    WCRiot
    Member

    One thing I would like to better understand, more for the learning experience of all this. Why would the edge of the gas filler need to be "shrunk" rather than the edge where the patch goes? Because that edge was also welded when I had my original patch put in.
     
  15. kenb
    Joined: Sep 19, 2008
    Posts: 88

    kenb
    Member Emeritus

    Good observation! You are correct, that bottom edge will need to be stretched out too a little later on, but I didn't want to overwhelm you with a tsunami of information all at once. :) My main motivation in my reply was to make sure you didn't mess around with that bottom edge in any way yet, until you clear up some of the more serious issues around the patch hole first. Just trying to keep you focused on the priorities!

    I consider the square hole to be the more serious issue because it's a closed shape within a crowned area of the panel, with an internal edge that has been shrunk all the way around. This undesirable feature is causing the most distortion at this point, so it's probably the best place to start.

    As you stretch the material around the patch hole zone with your hammer and dolly, you will notice that the area will begin to swell back out to its proper shape as you work. The panel will aslo start to relax, and will begin to hold its form better the closer you get to the proper shape. It sounds really difficult to do when you've never done it before, but once you get the hang of it, you'll find it doesn't take as long as you expected.

    After some more thought, I think it might be a good idea for you to stretch out the perimeter of the patch hole evenly, by working around and around so that the resulting stretch is spread out equally as you work. This will help prevent any "surprise high spots" that can sometimes result from concentrating too much effort in one spot at a time.

    Once the gas cap opening is close to being fixed, then it will be time to have a look at that lower edge and see what needs to be done to match it up with your patch panel.

    That new panel looks terrific btw, so lets do a good job setting up the top half of the panel first before we start fitting it up.

    Ken
     
    Last edited: May 4, 2011
  16. kenb
    Joined: Sep 19, 2008
    Posts: 88

    kenb
    Member Emeritus

    Yep, the metal is a bit disarranged from the heat, nothing a hammer and dolly can't fix though. I wouldn't read to deeply into the alignment of that lower edge at this point though, because once you stretch out the HAZ around that filler hole, I think that edge might be sitting in a slightly different place after that.

    The metal doesn't know which side it's being pounded from, it's all about the PSI of the hammer impact as far as the metal is concerned. :) The main motivation for working from one side or the other is mostly about access, but the shape of the panel is also a factor.

    Hammering is usually easier when working from the convex side of the shape (usually the outside, but not always, depends on the panel), and most dollies are shaped to fit on the concave side. I'd just figure out which side of the panel that the dolly fits the best on, and hammer from the opposite side.

    Nope, no cuts! Every time you make another cut, you loose a little more of the valuable shape information that still remains in your panel. This shape information is still there, eagerly waiting for you and your hammer and dollies to bring out its natural beauty once again.

    Remember, _most_ of the shrink damage that's happened to your panel has occured within 3/4" or so of the previously welded edges, so those are the areas you want to concentrate on.

    It would probably be a big help if you could post some pictures of your left quarter panel with a profile guage (copied from the other side) hanging over it, so we can accurately see where the highs and lows are as things are now. This will make it lots easier to be sure we're giving you the best advice we can as you work through this repair. Once we have some more 3-D info to work with, it'll be no problem for the crew here to figure out the best approach.

    One more question, have you been beating anywhere on that panel with a hammer up to this point? Just wondering if there are any potentially stretched areas that might be affecting the shape as well.

    Ken
     
    Last edited: May 4, 2011
  17. WCRiot
    Joined: Feb 20, 2009
    Posts: 193

    WCRiot
    Member

    I have not beat on the panel in any other locations.

    I did some hammering last night and I can already see the "oil canning" issue fading away. IN addition to that wave movement in the metal. So that's good.

    SOMETHING THAT HAS NOW HAPPENED: I have a concave shape running vertically on the metal section between the cut for the patch and the gas filler door.

    I was concerned that this was happening because I was hammering on the exterior side of the car? But, Also it could be happening because I wam streching the metal at the edge (edge being there because of the gas filler openning.) I am using a flat hammer and a flat dolley.

    Should I change what I am doing? Or continue on? hammering around the gas filler.
     
  18. kenb
    Joined: Sep 19, 2008
    Posts: 88

    kenb
    Member Emeritus

    Sounds like a good time to post some pics with a profile guage or two against your left quarter panel. :) Until we can see exactly how the overall panel is sitting in comparison to the guages, it's pretty much guesswork for us at this point.

    Ken
     
  19. Mr T body
    Joined: Nov 2, 2005
    Posts: 2,227

    Mr T body
    Alliance Vendor
    from BHC AZ

    Not to throw a curve here, but when doing patch panels, wouldn't using a flanged edge help reduce the shrinking and warpage? Just curious and looking to learn more from this thread.....
     
  20. kenb
    Joined: Sep 19, 2008
    Posts: 88

    kenb
    Member Emeritus

    Most guys I know would advise against it, because overlapping seams will warp just as badly, and they are pretty much impossible to stretch back out afterwards because of the overlapping material. Overlapping seams will require even _more_ heat to weld up too, because of the extra flange material present in close proximity to the seam that will draw much of your heat away from the weld zone.

    Corrosion in the future is another issue to consider as well, as overlapping seams make excellent traps for moisture, road salt, etc, that can't wait to start rotting away your connection (and your new paint job eventually) from the inside. Aside from making the connection a little bit simpler to fit up at the beginnning, overlapping seams don't really offer much in the way of benefits on a repair like this once the welding starts.

    **** welding the connections with no gaps is by far the coolest approach from the welding standpoint, because you only have to melt the very, very edge of each half of the connection, so you can get the heat out of the area quickly and move on. Since the resulting finished joint is only one material thickness thick, dressing it out is a breeze afterwards.

    Ken
     
    Last edited: May 6, 2011
  21. WCRiot
    Joined: Feb 20, 2009
    Posts: 193

    WCRiot
    Member

    Forgetting about the profile gauge at this point.
    It seems like the quarter panel is moving further away from my patch panel at the weld joint. Am i mistaken?
    Please see the pictures below. Why is this happening and how do i fix it?
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    Also, my new video shows that I will have some "oil canning" and wavey metal when i push on certain spots. How do i correct this?
    <embed src="http://p.webshots.com/flash/smallplayer.swf?videoFile=null&audio=on&displayImagePreview=http://p.webshots.net/images/grfk/grfk_video_progress.jpg&videoPageUrl=http://rides.webshots.com/video/3069905400100701182hYfWxm&autoPlay=false&shareLink=http://cards.webshots.com/ecard/personalize?photoId=3069905400100701182%26source=v" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350" quality="best" allowscriptaccess="always"></embed><br/><br/><a href="http://rides.webshots.com/video/3069905400100701182hYfWxm">5-8-11 004.MOV</a>
     
  22. kenb
    Joined: Sep 19, 2008
    Posts: 88

    kenb
    Member Emeritus

    Uh-oh, that's going to make things complicated.

    Can't say with the information available, as a panel can't really be read properly by only concentrating on one offending edge, as this could simply be a symptom of the real problem elsewhere in the panel.

    We need to see the entire area beside a reference of some kind (like a profile guage or two :)) to figure out how the whole upper half of the panel is sitting, before we can figure out the relevance of the lower edge not meeting up with your patch panel properly.

    We need a road-map WC, lets see some pics with some profile guages on that left quarter!

    Ken
     
    Last edited: May 12, 2011
  23. kenb
    Joined: Sep 19, 2008
    Posts: 88

    kenb
    Member Emeritus

    The picture below shows what we are going to need to help you read that panel, I'd suggest working off the right side of the car to make at least two of these profile guages for now. Remember, this is the internet, and we can't examine the panel the same way as you can. We need you to act as our eyes in 3-D space so we can see what's up.

    Make one profile guage that will p*** vertically right through the center of the gas tank patch cutout, as we know this area has been m***aged quite a bit and wil require a close examination. Make a second profile guage that hangs about half way between the first one and the tail-light. Measure their positions accurately, so you know that they are in the exact same position from front to back when they are moved over to the left side.

    Profile guages require a horizontal reference, so you know they are sitting at the proper height from top to bottom when you place them on the opposite side of the car. I can't say for sure (not too familiar with your car) but I've noticed that the curved peak running along the top of your rear quarters might make a nice perch for a profile guage to hang on. See item #1 in the picture below. If that won't work, extend the profile inwards and use the surface towards the trunk lid as a horizontal reference instead.

    I wouldn't bother trying to cut the profile in light cardboard from top to bottom in one cut. I'm an artist in another life, and I'm nowhere near good enough to do that. :) I just break the profile up into several smaller sections that are much easier to make, and then tape them all together later in the proper position. To make a more rigid and durable profile guage, simply trace the resulting shape onto a larger piece of heavier cardboard or other material of your choosing.

    We are also going to need a vertical reference for these profile guages, since the bottom half of the left quarter panel is missing right now, and won't be available for the bottom end of the profile guage to sit against as a reference point. See item #4, where a level can be used to mark a vertical line for t******* the outside vertical edge of the profile guage (make sure the car is sitting level first). When you move the profile guage over to the left side of the car to check things out, you can use your level again to make sure it's hanging in the correct position vertically.

    Let us know when you've got a couple of these profile guages ready, and then we can have a serious look at the top half of that left quarter panel.

    Ken
     

    Attached Files:

    • WC9.jpeg
      WC9.jpeg
      File size:
      20.3 KB
      Views:
      240
    Last edited: May 12, 2011
  24. WCRiot
    Joined: Feb 20, 2009
    Posts: 193

    WCRiot
    Member

    In making these profiles, I quickly learned why the level is so important. I threw away the first profile I made. Also, I started making a template on paper, then transferring that over to cardboard. That didn't work. I went from the profile gauge to cardboard.

    Pictures explained below

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    These are two different profiles. THESE PROFILES ARE ON THE GOOD SIDE. I am showing pictures of the good side as a reference because my profiles are NOT perfect.

    [​IMG]
    This picture shows the spacing between the two profiles. I used this spacing because the rear section seems like it needs the most work to get perfect.

    I will make at least one more profile closer to the front of the car. But, i want to get this back section fixed first.

    PROBLEM SIDE
    The biggest problem seems to be the metal where the original patch was place has "skirtted out" from my hammer and dolly work.
    [​IMG]

    The skirt is pushing the template so far out that the template won't even fit over the top very well. keep in mind that the skirt is sticking far out, not the entire quarter panel. This picture looks worse than it is.
    [​IMG]

    Here is the second gauge. Two pictures at different angles of the same gauge.
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    The biggest problem has become the small wavey and oil canning sections of metal near the old weld seam. No matter how much I hammer and dolly, or how I hammer and dolly. I can't get this to completely go away.

    There was a point when I was doing the hammer and dolly work that I would hammer one section and get that "oil canning" fixed, than the problem would move to the left of where I was just hammering.

    Help please.
     
  25. chopolds
    Joined: Oct 22, 2001
    Posts: 6,326

    chopolds
    Member
    from howell, nj

    With all the hammer and dolly work you performed, you have really stretched the metal.
    To be able to repair this correctly, you need to shrink it. Not an easy task for someone just learning. If you could get a patch panel that went higher up, and eliminated the stretched portion, it would be easier.
    To shrink it, you should read up on tuck shrinking, since you can't remove the entire panel to work on it. That method can shrink the metal in a CONTROLLED fashion, pretty high up into the quarter. Read up on how to do it, then practice on some s**** panels until you have the hang of it, then go fix your car. You can probably use the patch panel as a guide to getting the contours right during the shrinking process. Or keep using your profile gauges.

    You're gonna be a metal master when you finish this up!
     
  26. WCRiot
    Joined: Feb 20, 2009
    Posts: 193

    WCRiot
    Member

    I just watched several videos of tuck shrinking on YouTube. I dont see how I should apply this to my patch panel repair?

    What i see from tuck shrinking is, you can form a contour by using this method. So flat piece of metal can become convex look at it from the top.

    From what I think. I would apply this procedure to the INSIDE of the panel. That would be nearly impossible to hammer out once the tuck is formed. If I do the tuck on the outside of the panel, I would think that the "Skirtting" would become worse???
     
  27. WCRiot
    Joined: Feb 20, 2009
    Posts: 193

    WCRiot
    Member

    Thank you all for the advice. I have not worked on that panel yet. I am working on other areas until I get a little bit more advice. It always helps to have multiple opinions.

    I dont have an O/A torch at home, I do at work, but i don't want to h***le with bringing it home.
    I should have a couple of those propane torches. Is that okay? I don't know how the propane vs. O/A would affect the heat. But a flame is a flame right? Especially since I am just trying to shrink metal, rather than actually weld...
     
  28. pimpin paint
    Joined: May 31, 2005
    Posts: 4,937

    pimpin paint
    Member
    from so cal


    Hey,

    Close, but no cigar! If a propane torch is what you've been using to shrink this panel so far, I think we've found a major source of the trouble you have been having with working this panel.

    The flame from a propane torch would be very hard to control from a heat & size standpoint. Hot shrinking is about control of the heat once its' come in contact with the panel. A big uncontrolable flame would equal large amounts of expansion of the metal and thus some of the problems you've been having with heat damage. If coupled with over use of the on-dolly method of repair one would expect to see just the type of damage you're up against.

    I'd suggest you leave the propane torch to the plumbers, and break out your o/a torch from work and a O or#1 sized tip with a netural flame. 5&5 on the gage settings & small dime sized shrinks, nothing bigger!A toe dolly & a bumping hammer with a wide, low crowned face. Land a couple of shrinks in the largest high areas of the panel where the templet tells ya the area is way off. If done correctly, you'll start to see the metal pull in correctly to line up with the patch panels' flange.

    " Life ain't no Disney movie "
     
  29. WCRiot
    Joined: Feb 20, 2009
    Posts: 193

    WCRiot
    Member

    I was really hoping that Kenb would chime in here.... Tomorrow I'm to work on the body some more.
     
  30. WCRiot
    Joined: Feb 20, 2009
    Posts: 193

    WCRiot
    Member

    Well guys. I finished the tail pane patch weld. C notched the frame, getting ready for the Gambino 4 link to come in.

    So I need to get back to this quarter panel and get it finished up.


    I did my shrinking and made some good progress. I tacked a new patch for the gas tank filler door, just to see how things would go together.

    I am still a little concerned because, the vertical line where the gas filler patch was is wavey and when i push it in certain areas is pops here and there.
     

Share This Page

Register now to get rid of these ads!

Archive

Copyright © 1995-2021 The Jalopy Journal: Steal our stuff, we'll kick your teeth in. Terms of Service. Privacy Policy.

Atomic Industry
Forum software by XenForo™ ©2010-2014 XenForo Ltd.