The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop Patch Panels

I have a 49 Suburban that the rust termites got a hold of on the front corners of the cab. I bought some patch panels from Chevy Duty. I will cut out the diseased area with cutoff wheel/sawzall and start back with new metal. My question is- 1) should I get a pair of panel flanging pliers and overlap patch panel then spotweld,or 2) have someone who can REALLY weld sheet metal butt weld the panels together. Also can someone give me input on their favorite "bondo" versus auto parts store variety. Thanks :confused:

I used my panel flanging pliers a lot and really like them. Mine is just a driver, not a concours, so it doesn't matter if there is a seam where the factory never had one.
For filling, I used Duraglass, a fiberglass reinforced filler. Similar products are Kitty Hair, Gorilla Hair, and Tiger Hair. The stuff is strong and waterproof. I saved the standard body filler for the finish coat. I bought it all at a professional PBE store, rather than a Pep Boys, so I trusted their expertise.
Worked for me.
Does yours look like this?
http://www.homestead.com/chuckthetruck/page3.html

I like to use a little ALL METAL too.

http://www.autobodysupply.net/catalog/default.asp?CategoryID=168

Clearly the best way is to butt weld the repair panels, it is much easier to bump the metal back into shape than with a lap weld. I have seen many good repair jobs done with a flanging tool lap weld. You do not see many butt weld repairs as they are almost undetectable.
I once worked with a guy that would not use any metal other than what came from that year make car/truck he would cut repair panels out of hoods roofs to make the panels then cut thin strips from the same for filler and TIG weld them in. I thought he was nuts but he was very skilled at making panels.
What you do depends on what you want when you are done.
Is doing the work some thing you want to learn or just a chore to get to the end?
How much can you spend on the project? I do work for people that do restorations by check book.

I'm not an expert welder but still had good luck butt welding lower cowl patch panels on a '50. I just followed the basics, like keeping it cool with compressed air, only welding a small length at a time, and spacing the lengths so that you're never welding adjacent to one you just did. Ground it down and only needed a skim coat of body filler to make it perfect.