The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop Hidden Hood Rust

Hey Fellas,

I have a rather rusty hood removed from 52 and have it split. Center trim and center rivets removed. I have quite a bit of rust behind inner hood hardware, including hood latch mounts and cross braces. I can't stand the idea of not getting to and treating all rust. I am thinking about removing spot welds/rivets and completely removing all hardware. Any suggestions from someone thats been there. Plan to treat with POR 15. Am I on the right track or would it be a big No No!...Thanks for any input in advance!

Wow - I can see all kinds of problems when it comes time to put it back together. I might get as much of the loose rust off as possible and thin some por-15 just a bit then turn the hood up side down, poor the por15 on/in the hood and rotate the hood till it is all covered.....just my 2 cents
If you are going to separate everything, spend the time and make some jigs to aid you when its time to reassemble it.

I did exactly as you are planning. I had a baseball size dent right behind the hood latch panel that I couldn't get to any other way. I took mine down as far as it would go. It went back together pretty well. I drilled the 3/16" holes for the rivets where the two halfs joined to 1/4". I then bolted the two halves together. This allowed me to shift the two pieces after reassembly. Then you can paint between the two halves and the back of all the braces and the hood itself. I put the braces back, then riveted them and re-welded them. Then I test fitted the hood on the truck before snugging up the bolts. I would do it again if I had another hood that needed it.
Scott

I just seperated my hood this past weekend. I also removed the front and rear braces/suports/hinge plates. The front is easy and is just bolted in place. The rear requires removing rivits and spot welds. Each half of the rear brace/support has three rivits on the hinge plate side. Remove the three rivits. The hinge plate side also has three spot welds that must be drilled out. The welds are on the large flat of the bottom fold of the hood metal. The end of the support where the two hood halves joint has one spot weld on each tab (two total). Drill them out and the support comes out.

I scribed outlines where the support originally was place so I could easily reassemble in the correct position. Also, the drilled out spot welds will serve as a guide as will the rivit holes. I see no way that the support cannot be reinstalled exactly as it was and the hood will be better off in the end. The backside of the support had a considerable amount of rust and dirt trapped.

Thanks fellas It didn't seem like big deal and I already have her tore down. Sometimes ya just have to dive in!....didn't make sense not to! Thanks again for your input! It's much appreciated! Doug

I used a spot weld drill bit that left holes where the brace was welded to a perfect fit putting back together.