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I'm starting to do some sanding and patching and whatnot on my new to me cab. Got these bullet holes to deal with. The rotten floor is good to go, Dash and doors are OK. But .... Wondering if I should sandblast these bullet holes then weld them shut. Body filler later to make smooth or just blast and body filler. Not looking to win any shows but don't want to go to all the trouble fixin' just to do it again later. Any advice is most appreciated.
Bullet holes are difficult to fix because the metal stretches as the bullet goes through......Correct fix would be to cut the entire area out and replace. I may have a patch panel if you want to go that route.
Even welding up the holes will be a band aid repair, as the metal around them is distorted. Still better than just mud I suppose....
I thought about cutting a chunk out of my original cab and putting that in there. I could fab up a piece to fit in there I guess. Shouldn't be too hard to do. Getting the radius right would be the thing. The holes in the rib on the inside I'm not too concerned about, just get them flat and cover with the headliner and whatnot. Still have the bullet hole in the gas tank to deal with too. Thanks guys for the input.
I would vote for the patch panel. You will put a lot of heat in a small area to fill them in. When you cut out the inside it will give you access to the outside to align the panels and use your hammer and dolly to control the stretching as you weld. It should finish out nicely with a panel from your donor cab.
I too would vote for the patch panel repair. Window openings are more critical that you think if you want the window to seal correctly and keep the weather out, not to mention cracking your glass. It's tough to hand form those curves and angles just right. If you've got a patch panel to use, use it.
I thought about cutting a chunk out of my original cab and putting that in there. I could fab up a piece to fit in there I guess. Shouldn't be too hard to do. Getting the radius right would be the thing. The holes in the rib on the inside I'm not too concerned about, just get them flat and cover with the headliner and whatnot. Still have the bullet hole in the gas tank to deal with too. Thanks guys for the input.
I had quite a few in mine I patched them all. Its better to fix them once and forget em. Mine was yellow too. There must be something about that color that screams "Hey shoot at me."
Toby, someone on here posted an auction link of a truck that sold for big bucks because it had patina and bullet holes. Hell, people buy FAKE bullet holes to make a ride look cool.
Well fellas, taking your advice I patched the holes instead of filling them. Made a homemade radius banger onner thing that worked pretty good.
banger onner thing. Kinda proud of this for some reason.
Test piece fitment. Excuse the grubby thumb, the other one wasn't much better.
Test fit for the real one.
Ready to receive.
9 down, 3 to go
Had the welder turned up too high and burned through in a couple spots. Spose I'll have to fix those too. Did I mention spot welds suck? Once again Thanks for the help guys.
You ought to be proud of that I need to give stuff like that a try but I am worried it would not turn out right. You see some people call me lazy but in fact I am a perfectionist I know I want it to be perfect and I know it would not so I just don't do it. Ha Ha. There is some truth to that. good luck on the patches.
Looking good!
Great radius bender. Use what you have, no need for expensive do-dads.
A suggestion.....
I used a piece of 1/4" copper bar I scrounged from an electricians pile of buss bars. I welded from the inside and backed up the other side with the copper bar. Makes a smoother weld on the outside and the bar absorbes a lot of heat and fewer burn thrus. Also a backer to hammer the welds.
Very little distortion and a paper thin coat of filler to smooth it out.
Thanks for the tip. Your patch looks pretty good there. I have a paddle I made from a chunk of 2 inch copper pipe that I use for a backer when filling in my holes. Never thought about a heat sink though. The weld don't stick to the pad which helps me a lot. It would probably help a lot if I got a spool of that EZ Grind wire too.
