Making panels.......

Seeing dubwarriors question reminded me of this thread. It can be a little slow to load because of the number of pictures, but the work is pretty impressive.

vwrides.com/viewtopic.php?t=43

(Sorry if it's a duplicate, I had a quick look up the thread and couldn't find it).

WoW - I had not seen this before, those guys certainly take this to another level, But again a perfect example of what can be created with some basic tools and a bit of know how, although I am not sure I would ever want to hand beat one of those cargo bay floor panels.

Dubwarrior, I see what your part is now, and those guys made it in 2 parts, I guess because of the little strengthening ribs that cross the large flange. I reckon you could weld in those ribs afterwards if you did it my way, or do as they did and make it in 2 pieces, I am sure either way would create the desired affect

We still want to see photos if you attempt it

I can't believe I didn't spot this earlier, must be an old age thing, and the fact that I had stored it away, but you could use the Open source Bender to create the ribs that I just detailed.

You could use the step in the 2 angles, as shown below as your working area








Its even more versatile than I thought

John

Yes there are nuts welded to the outer angle and the bolts screw right through them to push against the loose angle

Tony

Kev

The bender is made from 50 x 50 x 6 thick angle

Where you are repairing a section in a panel, then it must be fully welded, but where that panel meets another panel, then spot welding or pool welding is fine, after all, this is exactly as they were when they were new.

I've certainly never had any problems come MOT time, and I would certainly challenge any MOT tester who said differently, not sure what anyone else's experiences have been.

Stew

Sorry I have just seen this post, for some reason I did not get a notification email

with repairs like this the only way to do it properly is to cut out the rotten metal, back to sound metal, if this involves cutting through 2 or 3 other panels, then that is what you have to do. I would however advise not to cut out any more than is needed, you don't want to make it any more difficult than it already is

But don't worry it always looks like you don't know where to start with stuff like this, but once you have it cut out and cleaned up then just start making each piece as needed, and soon it will much clearer.

I still have moments like this where it is just not clear how it is going to be fixed, but I know that the rot has got to come out, so that is where I start.

Tony

Dave

Hope you get as much use out of it as I have done from mine

Just to prove that I have not been sitting on my backside over the last few months and to reiterate the point above, about cutting out 2 or 3 panels if needed to get rid of the rot.

I am busy with a another BMW at the moment,


This is the inconspicuous looking patch that had been put on previously, to pass an mot I assume






and here it is with the patch removed, not pretty








and another dodgy patch over the rot under the inner wing stiffener







so as I said earlier, the only way is to cut all the rot right out







new panel made and fitted.















and new inner wing stiffener made and fitted






so the moral of the story is, don't just patch over rust, as pretty soon afterwards it will be a hole all the way through, and no matter how daunting it might look, once you cut the rot out and take a methodical approach to repairing it, you will soon have a nice solid repair

Dave

Most of the body repairs are 20 swg, but I use 16swg for any chassis repairs

Dave

Not sure I can entirely picture what you mean, but 16swg U channels with wings, as you say, would certainly add stiffness, but I would not just cover a rotten chassis with them