Operation Integrity Options

[amfab]

OK, well I had to have a thread title. I am calling it that because it will restore structural integrity to the car and I want to be able to say that the rust has been correctly repaired if I eventually sell the car, unlike the lack of integrity of the person who hid the rust to sell it.

Pictures below

The floor is a little shiny because there is still some mineral spirits on it from trying to get the tar off.

The open areas that you are seeing are after I wire brushed with knotted wire wheels on a grinder, then a carbide burr on a die grinder. While I will take some more off, what you see is getting close to good weldable metal.

First the longs:

The driver’s side is the worst. The bottom edges inside and out were full of holes, or very thin, so I cut the outside of the driver’s all the way off—except I haven’t got to the front under the door pillar yet.

I have cut out about 30 percent of the passenger’s side. The middle section is solid but I will replace it anyway. I started getting a little scared to take more out until I brace up the body.

The floor pan:

There are lots of sloppy welded patches and holes around the seams. The rear passenger’s and rear drivers quarters of the floor pan have been replaced with some plain steel—blue for some reason. The PO welded a solid bar on each side to mount the seat hinges. Sloppy, unground welds abound. There are some rust-through spots at the front of the pan that will need patching, but overall the pan in front of the cross member is solid.

Some patches in the lower firewall are solid.

Measuring diagonally, window frame to targa bar and straight back window frame to targa bar it is off no more than 1/8 inch. This changes depending upon doors open or closed or movement of the jack stands. The door gaps were never problems—maybe the driver’s side was a little wide. So it seems the car is pretty within spec and adjustable doorframe bars should be able to pull—or push—things to be good

Here is where I need advice. This is my plan, please give feedback:

1) Pull Wiring harness, speedometer cable and gas lines out of the center tunnel (What else is in there?) pull gas tank.


2) Pull doors and build adjustable bars to align doorframes

3) Continue to grind back to clean metal in the inside of the longs. Sandblast, then create internal angled patch pieces to repair the inner longitudinals from 18ga cold rolled. I am using michelko’s example see:
http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?s=&...st&p=219748

4) Cut off the majority of the inner rockers (The upper half or three quarters of the longs are very solid) and replace with inner rockers from Restoration Design.

5) Coat interiors of longs with Ospho then Eastwood frame coating

6) Patch any inner long parts to the area aft of the Restoration Design patch with 18ga cold rolled steel.

7) Install Brad Mayuer reinforcement kit over the longs

8) Cut rear floor quarters and cross member out

9) Weld in new rear floor panel and cross member, grinding out old welds and creating flanges from18ga where necessary—in the spots where there is no flange left in spots along the firewall and inner long

10) Remove and rebuild pedal cluster and create patches for small rust spots in the front of the footwells.

11) Sandblast interior and prime and paint.

12) Cut holes for front sway bar, sand blast and prime and paint bottom of gas tank area.

13) Install gas tank, new stainless gas lines and reinstall wiring harness.

Please give any feedback regarding my plan

[Andyrew]

At this point you have so little structural integrity from the longs its not a bad idea to be able to check the gaps as you go along so you can adjust the body as necessary.

Also, Check out this thread. Adjustability in your braces now will come in handy later.

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?sho...62220&st=60

[amfab]

Thanks for the link Andrew there is some very relevant stuff for me on there.

I leveled the car and made the braces today. After wrenching it so the driver’s side pushes out a little and the passenger’s pulls a little. I ended up with good measurements and the door gaps in the pictures.

The windshield to targa bar measurement is dead on both sides.
The cross measurement from targa bar to opposite windshield frame differs by a little under 1/8 inch. Does this seem reasonable?

The door gaps seem pretty good, but the doors don’t seem to sit in the jambs that straight. Fro example the passenger's door is about 1mm too low in the rear. I think I can fix these later. Is shimming the hinges something that is done?

I just want to make sure the car is straight before I start rebuilding the longs.

I will try Matthew’s idea with the string line tomorrow. Unfortunately, there is some Bondo in the bottom of some of the panels, so I do not know how accurate it will be.

-Andrew