Uh pretty sure hes already got something, bondo or not. Sent from my DROID device using the TJJ mobile app
I've been following this project closely and been enjoying it immensely. Can't wait to see it finished!
God it would be nice to have the talent and the time to save one like this. Since I have neither, can I just follow along? .
Thanks for all the complements... another update Saturday...worked on replacing the cowl vent last weekend, need to tig it in ...hopefully i will get this done this Saturday. Mike
Well a week late with the update...but here it is. One of the things on my to do list was the replacing the cowl vent . The old one was rusted out at the back. I bought the upper sking and opening form Brookville, the trough came from mac's antique auto parts. dimensionally the brookville is slightly larger that the original , lapproximatley a 1/16 larger in each direction. The required me to work the trough a little to get it to fit. More on that later.. I started by trying to determine the center line of the current vent and marking the sheetmetal with a large sharpie. I use this so I can scratch the sheetmetal with an awl for a cut line. I originally was going to cu the opening 2 " wider in width, I eventually went with 1 1/2 both directions. This gave me a reference line from the cowl bead of 3/4 "
Next I marked the new vent with a marker in the same manner, finding the center in both directions. This is tricky on both the car and the new vent , the lines are not sharp and it's easy to mis measure. On the body I double checked for center using the hood bracket holes and the center measurement from the cowl belt line on the sides. Once I was comfortable with this I marked the cut lines with tape.
I thought I would show a sot of the manner in which i used tape to help create something to mark centerline.
After I cut the opening in the body I used a paper pattern to trace the cut line and transfer that to the new vent. This gives me the same pattern from which to cut both pieces
Next I used the paper pattern (also marked with the centerline top and bottmo side to side) and traced the cut lines.
Next I checked the fot of the new vent agaisn the body. It did require minor filing, for a comfortable fit. The cowl bead was used to verify even depth. I also the need to weld the trough onto the vent .
Next I mocked everything up and center the cowl vent so that the hinge was located correctly. This is very tricky and even though I used my time the end result will need some work to be right.
Then I tacked the new vent in place using magenets to hold it in place. It is critical to keep the panel flush, and flat.This is by far the most important step to a quality finsihed product. I am tiging this weld so I wanted lttle to no gap , at the weld line. If I were migging this I want to v the gap and have the gap at the thickness of a business card . As I tack this I use a hammer and dolly where necessary. The tacks were made with a mig.
During the shipping of the back of the car the qtr dangled in the air for the ride, and created a bulge in the qtr belt just below the qtr window. I had tried to work this with a a hammer a dolly with no affect . So I tried another approach . First I clamped the panel at the bulge with a heavy plate on the outside and a board on the inside. The pressure removed the bulge but it would not stay when released. I clamped it up a again and heated the area on the belt line with Map gas, and Wa La! Fixed!!!
Another area that needed attention was the on the left qtr panel at the trunk opening. This area had some rust pits on the edge (see pictures) and needed to be filled. I used a piece of copper to maintain a straight line and welded in the pits. Finished with a grinder
The Jalopy Journal
