Rear hatch and tailgate RUST repair! (1 Viewer)

[TheCndnCruiser]

A few months ago I decided to tackle the dreaded rear hatch and tailgate rust on my 100! Both 470 and Cruisers are notorious for these parts rusting out... especially living on the west coast in Vancouver!

I never got around to posting these so I will post my journey here!

These first images are prior to any repairs.

 

[TheCndnCruiser]

These next pictures are after a little bit of wire wheeling to investigate the extent of the rust! (A wire wheel is quite abrasive, but my plan was to weld in new pieces anyway so didn't mind)

 

[TheCndnCruiser]

The next stage was to grind out any parts containing rust! These are both tricky areas to repair as they are directly along the pinch seam so additional care was taken to remove the sections without damaging anything other parts of the body.

 

[TheCndnCruiser]

Next, After tediously trying to work with the hatch on the truck, I decided it was too dang annoying so I removed it! Much Easier!! But, still was a lot of work to be done. The rust was mainly around those bottom license plate lights, but the bottom seam also had quite a bit of rust starting throughout it. (Most of the metal was salvageable. I only cut out what I thought shouldn't just be treated with a rust converter.)

Because of the rust in the seam, I decided to unfold the seam and treat as much rust as I could.

 

[2020 Rocks]

You might want to take a peek behind that rear bumper skin for lower qrtr panel rust. Good luck with the repairs!

 

[TheCndnCruiser]

Once I had cut out all of the existing rust and exposed all of the rust hidden in the seam, I began the tedious work of cutting new pieces of sheet metal to weld into place (I used zinc-coated sheet metal and weld through primer to help prevent future rust as well)

For the tailgate, I had to bend around the seam to tie it into the existing seam (on the underside of the tailgate) - This was done using a table vice and hammer. No specialty tools were used in this repair.

 

[TheCndnCruiser]

You might want to take a peek behind that rear bumper skin for lower qrtr panel rust. Good luck with the repairs!

I actually did take a look down and around there and it seems to be good! However, the rocker panel near the rear wheel well is starting to rust... but not too bad so ill save that for another time... just not too long, or else it will probably be gone knowing landcruisers.

 

[TheCndnCruiser]

This Next series of images was a little more tricky as I had to try and match the intricate lines and curves in the bottom hatch all while making sure to line up the cutouts for the lights! It is by no means perfect but was happy with the outcome.

 

[TheCndnCruiser]

The next stage was welding and grinding. Be sure to use proper procedures when welding sheet metal to avoid burning holes and warping the panel!

 

[TheCndnCruiser]

Once I was content with the welds and sealed any pinholes after the griding process with small tack welds, I started the Bondo stage/ priming stage!

my plan was only to re-paint the section around the repair but I decided I may as well refinish the entire tailgate and fix other imperfections while I'm doing it. Lots of sanding with various grits and wet sanding to prep for painting. I used dupli-colour 056 (natural white) for the base coat.

 

[TheCndnCruiser]

This was probably the most satisfying and rewarding moment of the repair.

Also, forgot to mention that I treated and prepped the inside of the hatch and the tailgate so rust doesn't start again where the welds were done. Was much easier on the tailgate as I could remove the inner panel, but was difficult because of the limited acces points in the hatch

 

[TheCndnCruiser]

Finally was the painting stage. Because as I pulled back the seams on the hatch, some of the paint on the front also chipped off so I had to re-paint part of the front (I used seam sealer to reseal the seams I pulled back)
I just used the dupli-colour clear coat as well.

 

[TheCndnCruiser]

And finally, the finished product!

Feel free to ask any questions or offer me any advice, always love to learn!

 

[JunkCrzr89]

First, excellent job! Final product came out great. Second, could you elaborate more on the below items? I have an FJ60 that needs similar repairs to the hatch and tailgate.

Be sure to use proper procedures when welding sheet metal to avoid burning holes and warping the panel!

What gauge sheet metal did you use for patches and what wire size did you use in your welder?

I treated and prepped the inside of the hatch and the tailgate so rust doesn't start again where the welds were done.

What did you use to treat and prep inside?

 

[excessive]

nice work! now i know why most people just buy a used part instead of repair. there's just no good way to access the inside of that hatch

 

[TheCndnCruiser]

First, excellent job! Final product came out great. Second, could you elaborate more on the below items? I have an FJ60 that needs similar repairs to the hatch and tailgate.


What gauge sheet metal did you use for patches and what wire size did you use in your welder?


What did you use to treat and prep inside?

Appreciate it! -

1) I used 22 gage metal. (I had thicker material sitting around my shop but was too thick so I got the following patch.) Worked perfect for me. Sheet Metal | Canadian Tire - https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/sheet-metal-0475780p.html

Welder wire was .030 flux core. I ended up making it work but people warn that flux core burns hotter which can create burn through. I did experience a little bit of that, but as long as you take it slowly and avoid one spot for too long it should be okay. (I made it work)
Also, I’m far from a professional, just did research and made due with what I had available)

2) The materials I used were
- “rust check rust converter”
- “rust check rust killer primer”
- weld through primer
- Seam sealer.

I was able to get into the inside a bit easier as I cut out a section of the hatch as shown in picture. (You can also get access from the inside after you remove the latch / lock mechanism) - on the 100s at least, guessing it would be similar for 80s.

 

[JunkCrzr89]

Appreciate it! -

1) I used 22 gage metal. (I had thicker material sitting around my shop but was too thick so I got the following patch.) Worked perfect for me. Sheet Metal | Canadian Tire - https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/sheet-metal-0475780p.html

Welder wire was .030 flux core. I ended up making it work but people warn that flux core burns hotter which can create burn through. I did experience a little bit of that, but as long as you take it slowly and avoid one spot for too long it should be okay. (I made it work)
Also, I’m far from a professional, just did research and made due with what I had available)

2) The materials I used were
- “rust check rust converter”
- “rust check rust killer primer”
- weld through primer
- Seam sealer.

I was able to get into the inside a bit easier as I cut out a section of the hatch as shown in picture. (You can also get access from the inside after you remove the latch / lock mechanism) - on the 100s at least, guessing it would be similar for 80s.

Thanks!

 

[Trukdiver]

Incredible. Thank you so much for posting. I need this repair and a patch in front of the left rear tire.

 

[TheCndnCruiser]

Incredible. Thank you so much for posting. I need this repair and a patch in front of the left rear tire.

Glad it could help! And good luck with your future repairs!

 

[Whiskeyding]

Great write up! Just a question, how well did your repair fair over the winter? Mainly your choice of paint?