Weld them or leave them?
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New User
Joined: Jan 2019
Posts: 24
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From: Alpine, Ca
Weld them or leave them?
Good Evening Gents.
I have some old unused bolt holes in the truck put there by original owner. He changed the mirrors in the truck quite a few times it seems like. I got the truck with mis-matched mirrors and decided to keep the smaller of the two on the truck. I want to patch the holes up and have a buddy that welds and says he can do it no problem. Is this a pretty simple job? Or are there any other solutions for the holes?
Thread Starter
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New User
Joined: Jan 2019
Posts: 24
Likes: 0
From: Alpine, Ca
I will get it painted eventually but at this point it is not a priority. Body work is what I was worried about. I don’t want the welding to destroy the lines of the truck.
Logistics Pro
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 4,217
Likes: 154
One word: Bondo.
But first, get a hammer, and preferably some sort of dolly to hold against the inside, and lightly tap the edges/outside diameters of those holes back down to level/flush, or maybe just a hair lower. Then apply the smallest amount of Bondo which will fill the hole. You might need a couple or three applications to get the filler built up to level or a little above. Lastly, sand it and cover it with a small primer spot, an you're all set.
And if/when you go ahead and really do up the body with paint and all, you can always knock/drill the Bondo out of the holes, and then weld them. Welding them shouldn't deform the metal that badly. From what I've seen on TV, it doesn't take a very long-lasting zap to fill a small hole like those.
But first, get a hammer, and preferably some sort of dolly to hold against the inside, and lightly tap the edges/outside diameters of those holes back down to level/flush, or maybe just a hair lower. Then apply the smallest amount of Bondo which will fill the hole. You might need a couple or three applications to get the filler built up to level or a little above. Lastly, sand it and cover it with a small primer spot, an you're all set.
And if/when you go ahead and really do up the body with paint and all, you can always knock/drill the Bondo out of the holes, and then weld them. Welding them shouldn't deform the metal that badly. From what I've seen on TV, it doesn't take a very long-lasting zap to fill a small hole like those.
Tuned
Joined: Jun 2014
Posts: 475
Likes: 34
From: Vermont
Not trying to shoot holes in the Bondo repair but the metal and the plastic/Bondo will expand/vibrate/shrink/move at a different rate. The extremely small bond of the holes outer circle thickness of metal is the only adhesion it has. Almost assuredly their will be a crack around the hole around many of the repairs at some point. Yup,maybe most will last a while or some forever with no problems., but,it is not a very good repair for the long term. And yes, I realize you are not doing a full scale paint at this point. Your buddy welding,grinding each hole should result in about a playing card size repair once ground. Prime it,paint it later. Good luck!
Moderator & parts slinger
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 50,269
Likes: 5,822
From: S/W Missouri, Polk county
X2 on weld shut, grind, prime and go with it that way till body work time. The small amount of welding will not destroy the body line or for now...
Stainless bigger head bolt for all the lower door skin holes for a easy temp fix, until body work time (then weld, grind ect...). The ones in the A pillar will eventually have to be welded, at least RTV them for now.
You can RTV them ALL shut for now if you want to roll like that.
Stainless bigger head bolt for all the lower door skin holes for a easy temp fix, until body work time (then weld, grind ect...). The ones in the A pillar will eventually have to be welded, at least RTV them for now.
You can RTV them ALL shut for now if you want to roll like that.
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More Turbo
Joined: Feb 2018
Posts: 710
Likes: 3
From: Oregon
ya Bondo isn't made to fill holes it will shrink/grow at a different rate and it will crack. You could use fiberglass though along with a small piece of fiberglass mat
Otherwise, welding
I think back in the day I tried soldering holes shut and I had the same problem as Bondo, the solder grew/shrink at a different rate, and soon I could see the outlines
Otherwise, welding
I think back in the day I tried soldering holes shut and I had the same problem as Bondo, the solder grew/shrink at a different rate, and soon I could see the outlines
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Laughing Gas
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 996
Likes: 318
No problem to close them up for someone who is good with a mig. But ones definition of "good" can be different than another. If you do welding it can make them stand out and be more obtrusive because the size of area grows vs if you just put a sheet metal screw in and painted it brown until which time you decide to have it painted. Welding will burn the paint in the immediate vicinity then the weld has to be ground flush. Then try to blend paint. It could be done to make it less noticeable but that will require more time with as many holes as there is.
Me personally I'd just leave them until you decide to paint but we're all different. If those hole keep you awake at night go ahead and have them welded up!
Me personally I'd just leave them until you decide to paint but we're all different. If those hole keep you awake at night go ahead and have them welded up!
Laughing Gas
Joined: Jan 2016
Posts: 828
Likes: 66
From: Hartford, WI
Weld them up. If properly done it will be stronger etc...and again if properly done will not cause any major warping.
My 77 Shortbox 4x4 was painted black. Same black and red stripes was done to my 68 Firebird 400. Any welding/filling of holes was done by my body guy and as most people know....Black shows everything. You would be hard pressed to find a ripple/wave where any repair work was done by my body guy.
I saved my original front fenders on my truck as they are rust free but each had a couple of good dents to them. The fenders I used on my truck came off of another 77 but those fenders had the race track trim on them where as my truck didn’t come with race track trim. They are rust free as well but straight as an arrow with no dings or dents. My body guy (Mike) welded up all the race track trim holes and no matter how hard you/I try I cannot pick them out anywhere in the black paint and the truck has been painted now for almost two years.
Back when I was in high school and right after I took body shop courses at the technical college (no I didn’t make a career out of it but did work part time for a couple of years in a body shop) but was given high praise for my welding (as I took welding on high school as well) on body panels and for the metal work. Even though I’m not an expert as I don’t do body work for a living I know the in’s and outs of it. I vote welding. Yes you will have to do some file and metal work as well as using some body filler as well but the welding should come first.
Also was taught in auto body about using lead filler which use to be really common in the 70’s and earlier. It was taught to us so we understood it but wasn’t a required grade in the auto body course. That is a whole subject unto itself.
My 77 Shortbox 4x4 was painted black. Same black and red stripes was done to my 68 Firebird 400. Any welding/filling of holes was done by my body guy and as most people know....Black shows everything. You would be hard pressed to find a ripple/wave where any repair work was done by my body guy.
I saved my original front fenders on my truck as they are rust free but each had a couple of good dents to them. The fenders I used on my truck came off of another 77 but those fenders had the race track trim on them where as my truck didn’t come with race track trim. They are rust free as well but straight as an arrow with no dings or dents. My body guy (Mike) welded up all the race track trim holes and no matter how hard you/I try I cannot pick them out anywhere in the black paint and the truck has been painted now for almost two years.
Back when I was in high school and right after I took body shop courses at the technical college (no I didn’t make a career out of it but did work part time for a couple of years in a body shop) but was given high praise for my welding (as I took welding on high school as well) on body panels and for the metal work. Even though I’m not an expert as I don’t do body work for a living I know the in’s and outs of it. I vote welding. Yes you will have to do some file and metal work as well as using some body filler as well but the welding should come first.
Also was taught in auto body about using lead filler which use to be really common in the 70’s and earlier. It was taught to us so we understood it but wasn’t a required grade in the auto body course. That is a whole subject unto itself.
Cargo Master
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 2,238
Likes: 475
Holes, even with bolts, will let water into the door, possibly causing unnecessary corrosion, not only on the sheet metal, but the window mechanism and door locks, if the door drains get plugged. Weld, grind , body filler to perfection, epoxy prime brown. If you want you could then get some oem matched spray paint if you don't like the prime look. Your truck looks well aged, so repairs like that shouldn't hurt the overall vibe.
Tuned
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 263
Likes: 2
From: Moorhead, MN
There is an episode of Detroit muscle or muscle car or what ever it was called at the time, where they delete a roof rack off a dodge magnum. They used small pieces of metal, and panel bonded them on the back side, to avoid having to weld. Not sure if you could get to the back side on the holes on the pillar, but it would work for the others. You'd still need to dolly it flat first, and would require a little filler and a spot in of paint to hide it, but it would be as strong as welding and weather proof.