Hello!
Recently picked up a '59 Apache. Truck is from Nevada, so the body is relatively rust free, except for the cab corners. The PO gave me brand new inners, and the outers just arrived. This will be my first body panel replacement, and I have a few questions -
This is not my first time welding, although it is my first time welding sheet metal, and doing a body panel replacement. I'm using a 120V Lincoln mig welder w/gas 80/20 gas, and I've been practicing for several hours on 18ga sheet metal using panel butt clamps that hold a .040 gap. I'm using very small weld spots...just touching the wire to the gap for a second. I build a line of small welds, about 3 at a time, equally spaced across the joint, and let the metal cool to the touch before I weld again. I do that until I have a solid weld bead that I can grind smooth.
At first, I warped the metal...not at where the metal butts up, but futher down the sheet...it developed a "bow". Paying careful attention to heat, and using a body dolly to keep the sheet straight has helped a lot, made a few perfect welds, is there anything else I can do or any secrets to help prevent warping?
Also, this will be my first time cutting off a body panel...I plan on doing small sections at a time with an air driven die griner with a 3" cutting wheel, drilling out the spot welds with a 1/4" dril, and using an air chisel if necessary to help break any stubborn welds.
What are the watch-outs when cutting off a body panel? Yes, I removed the gas tank, and I can get at 90% of both panels from both sides.
Last - how much bondo should I expect to use to finish it off? I'd like to keep it to as little as possible to avoid cracking.
I'd appreciate any advice that anyone can give me to help the job come out as best it can.
Thanks...
Chris
