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Thought I'd document my attempt at doing a rust repair on my single cab truck. The driver's side is actually worse and will require replacing everything on the lower door frame. The passenger side isn't as bad so I'm actually doing that one first before the tin worm gets any more.
Most of the rot is cut out at this point. I etched it and power-washed. Here's where I'm at as of this evening...
my passenger side looks like that on the 88, the driver side is missing about 6 inches after the rocker panel fell of last fall.
i am replacing the cab instead of messing with replacing that much metal. it will be easier and faster than trying to repair it.
my passenger side looks like that on the 88, the driver side is missing about 6 inches after the rocker panel fell of last fall.
i am replacing the cab instead of messing with replacing that much metal. it will be easier and faster than trying to repair it.
That would probably be the smarter idea for me too, but instead I'll use this as an excuse to practice my welding "skills".
Eastwood Rust Converter applied all over and then first chunk of angle iron spot-welded in place and then top-coated with Wurth weld-through primer. I'll MIG the angle iron in today for better structural integrity (spot-welding doesn't work well with such dissimilar thicknesses of metal).
Next piece of angle iron test-fit in place. Need to strip off the paint before using. "Free" angle iron has a price . The application calls for a tiny bit more than a 90-degree angle, but I'll make this work.
Whoever said re-using bed-frame angle iron was a bad idea for a welding requirement was right. Spot-welding was okay, but I had a lot of trouble using the MIG with this stuff. And yes, I did remove the paint, on all sides, at least with the first piece.
So I quickly punted and turned this into a bonding project. At least the first piece, the longest one, was welded in place - mostly spot-welds, with a few ugly MIG welds here and there.
Here's where I'm at now - two long pieces sorta back-to-back and one piece about 7" long.
<p>are you using shielding gas and a 220 volt mig, or flux wire and a little 110 volt mig.</p><p>the size of the machine and wire used makes a BIG difference.</p>
<p>are you using shielding gas and a 220 volt mig, or flux wire and a little 110 volt mig.</p><p>the size of the machine and wire used makes a BIG difference.</p>
It's a larger (145 Amp) 110V unit using flux wire. Your point is taken, but I've used it with metal of this thickness before. This angle iron just didn't want to melt.
And then top-coated with Red Devil Chinese Red enamel...
And no, that's not a very good color match, but that's okay. Function following form here for sure.
I didn't bother with adding the sill that had completely corroded away. It's primary purpose along the bottom is to hold the weather-stripping. Maybe I'll just glue that in place.
For now I'm going to leave it just like this so I can easily monitor the area in the front and treat further if needed. It's structurally sound again and I've halted the rust's advance. I've also done a bunch of preventative work on the bottom-side of the floor on this side - etched and hit with Mastercoat.
Not a perfect repair by any means, but sometimes "good enough" is just that.
History repeated itself on the driver's side. I welded a bit before realizing that my bonding skills were much better than welding. But I was already committed to sectioning in pieces, so just took that same approach with screws and glue. Sealed it all with some more Mastercoat.
I'll get around to replacing the rocker section in the spring. At least now I've got a more stable and solid floor to work with.
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Spot-welding was okay, but I had a lot of trouble using the MIG with this stuff. And yes, I did remove the paint, on all sides, at least with the first piece.
