"I wasn't planning on having to repair rust in that area." That was one of the statements made right after we stripped all of the removable parts from our project 'Bee and found some hidden rust. As a matter of fact, it was said a couple of different times about a couple of different locations. Let's face it, every project car has rust that needs repaired. Sometimes that rust comes in some strange places. In this case, the rust we found was underneath the Dutchman panel (the panel between the rear window and trunk lid). It was bad enough, that repairing it wasn't an option; we needed to replace the panel.
No more than just a few years ago, if you needed to replace this panel, that meant hopefully finding a good used one. Now, however, the aftermarket has made new reproductions availableùbut what's the quality like? Let me begin by saying that it's great to be able to buy new metal to replace rust, and in this case, the piece we received from Roseville Moparts impressed us since (one), the metal was just as heavy (read: thick) as the original piece, and (two), the form of the piece looked to be right on. But let's not make everything sound all rosy and insinuate that the panel "fell" into place. During our install, we did run into a small problem. This is not to say that the metal was the problem, it means we had a problematic situation that we needed to overcome.
Since all aftermarket sheet metal is reverse engineered, and every 30- or 40-year-old car will have variances in its build, this is where our situation manifested itself as you'll see in the captions.
Overall, we were more than satisfied with the fit and quality of the replacement panel, and like we said, we weren't sure if the situation we encountered was caused by the car or the replacement panel, but regardless, it was easily overcome. Keep in mind, this is rust repair/body work, nothing ever goes as planned.
1 Although not noticeable...
1 Although not noticeable from the outside, this rust is at the area where the Dutchman panel meets the rear window opening.
2 When we received our new...
2 When we received our new panel from Roseville Moparts, we were pleased with how well the panel seemed to be made. The metal was as thick as a factory piece, and seemed like a quality piece. Its die stamped, and if we could make a suggestion, we would suggest crisper, sharper corners on the stamped corners. They’re not bad, but it was an observation we made.
3 Previously, I said we...
3 Previously, I said we ran into a situation, and here it is. Where the replacement panel meets the 1/4 panel, the pieces didn’t come together as nicely as we hoped. Again, these cars didn’t just fall together when they were new, and variances on the assembly line could mean that any replacement panel will not fall into place on every car. This was a minor discrepancy that was fairly easy to fix.
4 Removal of the old panel...
4 Removal of the old panel was easy. Simply take a die grinder or other cutting tool, and roughly cut out the old panel.
5 Once the majority of the...
5 Once the majority of the panel is removed, finish removing the remaining pieces of the panel by drilling the spot welds out.
6 Like we showed you a few...
6 Like we showed you a few captions ago, we needed to tweak our panel a little bit to help with fitment. We started by making a slice along the edge of the new panel. By making this slice, we removed a small amount of metal, and this allows the panel to “shrink” when the cut is closed so to speak.
7 The slice we made allows...
7 The slice we made allows us to close the wide part of the gap between the 1/4 panel and the Dutchman panel, but now we have to contend with the gap we made by cutting. The reason we did it this way is because our cut can be welded and smoothed. The joint between the two panels is visible, even after painting, and welding in this area can ruin the body line or seam.
8 The panel installed after...
8 The panel installed after the slice is made. You can see how the gap at the rear of the panel is gone, and we can now weld the slice we made. We used a MIG welder, being sure to space our welds out so as not to let the welding heat distort the metal.
9 After completely welding...
9 After completely welding the slice, smooth the welds with a grinder or fiber sanding disc. Again, be careful not to get the metal too hot.
10 Once you’re happy with...
10 Once you’re happy with the fitment you’ll need to weld the panel in place. Unless you have a huge pinch welding-machine, you’ll need to improvise. We drill holes in our new panel every couple of inches, and simply fill-weld them to attach the new piece.
11 Depending on your skill...
11 Depending on your skill level, this job can be accomplished in a day, but even if you don’t feel confident enough to do it yourself, it’s always good to know how your repair needs to be made.
12 Next installment we’ll...
12 Next installment we’ll cage this thing, and make room under the hood for our 500-inch stroker.