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December
9, 2004 Trunk Work Part 12Well, I'm in the home stretch with these trunk repairs. The floor is again intact and solid, with only a few areas still needing attention. The final pieces will be the sheet metal over the rear brace and a portion of the rear trunk lip that I replaced earlier. Once that's done, I'll be able to get the car on the rotisserie, and we'll find out how good I am in the design department. The first thing I did today was finish welding the driver's side patch to the rear brace. This really went a long way to making the trunk solid and flat. Originally, it was spot-welded to the brace, but I welded the entire seam for strength. It will be hidden under another sheet metal panel, so nobody will ever know. I'll also do a few spot welds from underneath to secure the front edge of the brace to the floorboards.
Next I fabricated a patch for the other side of the trunk and welded it in place the same way I did with the driver's side. The driver's side floors were a little warped, making the weld a little more difficult. Even more difficult was getting it to lay flat on the brace so I could weld it flat. I started from the middle and worked my way to the outside, welding about an inch, then hammering the next inch flat while it was still hot. The finished result ended up pretty flat. Some hammer and dolly work will flatten it completely, and once it is upholstered, it will be undetectable.
Next time I hope to finish the entire trunk area with a sheet metal piece over the brace. I'll grind down the welds before installing it, then spot-weld it to the brace area. I'm constantly surprised by how long some of this work takes. Previous Restoration Day E-mail me at toolman8@sbcglobal.net This page accessed Thanks, Fidget! |
