Good evening fellas Looking for advice on the roof rust in my 55 Ford Fairlane roof and drip rail, I’m in the SF Bat Area and I’m no metal guy, sooo..... Any advice for a source for patch panels or idea of cost/ time involved. The inner structure is solid with a bit of minor surface rust. The drip rail is gone about 18 inches above the drivers door. There are about 5 spots total. Again thanks in advance for advice on an approach to get this fixed
Typical for those to rust there. The only way they can drain is out the back so water tends to just sit there. I don't know of a source for repair panels or drip rails. It will take a skilled metal man to make them. I did find a whole roof for one about 10years ago on Ebay so a search there might turn up something.
You can duplicate the roof skin with the panel to repair it and include a 90° angle on the lower edge, the drip rail can be harvested from another vehicle and used or fold one up but can be hard to replicate. The repair can be more complex if the rail has a arch in it.
Honestly, you should find a new roof, a parts car with a good roof or find an experienced metal man to give you a quote. Either way, it won't be cheap. That is a tough job if you want it to look right when you're done.
Thank for the insight guys, so far I’m gonna budget 3k to have some panels fabled up as a 55 Ford Fairlane roof are like hens teeth....... tri five Chevy no problem the repopulate a whole roof skin
Be prepared! I restore rusty East Coast cars here in NJ, and those repairs are some of the toughest to do!
I've done a few Miles of that type of repair. I'll say up front I think your a little light on your assessment of how deep it goes. For any Good shop to do that right there must be a solid place to build back from. Once your there things are going to look a lot different and more involved. To weld the base repair to the Roof skin it must be clean and bare metal. Getting into that space from the inside is a BITCH to say the least. There are No patch panel repair sections for that job so leaves you to hand crafting everything involved. To be ready for paint you will spend 3 times what you have set aside for the job. You can go find another top but know that it also is going to have some issues. Where is that going to take you? Option 3 is to get involved yourself and do some Novice work involving time and Bondo and be happy with less than a pro job. Sad for sure but the Truth is just that.
That’s my absolute least favorite thing to fix. I’d do a dozen floors over one roof. There is a great detailed thread here on a 55 wagon getting this type of rust issue repaired.
My body man buddy, Jimmy took in a customer's 55 ford sedan with the same problem. I kinda watched as he used his English wheel and a hammer form to make new pieces and weld 'em in. When he was finished you could not see where he did the repair.
This is by far the Best way to do that repair. Now can you find out what Jimmy's customer paid for that repair. Might give jax59 an idea of reality. I've done that job but never on a bid. I charge time and material and my customers always pay up every 40 hours. That way I never end up owning a half done repaired anything and they can stop the work when they run out of $$$.
"Looking for advice on the roof rust in my 55 Ford Fairlane roof and drip rail, I’m in the SF Bat Area and I’m no metal guy, sooo"..... I would sell it and get one that's not so rotted. Once you start digging into it it will be deep and real trouble.. If you could do the work it would be a good deal but if you can't and your not a millionaire it will be a ride through hell. Or it will just sit in the corner and piss the owner off.. I would put it up for sale on the cars for seal section..
I walked away from a T bird with the same rot a couple years ago. Kinda a shame as the rest of your car looks great. to fix it right will cost big bucks. You could lead fill , bondo, fibre glass the area then paint or vinyl wrap the roof to seal it up And pull the head liner down and clean and rust proof it / seal it as best you can from the inside. not a cheap fix , to do it correctly. but it can be done satisfactory and you’ll be out enjoying your ride. kind of hard to justify a 5k fix on drip rails.
I fixed similar rot on my '57 Chevy. I ended up tenting the car with the glass out and sandblasting it from the inside out, a lot more pinholes and issues opened up once that was done (mine was caused by mouse nests in the inner roof). Your repair is probably going to need similar blasting work, but even if you're not a metal guy, you can take the whole interior out and all of the glass out so your metalworker won't have to do it themselves, and then re-assemble once it's done. Also, if you've got shop space, you might consider doing the sandblasting yourself. Practice on something first, since blasting can warp sheetmetal, but that'll give you a much better idea of the extent of the damage. Once you have all of the interior and glass out of the way, and the metal is truly clean, the metalwork won't be that terrible. Prices for labor in California are pretty high, but around here I'm sure you could get that welded up for $3K. It will likely have to be done in small sections, and the finished results will require a bit of filler work to make it smooth but it would be a solid and lasting repair. It's not an easy fix, but it's very repairable in my opinion. Half-ass repairs with bondo/fiberglass fillers as was suggested is only going to make things worse.
If you are low on funds and lack the proper skills and equipment, put a piece of cardboard on the inside and fiberglass over it. You can tell that I work at "Nick Zip Used Car Lot" when I was a kid.
I'd really look for a donor car.... Get the entire roof... My 57 had issues there and I bought a parts car....I have a complete spare roof in my shed for a spare. A 55 is not a super rare car..... You being in Cali. shouldn't be hard..... I would say for a good roof.....500-1000 and maybe a person with skill could help you out with the balance of your funds.Make sure you get a custom,mainline....the model you need..... not sure if a 4 door would work..... .I just can't remember.
Wow, thanks for all the great advice, just to clarify there is no interior currently in the car and the picks were taken last year when I bought it. I have wire wheeled back and the rust only extends back an inch. There is no rot in the inner structure. I guess I should get a shop to quote it however I will remove the glass myself. Thanks again boys!!
The Jalopy Journal
