door skin patch panels

[rhyne]

Attempting to repair door panels. Im going to replace inner and outer skins with the 9" patch. Ive stripped one door already and cut out the outer...after some thought, i think ill sand the surface rust and coat inside the door with por15 or rustoleum. I was going to blast then prime but dont feel necessary....and tips for for welding the panels would be great...im no expert and welding but good enough to plz myself....just worried about warping the panel mostly.

[Ranchero50]

I found it to be an exercise in frustration. Not so much the welding but the fitting around the edges of the door. Horrible experience as the inner panel would recess inward and the broken edge wasn't even. I'd much rather patch a dozen small holes with butt welded sections of metal vs replace a skin.

[SmokeyBear]

I've had more luck by placing the new door skin in place and holding it with small clamps (without hammering over the edges), then start your tack welds in the middle of the panel. Move a few inches to the left, then go back to the right. Keep doing this until you get to the ends. This eliminates a lot of the warping and walking the patch will do. Go SLOW and use tack welds, do not succumb to the urge to go faster or line weld. Once you've made your first pass to each end, hammer and dolly the tacks down, this releases some of the tension in and around the welded area. Do this again after each third tack. This serves two purposes, the first releasing the tension, and the second, it gives the metal time to cool so you don't build up heat in the area. Some will use air or water to cool the welds quicker but I've found that this makes the weld area brittle and leads to cracking down the road. Once the panel is completely welded, knock down the welds with a flap wheel grinder. Again SLOWLY as grinding can make as much heat as welding and warp the panel. You can then skim coat with fiberglass and filler.

[sargentrs]

These things are ingenious for panel splicing http://www.eastwood.com/intergrip-panel ... -of-4.html

[rhyne]

Thanks all. Ive ordered some of the clamps. In the meantime, ill tear down the other door and start cutting out for the patch...may need hammer and dolly as well...if these doors end up with a wave, it will bug me to no end...

[rhyne]

Well my ignorance and lack of skill showed itself on the repair....warped a bit and created a nice valley along the weld...tried to hammer back out but made it worse...so, after much thought, i decided to buy the larger 22" panel, weld it in at the "bump" to hopefully have a better shot at camoflauging my still developing skills..on the bright side, i can use the smaller patch to repair the rust hole in the front fender and i can get to the door inside a little better to coat...remember kids, there is no subsitute for experience.

[67mann]

It doesn't help with the quality on the repop panel either....I've done both my door's and will probably end up buying a set at Carlisle next yr It is not an easy process no matter where you seam the panel and patience is at the top of the list when it comes to welding I was smoking at the time I did them and there were a lot of smoke breaks

[SmokeyBear]

You will have a bit of hammer and dolly work no matter where you decide to weld. The nearer a body line or edge you get will eliminate some if the shrinkage. But don't weld directly to a bend, It is very difficult to get a straight line where you've welded. If you are going to get the bigger panels, I would suggest you make the cut about half an inch lower than the body line and do your hammer and dolly work as you do your welds, every couple of spot welds or so.

[rhyne]

Thanks for all the help gang. I got the patches welded in the inside on one door, and the out outer skin. Pleased with it this time, no warping, yay! Only problem i run into now, is folding the edges over for a tight fit...on one edge i even buckled the panel a bit so i stopped...i can hammer it out i think, but not confident in how snug the inside and out are fitting together...