- Thread starter
- #101
That turned out NICE!
Build When your inner voice speaks, you need to listen.
- Thread starter SHIfTHEAD
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Honestly man, no matter what anyone says - anything is salvageable. One of the most inspiring and best rescue threads I've ever seen was @mwebfj60's "Zombie". I'm sure everyone would've told him that it was too far gone and it was a great parts rig. It didn't stop him from resurrecting it from the dead.
It started like this:
And ended up looking like this:
Just goes to show that with the right amount of patience, time and dedication any rig is salvageable and capable of a rescue. But it's not for the faint of heart that's for sure.
I wish you luck on your build, and I will be following this one for sure.
It started like this:
And ended up looking like this:
Just goes to show that with the right amount of patience, time and dedication any rig is salvageable and capable of a rescue. But it's not for the faint of heart that's for sure.
I wish you luck on your build, and I will be following this one for sure.
- Joined
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Alright guys, quit distracting from his epic rust repair with unrelated pictures of other stuff that doesn’t add any tech value or reference
So I have not looked on here in a while. Great job!!
You are one of a small set of people who actually believe rust is removable not matter how bad it is to save what will become rarer and rarer vehicles.
Keep up the awesome work.
You are one of a small set of people who actually believe rust is removable not matter how bad it is to save what will become rarer and rarer vehicles.
Keep up the awesome work.
Yes he had that benefit - which is definitely nice, but my point was that with enough time, patience and skill anything can be brought back from the dead and that thread was just one of many examples of that.
Amazing work!
- Thread starter
- #110
Nothing crazy done since the last pics, but did move onto another roof issue at the back. Similar in nature to the big fix but much smaller in scale. Also fixed the right rear quarter panel. This one had rust and the panel had been hit. There was actually a tear in the metal from the impact as well as being pushed in. I've got it all rebuilt but will need to spend some time down the road getting it all straight. I will have to go in from the inside and work it outward, which will be tricky since it's right where all the lines are from the fuel tank. Anyway a few pics.
- Thread starter
- #111
Starting on the passenger rocker panel. The thing with rust is how deceiving it's extent actually is beyond what you can see. Below you can see the rocker panel (below the gnarly door) and you see a few little rust pops through the paint. The next image is how much I had to cut away just to reach good metal. I'll try and add before and after shots as I continue this project for reference.
So first is the passenger side rear fender well. You can see in the poor quality screen grab the rust holes that existed prior to me starting to remove the bad metal and then how far I had to go to get to good metal. The rubberize undercoating isn't helping at this point, it's making things much worse. Next is the rocker panel and the small rust pops you could see before you start cutting into it, and then how far you gotta go to get beyond the rust (that image is after I've started adding back in new metal btw). Good times...
So first is the passenger side rear fender well. You can see in the poor quality screen grab the rust holes that existed prior to me starting to remove the bad metal and then how far I had to go to get to good metal. The rubberize undercoating isn't helping at this point, it's making things much worse. Next is the rocker panel and the small rust pops you could see before you start cutting into it, and then how far you gotta go to get beyond the rust (that image is after I've started adding back in new metal btw). Good times...
- Thread starter
- #112
And the last two images are taken as I am reconstructing the whole thing
- Thread starter
- #113
Alright I can cross the passenger rocker panel and rear wheel well off the list. I'm rather pleased with how the interior bits came together. The curves were a challenge for me to figure out, but I basically found a way to have two main pieces overlap so I would not have to recreate some insane compound curves on a single piece. Then where they met I used the cutting wheel and cut off the excess to both and welded the seam. Now for the proof:
- Thread starter
- #114
Forgot about the cross brace underneath that needed work too
Thank you for documenting your work! The detailed pictures are extremely helpful to understand the anatomy of these pieces...for me especially the roof. Keep up the great rescue!!
- Thread starter
- #116
Another couple of productive days in the shop...after the rocker panel and rear passenger floorboard I moved forward on the passenger side, stopping at the horror show of the bottom corner of the windshield frame. I've been looking at this and basically thinking how in the hell am I going to fix that?!? Well, as with most things in life, the hardest part is starting. I spent a good deal of time staring at it and imagining all the metal that used to be in there. The rust was so bad that it got behind the windshield and started eating away at the metal frame of the dashboard mount too. I also noticed a bit of rust at the bottom of the hood hinge so I removed the wiper assembly to get a better look. Behind it I found a few pounds of leaves and acorns and more rust. Behind the wiper motor is the fresh air intake that is a box with a metal grate over it. This had suffered from years of wet leaves and was in need of some attention too. Also the metal between the hinge and the wiper motor was in need of some help.
I decided what was need first was a fresh cutting wheel and went to work. I opened up the area to get to the intake and removed the bad metal around it's base as much as I could. I also cut out the bad metal between the hinge and wiper assembly. I started to rebuild all this and got it all back together so I could focus on the real problem, the window frame. First I started to fix the metal between the dash and the window frame to have a good foundation to build on. Next I basically started to construct the window frame piece by piece. I needed to make sure the window is going to fit, since there was no metal there, at all, where the seal fits. But since I had metal on either side I just had to figure out the appropriate curves to fit the window. So I bent a piece of metal about 8 inches long at 90 degrees to create the base and the lip for the seal, then I cut it on either side of the bend in several places down its length on either side. This allows the piece to be bent to fit the window form and hold its shape till I tacked it all the way down. Then I welded it in place and continued to build the rest. Anyway, it was quite a job, and there is a whole other side yet to do. Yay.
I decided what was need first was a fresh cutting wheel and went to work. I opened up the area to get to the intake and removed the bad metal around it's base as much as I could. I also cut out the bad metal between the hinge and wiper assembly. I started to rebuild all this and got it all back together so I could focus on the real problem, the window frame. First I started to fix the metal between the dash and the window frame to have a good foundation to build on. Next I basically started to construct the window frame piece by piece. I needed to make sure the window is going to fit, since there was no metal there, at all, where the seal fits. But since I had metal on either side I just had to figure out the appropriate curves to fit the window. So I bent a piece of metal about 8 inches long at 90 degrees to create the base and the lip for the seal, then I cut it on either side of the bend in several places down its length on either side. This allows the piece to be bent to fit the window form and hold its shape till I tacked it all the way down. Then I welded it in place and continued to build the rest. Anyway, it was quite a job, and there is a whole other side yet to do. Yay.
- Thread starter
- #117
more...
I totally wondered if that’s how curves could be made in a length of metal! Thanks for that picture!
Looks awesome! Keep it up and keep the pictures coming!
Looks awesome! Keep it up and keep the pictures coming!
- Thread starter
- #119
So I'm still at work on the beast, just haven't had the time to update lately, trying to make headway. Which I think I've done. As of this writing all the main patching on the body is complete. There are still little things here and there I keep finding, but they are little things I can address prior to taking the body in for epoxy primer.
I rolled the frame back into the shop today and have started disassembly of the core support area. This is a pain because all the fittings have rust on them and don't want to cooperate. But since I'll be replacing all the hoses anyway I'll just cut them off; stuff like the radiator coolant hoses. I'm not going to run them in to the new radiator anyway, I'll have a separate cooler for the radiator, so saving these hoses didn't matter, no matter what.
Once I get the core support/radiator out of the way I'll continue down the path of pulling the engine/trans/xfer case as one unit and setting that all off to the side as I address the frame. Rust on the frame looks very manageable, just surface rust with the exception of the rear C channels. I got the Trail Tailor C Channel kit delivered this week, so I'll be able to cut that out and get it all sorted. Once the frame is free and up on stands I'll address the axles. Been reading up on rebuild kits, looks doable but super messy. But I'll cross that bridge when I get there.
Anyway a couple pics of the final patches before I rolled the body to the back of the shop.
I rolled the frame back into the shop today and have started disassembly of the core support area. This is a pain because all the fittings have rust on them and don't want to cooperate. But since I'll be replacing all the hoses anyway I'll just cut them off; stuff like the radiator coolant hoses. I'm not going to run them in to the new radiator anyway, I'll have a separate cooler for the radiator, so saving these hoses didn't matter, no matter what.
Once I get the core support/radiator out of the way I'll continue down the path of pulling the engine/trans/xfer case as one unit and setting that all off to the side as I address the frame. Rust on the frame looks very manageable, just surface rust with the exception of the rear C channels. I got the Trail Tailor C Channel kit delivered this week, so I'll be able to cut that out and get it all sorted. Once the frame is free and up on stands I'll address the axles. Been reading up on rebuild kits, looks doable but super messy. But I'll cross that bridge when I get there.
Anyway a couple pics of the final patches before I rolled the body to the back of the shop.
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Dayum. That was just under two months. Step your game up, everyone else.