theramz

Drilled some holes in the inner fender for rosette welds and welded in a backer strip so I can re install the inner portion I cut out. Now I have the shape of the quarter back. This is a lot easier than butt welding.

theramz

Welded in a hand cut piece for the inner part that I cut out leaving it extra long.
Aligned the patch panel and stitch welded it in. Next I'll patch the space on the inner fender. This way I can put down some healthy welds and grind/ file them smooth and just wipe with some filler.

beg3yrs

Glad you got some more time for the project. That's a lot of work Ramz. Love to see the progress photos, thanks.

theramz

Fitted the inner lower piece. Welded it in and then bent it out and down to meet the patch panel. Drilled holes for rossette type welds. So much for Sunday. Next I'll make patches for the remainder of the inner portion. Next week is a four day holiday. Also half price day ant the local pick n pull!

Kerrys914

Any updates? I am doing some of these repairs to my 280z now.. This is nice/fun to follow you.

Kerrys914

Where do you use a overlapping stitch weld and where do you drill hole for rotisserie type welds (not a complete weld) ?

theramz

I just decide by what happens next after or during the weld. On old thin metal a butt weld will just make more holes than I can chase. I also don't want to warp the metal. The plug or rosette type welds can mimic the oem spot welds. and avoid edge welds where the panels meet like at the rockers and fender. I like using the backer so It's easier to get everything aligned such as the inner fender.
You should start a thread showing your work so others can learn.
I might get a day this weekend.

Kerrys914

Have you used Eastwoods internal Frame Primer? It has a hose to spray primer into the frame rail to coat the inside and reduce the chances of rust forming and spreading.

I am dropping my 1st welds this weekend.

Did you shave the rear bumper?

theramz

I'll have to check that out. I am leaving an opening in the inner fender to spray in rust proofing into the rocker before closing it up. Then spray fom the inside of the hatch area.
No, I'm not going to shave the rear.

theramz

Got some time to fab up an inner fender piece. I just folded over a piece and ran it through my shrinker die set to get the same curve as the outer piece. Tuck it in place spot welded it in. I'll cut the rest of the little pieces and weld it all up. With all the work I had to do to the patch panel I bought I could have made the whole thing.

Kerrys914

How has the Z project been going?

theramz

Was able to work on it this weekend and got the inner fender welded back in. Ran out of gas on my welder so maybe on it again Friday. Will post pics of progress. Slow goin like old people ***k, oh wait, I am old people.

theramz

Got some time in last night and made up some more pieces for the inner fender. Ground and filed some of the welds down. Maybe tomorrow I can fill the gaps with more weld to end up with mostly metal to finish.

theramz

Made the last patch to complete the inner fender. A inner corner to weld to with my shrinker die. Made a pattern for the patch and shaped the edge radius for a stronger piece. Stitched it in and now for a lot of filling with wire feed and grind it smooth. Then contour the outer welds with a Vixen or body file. Ran out of wire and smoked the grinder.
It is difficult to see inside the fender well before I stike the arc so I came up with this idea to put LED lights in the helmet. Now I can see to position the torch exactly.

beg3yrs

That's some real skilled work Tom. Too bad about the grinder though. I just hate it when a tool dies in the middle of a task. I'm pretty sure I've worn out at least one set of tires going to the hardware/auto parts/tool store over the last couple of years.

Pretty slick idea with the LEDs on the helmet too. File a patent if you haven't seen that one before!

theramz

It went up in smoke while I had my head inside the fender well in a shower of sparks, thought I was on fire or the car. Didn't know I could move that fast lol.

theramz

Found a few hours and smoothed out what I had so far. I ground all the boogery welds down smooth to where I could use the vixen files on it. Don't want to grind the original metal any thinner than it already is. Inner fender is good enough to coat.

beg3yrs

Keeps on looking better every time you post. I hope you get more free time soon.

theramz

Just getting over triple surgery on my shoulder and chomping at the bit. Since all I could do is look at it I decided to fill in the rear valance and bumper indents on the sides.
To make the patches I taped off the area and drew a line around the edge at the radius. I wanted to make the patches as even with the surface as possible. This way to minimize the thickness of the filler. First I'll weld the top edge even with the body panel and fill the gap with weld. Then weld the bottom edge flush.. This is much better than having the edge too high and grinding the patch too thin.

beg3yrs

That's really nice work Tom. Those patches fit like a glove.

Keep on recuperating and you'll be back at it in no time...

theramz

Thanks Scott.
I'm going to use these 944 Porsche bumpers. They line up better than this picture.

theramz

Made patch panels for the bumper indents. I cut them a little smaller than the space. I made long welds spaced 2" apart. As I went along I was able to push in or reach behind with a hacksaw blade and pry out to keep the panel as flush as possible. That way I can minimize the amount of filler.

theramz

Made these patches and used my stud welder to make little handles to hold them while I spotted them in. Filled the antennae hole bumper holes and side mirror. After rough grinding I can see I need a little more welding to fill the larger pock holes.

cyclopsblown34

Did the gnats do the death march through the clear?

cyclopsblown34

Great work! Thank you for sharing!