I am going to replace the floors on my 69 f100 and I wondered if this is a job as amature I should even attempt .I have a small HB wire feed welder and I have the floors .I just wondered how should I start and if its a pretty easy job .I also wondered if I should use machine screws to hold them in place and then weld and then remove them after . What is welding pattern also like should I tak in spots or weld the whole thing.
I say go for it.You could cut out your old ones,and use them as a pattern.I always cut out my new repair panels a little big,and trim to fit.I like to butt weld panels together.Try using strong magnets to hold them in place,untill you have it tacked in.I usually do spot welds all the way around untill its completely welded up.Being that your doing floor pans you could probably weld around an inch bead at a time,but be shure to skip around,letting it cool.Good luck,no better way to learn.
Thanks man , I am going to give it a try. I already have brand new panels made to factory specs .Should I use as much of the new floors as I can even if the parts of the floor are still good or should I really just patch ?
I suggest that you use the old search function on this one. Plenty of good threads out there to use a examples. I'm in the same boat as you and have gained a wealth of knowledge that way.
Yeah I did look in some of old threads but did not get quite the answers I needed . I also needed to know how much should I overlap new floor and old ones ?
you really shouldnt overlap them at all, butt welding is the only way to go. lap welding creates a nice place for shit to start rusting all over again. floors are a great place to practice butt welds anyway, they never show so if they dont look all that great,, carpet and undercoating will make it disappear.
Be sure to butt weld, use seam sealer top and bottom when done, don't run beads, tack weld at 4 spots, then tack weld halfway between, and continue this until all the tacks meet.
you just reminded me that was one of the very first rust fixes i did! it just so happened to be on the floor of my 69 f100 that was my pops. i would trim the panel to where it would cover the infected area, trace around the new piece and cut out the old, leaving a little extra so you can fine tune it for a nice fit. do not over lap. you could tack a couple of small pieces of metal to help hold the panel flush to get them lined up. get your tacks down every few inches and just make sure your settings on the welder are good to get a nice penatrating tack..
Get some of those Horrible-Freight magnets to hold the panel in place while you tack. Take your time and get the best fit you can. Talk to 10 people and 5 will say butt them together perfectly with no gap, and 5 others will say leave a small gap say .040". You see what works best for you and your skill level. When using the magnets, try NOT to weld or place a tack right on top of the magnet. Tack around the magnets. If you start blowing through, DONT keep trying to fill tht spot, let it cool, and move somewhere else and come back. The key to sheet metal is closely watching the metal change colors as it cools, and knowing when to hit the trigger again. If you find your self constantly blowing holes through, have someone back up the other side with a piece of aluminum or copper. Remember the piece will hold the heat, and get VERY hot. H-F has a great welding spoon for under $10, get your self one. Heres another great tip, if the metal panels are 2 diffrent thickneses, hit the trigger while the tip is over the thicker panel and then move over to the thinner panel. This really helps with preventing blow through for beginers if panel thickness is diffrent.
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