Hi again all!

First of all this is what started it:



So this ugly, ill-conceived bench that was in my truck has been bugging the hell out of me since I got it! I finally got around to replacing it with the year correct version and ripped out all the cracked rubber coverings and here is what I find:



and



Bam! A total mess! This was a high desert truck all of it's life; the only reason a cab gets like this is from extreme negligence! This pisses me off to no end...

So I started grinding down on as much of it as I possibly could do last night until a good amount of it looked like this:



and this:



I have never done this sort of work before so I have a few questions:
1) How much of the rust do I really need to grind off? For the most part I can grind all loose bits and most of the rust away but in a lot of spots, the rust has pitted into the metal and will take A LOT more work to get out.

2) How should I patch the holes? Will some simple bondo and sanding do the trick? Most are not that large but one patch is a few inches across by about half an inch.

3) How should I finish the work? I was thinking of hitting it all up with some rustoleum primer but I want to have a nice thick layer of something else on top of it to seal it. What is a good material to use? I would prefer something that can be easily procured in socal if possible.

Thanks in advance!

 

You need to clean that up with a sand blaster if you want it really clean, otherwise a wire cup brush will get 90% of it off good enough to paint over or weld on. For a permanent fix you need to cut out the holes and replace the bad metal with some 18g mild steel. At that point you can cover it with whatever you want paint wise being that you are not in the rust belt.

This is not that bad really and is expected even in a desert truck in my opinion. You gotta remember, this truck is 45 years old. Click the link below in my signature if you want to see bad rust.

 

i was looking to patch up my floors in my 66 as well and was looking at some stuff called POR-15 they make a kit just for it and if you want to see what it can do just check out youtube and type it in. also you can find the floor pan kit (comes with an epoxy putty for rust holes) on there website for like 146 +shipping or Ebay for the same price w/free shipping. i havent tried it yet but am planning on trying it this summer.
its is said to fill in pits holes pretty well too. its just one thought.

 

I bought complete floors for mine, a Denver, truck since it was new, for just over $100.00 from Carolina Classics. I don't need the whole floors, but I need enough to justify the cost to make sure they look as stock as possible

 

I am seriously considering replacing my floor pans and front mounts, neither is really bad, just a couple small holes, but each floor pan is $50 and each mount is $30 for a total of $160. I realize it is more work, but then I am back to new steel. Maybe I should just look at small patches of 18ga instead. What do you all think?

 

you stated that you have not done this type of work before. if you can not weld i would go with the por-15 floor pan repair kit. just follow the instructions and you should have a repair job that will last a very long time. the por-15 can be used under the cab,bed and on the frame to stop the rust and give your truck a restored look.

 

let us know if you go with the por-15, i would love to know how it worked.
also, from all i have read about it you need to make sure it is sealed up right after you open it or you will lose the whole can in a night

 

I just went through this same issue but my floor pans where a lot worse, the previous owner had stuck some fiberglass and thin sheet metal over the rusted out areas and I didn't figure out the extend of the damage until I removed the seats and layers of rubber mat floor coverings.

On the passenger side I cut out the rusty areas to good metal, ground down the surface rust and lap welded patch panels of 18 gauge steel that I cut and bent to size and shape, I used weld through primer on my lap welds and then used a little bondo on the top seams to smooth them and seam filler in the areas that I felt would need to be a bit flexible, I killed any of the surface rust that I didn't cut out with a rust neutralizer, primed and painted the top side and then went and cleaned, rust killed and used spray on undercoating for the bottom.

The drivers side was a lot worse and was basically gone so I ordered a new pan from Dennis Carpenter and just lap welded it in place and rust killed, primed, painted and undercoated the bottom. In the end this is a fairly time consuming and dirty job, I wish I would have spent the money and just got two new pans, I think it would have been less labor and given me better performance and looks. I also had over 20 round holes under the seats that I welded patch panels over so it grew into a real project but hopefully it'll be less of a "Flintstones"mobile!

 

POR-15 is great for stopping the rust. You don't have to buy the floor kit, just get a few of the pint cans....that is is best for doing smaller areas....less waste.

POR-15 does not repair the rust or lost metal, so it's wise to decide what you want to accomplish. If you aren't interested in a show truck and just want to drive safely, cutting and welding is (relatively) expensive and takes practice. Or pay someone to do it.

I doesn't seem like your rust issues on the floor are structural....not sure I'd suggest cutting and welding.

 

In my honest opinion, there is only way way to fix a hole caused by rust. Remove and replace. Its not as bad you would think it to be. POR15 and products like that are use to prevent rust, not fill holes.

Even if your in So-Cal, where its nice and sunny, and they dont use salt on the roads, a crappy repair will only make the issue worse. Do a half-assed repair and water will get into it at some point and only cause the problem to get worse. The bad repair will most likely trap the water. Im sure you can figure out the rest.

In your case you only need to weld in a very small piece as your damage is minimal. I wouldnt worry about replacing a floor pan, as thats a waste in your situation.

Once you get the holes welded shut, then go back, brush the entire thing down with a cup brush on a grinder, clean it up good with a air hose, and brush it down with some POR15 or a similar product. I would consider doing the underside as well, which may be a pain in the butt, but will stop the problem permanently.

You want to see rust? Completely repairable, the pieces are sitting in my garage right now.

 

I've been offered a nice truck but there are numerous rust holes underneath the in and around the chassis

Some appear superficial, however others seem to be around body mounting points, although not having owned a 66 Ford I am unsure to how importnat these places pictured are.

I will be exporting to the UK and we have to go through a ministry of transport test which with these rust issues the truck would not pass.

66_Ford100 - a set on Flickr

If I post a few of what appear the worst, anyone got any advice as to how dramatic it would be to fix?

Thanks

Lee

 

Isn't that what the epoxy putty is for? (Rust holes) I would think it would work well on smaller holes but if I remember right, they give you wire mesh to put over larger ones and smooth it out?

 

hey nonoodlez, I'm at that stage now ,for what its worth I used Dupont 57 17 S metal conditioner, which is acid based, 1 gal. liquid. around 20$. this will remove grease, dirt and most of all will do a great job on rust removal. whatever you dont remove w\ wire wheel, this product will take care of the rest.Next, I'm going to try a product Grainger offers called Loctite big foot. 2 part 1 gal. with hardener. item # 2 VRL2. The write up states its ideal for high vehicular traffic / stairs, ramps etc. alittle pricy. I'm gonna try that and move on to something else

 

All these responses are great! Makes me glad I posted this here.

So after reading all of this I have decided that the rust I have is not as insurmountable as I initially thought (thanks for pointing me to that Fail Truck!).

I have decided that I will go ahead and buy a couple quarts of POR-15. Despite it's price, it is still cheaper than buying new floor pans and seems like it would require less expertise.

My dad came up with a seemingly crazy suggestion to cover the floor's holes and pitting with fiberglass! He said it's cheap, easy to work, and should be more than strong enough. It made me laugh at first but now I am seriously contemplating it. This would just be for the floor pans; I would still cover the entire bottom of the cab in POR-15 afterwards. Is this foolish or could it actually work?

I will also look into that Dupont 57 17 metal conditioner. It seems like I will need that to prep everything. The POR-15 website says that I MUST prep everything with their product, Metal Ready. I assume I can use the Dupont material instead, right?

Thanks for all the responses!

 

i remember reading some where that the por-15 will help fill in smaller pits. it is said to go on thin and fill them in so you have a smooth area when its done. go to youtube and look up what some people have posted about how they did there repairs and it will give you some good ideas on how to use the stuff. i know it also said that you dont have to go down to bear metal when you are doing your prep.