New build thread; 48 Plymouth

[falconvan]

More pics.....

[falconvan]

one more...

[Dave Severson]

That'll work great!!!! Good job Falcon!!!!! you're really getting that patching stuff dialed in, looks great!!!!!

[falconvan]

Here's some more; I saved some pieces from the sedan for patching. The drivers side rear really came in handy but the other side is too thin to use. I got one side finished and a start on the other. I had to stop and fix my MIG, it kept spitting and wouldn't lay down a smooth bead. I put on a new ground clamp, cleaned and retigtened all the connections and it made a huge difference. That's probably it for this weekend, maybe some more next week. It get's really busy for us this time of year.

[falconvan]

A few more....

[falconvan]

And here's the start of the other side.

[falconvan]

That'll work great!!!! Good job Falcon!!!!! you're really getting that patching stuff dialed in, looks great!!!!!

Thanks, Dave!
I've been having some welder issues but I think I've got it fixed. It's a learning experience, for sure! The tail is probably the worst of the body repairs so it'll feel good to wrap this part up.

[bluestang67]

Great work there Falcon . Enjoy this alot more then TV . Yep the Holidays are among us and we will be very busy getting through them .

[bluestang67]

Falcon looking deep into the metal i seen something at work i know would have worked . Working at a stamping plant i look for different shapes that will work in metal repair . I am in the basement looking at the scrap conveyor running and ask people what do they see . They always say scrap I tell them no its vintage auto replacement parts going to be melted back down .

[falconvan]

Falcon looking deep into the metal i seen something at work i know would have worked . Working at a stamping plant i look for different shapes that will work in metal repair . I am in the basement looking at the scrap conveyor running and ask people what do they see . They always say scrap I tell them no its vintage auto replacement parts going to be melted back down .

That's the one drawback I've found about the old Mopars vs Fords & Chevy's; there are very few resources for replacement sheetmetal. There's a guy called the Plymouth Doctor but he's pretty slow about getting back to you. Other than that its pretty much build it yourself or find a good donor. You ought to pull some of that stuff off the conveyor and Ebay it; you could probably make a small fortune!

[Dave Severson]

I usually work on such oddball stuff, kind of given up on finding a source for patch panels and such and just make most of my own... Amazing what you can do with a piece of 20 ga., a shot bag, plastic mallet, couple pieces of round tubing for dies, and a couple body hammers!!!!!! Used to be a sheetmetal shop in town, they were a great source for cutoffs and weird shaped pieces....too bad they went belly up! Probably cuz they threw away too much stuff!!!!

[falconvan]

Before I started patching this I bought a Ron Covell video on sheet metal forming and watched it a few times. I was blown away by what he did with simple hand tools. He was building a replacement quarter panel and tailpiece for a 1930 something Auburn. About halfway throught the curved tailpeice he was building it was looking like he took a perfectly good piece of metal and beat it into oblivian but I'll be darned if it didnt turn out perfect in the end. Amazing stuff to watch and really satisfying to learn.

[bluestang67]

I like the metal shapers site also . They have some great tech there for metal work . These inner cowl and body mounts are gone on the 37 . I spent some time last night looking to rebuild them . I have found them for replacement but at $105 a piece I think I am going to try my hand at making . This is where your patch work has given me a I can do mind process. They will be hidden so perfect match won't be necessary Just some good solid support.

[falconvan]

That's the way I figure it; if you cant see it when the car is back together, go for fuctionality. That definately looks fixable with regular sheet metal. Sheetmetal is cheap right now, too. I bought a 4'x8' sheet of 20 gauge for $45 and a 4'x8' sheet of 16 gauge for $62. It'll take me a long time to use all that.

[falconvan]

As much as I hated to spend the time on it, I really needed to get the parts car stripped, cut up and disposed of. I need the space and the end of Jan seems to be a prime time to sell Ebay parts. I guess people are starting to get their tax checks and look at getting their ride ready for spring. I went to Lowes to pick up a pack of sawzall blades, some grinding discs, and stared choppin'. Time to make some space and some $$$!