I am currently in the process of fixing up my truck, and I have some cancer problems above my fender wells. Has anybody ever repaired their vehicle with the weld on patches? Any issues with the welds bubbling up after a couple years? I am trying to find a whole bedside to replace it with, to avoid bubbling in the future, but no luck so far. I don't want to pay my neighbor to fix it and paint it, just to have the paint bubble in a couple years. I drive a 97 GMC Sierra long bed if anybody has a drivers side bedside laying around with no rust
It's pretty tough to stop rust once it has started. If you can find a good replacement, I'd sure go that route. Unless of course you just need the fix to last a year or two.
Yeah, especially living in Kansas when they salt the roads We are going to cut the rust completely out, then weld the repair patch in place of what we cut out, so the rust will be gone. I'm worried that the welds on the patch will bubble up in a couple of years after painting the whole bedside again. This truck is basically just a hunting/work truck, but I don't really want to spend the money to fix it and then be back in the same boat in a couple years.
Have you welded sheet metal before? If not, be aware that MIG welding can warp the panel if not done correctly. As far as rusting at the welds, as long as both sides are cleaned, prepped and sealed, it's usually not a problem. If you get a chance, snap a few pictures of the problem areas.
POR-15. If it doesn't need to look purdy. My whole frame and underside of my jeep will be done with this as I put it back together
Read the directions. Whe it says if you get it on you and it dries, the only way to get it off is to wear it off...they mean it! I have a pro-street style Skylark in the works and I coated the chassis with it after blasting. It's expensive but good stuff.
I have never welded sheet metal before, but my neighbor has done body work and painting for a long time, so he knows what he is doing. I plan on coating everything on the inside with the rust inhibitor, then spraying bed liner down the side of my truck from the top body line down. I will also put fender flares on after the rust is fixed. I will take some pictures tomorrow of the rust, kind of do a before and after thing.
If your friend has experience in welding and body work the welds will not be a problem. If the area to be welded is properly cleaned the welds will be as clean or cleaner than the base metal. The weld in patch is the best way to go. I was in maintenance for many years and my moto was do it right the first time, and you will only have to do it once. I feel sorry for you guys that have to deal with the salt. Living in the South we don't see much salt on the road. But then again, when there is an inch of snow on the ground, we have to stay at home.
Here is the rust above my driver side rear wheel well Here is the passenger side cab corner, its the worst but both sides are being replaced
I would replace the cab corners, they are in pretty rough shape. As far as the bedsides, personally I would pick up a gallon of roll on bedliner, mask it out and roll it on. My truck had about the same amount of rust over the wells as yours and 3 years later I have no new rust. The key is to do a real good job prepping the surface, picking off loose paint and sanding everything down. I used a paintbrush on the back side to seal it, and roll the front. 2-3 coats should be more than enough. Bottom line, it'll fix the problem and be a ton cheaper than replacing it. I'd recommend this stuff. http://www.grizzlygrip.com/Vehicle_Guard_Block-content.aspx
Cab corners need some serious attention. Won't take long till shes letting the outside in. Thats a bit more work if you want to do it right, but for a work beast, and 15 years old, ...........
You beat me to it Fitz! That is great stuff but dont get it on your hands, it does not come off easily. I have welded in patch panels but just make sure you get all the rust cut out. POR 15 is great if you can get it on the back side and go ahead and finish out and paint the exterior!
My buddies truck looked the same and we welded in new panels. If you are looking for parts this site is one of the best I have found. http://www.lmctruck.com/
Yeah, the cab corners are for sure getting completely replaced. We are going to cut out the rust above the fender well and weld the patch in, the same with both rocker panels. We will use the rust inhibiting paint on everything before paint. After primer and paint, I will put my fender flares on and start scuffing everything for the bed liner. The neighbor is going to get started on it tomorrow after my class gets over at 10:45.
To cut in on this thread...... My '01 Silverado has rust bubbling through on the rockers and bottom door skins. It makes me sad. I'm thinking of applying camo vinyl to hide it. Is there something I should put on the rust before the vinyl? This truck is almost the rust bucket that my IH Scouts were... and that's saying something. Brake lines rusted out. Both rear spring shackles rusted through...
This is a repair I did a few years ago on an 88 F150. The welded area outlasted the cleaned up rust area over the bed side. I hope Photobucket works here... The beginning. Cut out and welded. Primed, pre blocking. Base. Bed side Cancer. A little clean up and filler. Paint. Done. I wish I had taket more shots during the actual cutting and repair. The prep work on the door involved about 3 times the repair area in paint removal and metal prep. All bare metal was etched with 3M (insert part number here) and after the welding, was undercoated. This was a hunting truck but it was just as easy to do it this way. Repair lasted 2 years +.
Thanks. I sold it about two years or so after the repair. The rust above the wheel well was just starting to come back but the door was fine. Really hard to stop the rust once it starts. Let me know how your repair goes.
Seems after 1994 Chevy's just started rusting like crazy. Order new fenders at your body shop. If the rust is the only problem, and I guessing since it's a 97, keep the truck if it's the only problem.
Well he started cutting into it yesterday, and wow! The whole inside of the fender is just rotten away. So the plan now is to find a whole different bed that has no rust on it. We went to look at one yesterday for me and to pick up a bed for his 53 Ford, but by the time the guy answered and we got there it was pouring rain. The guy had two beds, but one had a tiny little rust bubble starting that he didn't see, and the other one had fender flares on it so we couldnt see much. My neighbor is going back to Kansas City this weekend, so I'm going to tag along and take the fender flares off the bed. He wants $300 for the whole bed, so thats not too bad. Ben- Im planning on keeping the truck for a long time, to use as a hunting and work truck after I buy me a Cummins I just spent $1500 replacing the transmission, rear axle seals, brakes, etc.
