Lateral-g Forums - Rust repair what gauge sheetmetal do you use?

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Please post your experiences! I'm following in your footsteps.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rick Dorion (Post 592051)

Please post your experiences! I'm following in your footsteps.

Definitely Rick!

Kudos for buying some tools and wanting to jump right in!

I did the same thing about three years ago, and have learned so much along the way.

If I were you, I would buy some 18 and 20ga sheet metal. 20 is incredibly easy to bend and flex, which makes it much easier to shape into the inside corners of doors, etc. 18 is easier to weld if you're just starting out and is nice to use on a mostly flat section because it is less prone to warping when patched into a quarter or fender (my experience when first starting).

Lastly, if you've never done this before, it is more time consuming than you will ever imagine. It took me a good while to learn not to rush. When I first started I would fit things reasonably well, (at least I thought so) and weld them in, then try to hammer and grind to make it look nice. Eventually I learned how much easier it was to spend more time fitting, and cutting, trimming, and fitting, and so on, until the metal lined up perfectly, and even then, you still need to hammer trim as you weld.

Anyhow, have fun making some noise in your garage!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Matt.A (Post 592236)

Matt thanks for advice , I'm looking forward to the trial and error side of things to get it right!!

[QUOTE=Radlark;591820]I bought a welder, a small brake a shrinker and strecher and other items to do the job RIGHT and I am going to be teaching myself to weld never welded a day in my life but I am not afraid to pick up a gun and give it shot, I have never done any sheet metal work either, but looking at some of the guys tackle some of the projects.....I am going to go head first myself!

I'm in the same boat as you. Got together some of the necessary tools and I'm planning on starting with a partial trunk floor replacement. Figured that would be a good first panel replacement project. After that, and depending on how it goes, I'll dive into a partial floorboard replacement including the toe boards.

Feel free to share your mistakes and successes, I'll try to do the same!

[QUOTE=JKnight;592263]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Radlark (Post 591820)

I bought a welder, a small brake a shrinker and strecher and other items to do the job RIGHT and I am going to be teaching myself to weld never welded a day in my life but I am not afraid to pick up a gun and give it shot, I have never done any sheet metal work either, but looking at some of the guys tackle some of the projects.....I am going to go head first myself!

I'm in the same boat as you. Got together some of the necessary tools and I'm planning on starting with a partial trunk floor replacement. Figured that would be a good first panel replacement project. After that, and depending on how it goes, I'll dive into a partial floorboard replacement including the toe boards.

Feel free to share your mistakes and successes, I'll try to do the same!

You got it Jeff!!!

22 gauge or body repairs.