1. Cut a little plate the size of the indent behind the hole. Drill it to size. You might have to monkey it up in there. I think I remember the top part of the pocket not having a full plate above it, so there is a chance of access.
2. Weld the proper size nut on that plate’s backside. I believe it’s 3/8” fine thread (correct me if I’m wrong, all).
3. Drill 3 plug weld holes on the cab pillar around the hole opening.
4. Plug weld the little plate with the nut in place.
If you’re in primer, you’ll burn a little primer, but sand it out, reapply, and sand the repair smooth.
If that doesn’t work, I’d cut the face of it out, weld a nut in and weld it back up, steel work it, and reprime.
Or… Oversized drill the hole so the nut fits inside the hole and weld it in. Good penetration will be key and difficult to do because of welding on the wrong side, different thickness of metals, etc.
Anyone else?
Occam’s razor, anyone? Simpler ideas?
Last edited by Fox; 10/05/20225:18 AM.
1970 Chevrolet C10 Grandpa's -- My first truck -- In progress to shiny Follow the build in the Project Journal 1950 Chevrolet 1-Ton Dually "Ole Red Girl" In the Stovebolt Gallery More pictures here 1951 GMC 9430 1 ton dually--Shiny! | 1972 Chevrolet C20- Rusty- the puzzle box lid for the C10 | 1962 AMC Rambler American- my wife's Parts trucks- 1951 GMC 9300 | 1951-GMC 9430 | 1951- Chevrolet 1300
Panel adhesive like they glue Ford trucks together with?
1950 Chevrolet 3100 (Ol' Roy)
1939 Packard Standard Eight Coupe (The Phantom) | 1956 Cadillac Coupe de Ville (The Bismarck) | 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 coupe |1966 Ford Mustang (Little Red) | 1969 Pontiac GTO (The Dishpit) I 1979 Ford F-100 | 1976 Ford F-150 (Big Red) | 1995 Ford F-150 (Newt)
Assume we didn’t want “perfection” to be the enemy of “good” or that a simple non-welding solution was preferred, would this be a suitable application for a rivet nut?
I’ve never used them, but this is the precise problem for which they’re advertised.
1939 Packard Standard Eight Coupe (The Phantom) | 1956 Cadillac Coupe de Ville (The Bismarck) | 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 coupe |1966 Ford Mustang (Little Red) | 1969 Pontiac GTO (The Dishpit) I 1979 Ford F-100 | 1976 Ford F-150 (Big Red) | 1995 Ford F-150 (Newt)
Rivet nuts are good, but you'd need to dimple the hole back a bit to allow for the flange on the face of the rivet nut so the hinge would fit flush as intended.
If the threads are clean and the bolt screws in easily, gluing the nut on the back side would work, as it just needs to be restricted from turning till it gets tight enough for friction to hold it. Although I think access to that top hole is blocked by the box around the hinge pocket. That points toward the rivet nut solution. The hole size might be an issue for the rivet nut, but not insurmountable, even if it's too large.
I've used rivet nuts to mount fenders to a boat trailer with a box frame side member. Worked well.
Thread size is 3/8-24 like Fox said
Last edited by klhansen; 10/05/20228:54 PM. Reason: added thread size
Kevin 1951 Chevy 3100 work truck Follow this saga in Project Journal Photos 1929 Ford pickup restored from the ground up. | 1929 Ford Special Coupe (First car) Busting rust since the mid-60's If you're smart enough to take it apart, you darn well better be smart enough to put it back together.
Thank you gentlemen for all your input. After weighing all my options, I decided to go with Mr Fox's option number one. I had to take a die grinder with a worn down wheel small enough to get it in the hinge pocket and cut a slice out of the hinge pocket a little bit of beating on metal on the inside and working it around I managed to get the nut into place and welded. Thanks again
~ Dan 1951 Chevy 3 window 3100 Follow this story in the DITY Gallery "My Grandpa Carl's Truck and How it Became Mine" 1966 Chevelle (Wife's Hot Rod) | 2013 Chevy Silverado (Current daily driver) US Army MSG Retired (1977-1998) | Com Fac Maint Lead Tech Retired (1998-2021)
