In our June '07 issue, we detailed what went into replacing the wheelhousings on Ed Blankenship's 383 Road Runner. Tracy Hicks and Mark Scott of Wise Guyz Rod & Custom in Jonesborough, Tennessee, had already replaced the trunk pan when we arrived on the scene to document the remaining metalwork on this classic Mopar musclecar. As mentioned in the previous installment, the trunk was done first to help create a platform to support people and tools, which will come in handy on this next step.
This month, we are going to document the process of replacing the rotted-out areas at the lower corners of the rear window opening. Puddles of wet, rotting leaves had eaten far into the metal in these critical areas, and it is imperative when making repairs to make sure the weather seal will fit completely and properly into the rebuilt channel. The car also had some unique outer-edge damage that needed to be rebuilt. The corner replacements are available as stampings commercially, but each car is different, so some "massaging" will be part of this effort. The most important part of the job is to make sure the measurements are as close as possible because that rear window needs to fit into the replacement snuggly.
1 After taking the trim,...
1 After taking the trim, rubber, and window out of the car, we found some nasty surprises. Here is the window channel. You can choose to burn that rubber out (warning: this stuff stinks bad), or use a little elbow grease and dig it out. Either way, it all has to come out.
Many home garage craftsmen may not have access to the larger metal brakes and tools that helped moved this process along at the Wise Guyz shop. The art of fabricating and fine-tuning the replacement pieces that are not available commercially will likely require the use of some specialized equipment to be done properly, though a good craftsman can fabricate some of it with care and patience. Regardless, the work shown here can help you determine what you might need to do to get your own Mopar repairs done.
Tools
TiG welder MiG welder with .035 wire Air or electric rotary tool (grider, cutoff wheels, drill) Air or electric metal hacksaw/ saber saw Body hammer and dollies Vise-grip-style locking clamps Sheetmetal stock Sheetmetal shear 2 The next step was cleaning...  2 The next step was cleaning and polishing to determine the extent of the problem. It cannot be emphasized enough that if you are planning to weld anything, bare metal is a must. For most total restoration projects, media blasting the body is the proper way to go, however, this is not a complete restoration and grinding the affected regions will have to suffice. |  3 Once we got into good metal,...  3 Once we got into good metal, a straight edge was used to ensure we made clean cuts to remove the rot. The measured line-at 1 1/2-inches from the lip-is further out from the rust to make sure the replacement parts are large enough to be heated without warping. Other cuts will be at hard angles, not curved. |  4 The first step was using...  4 The first step was using a cutting wheel to make a small but straight incision in the center of the line. You can either use the cutting wheel for all the cuts or a power jigsaw if you have one. |