Welding sugar scoops to fender

[fusion]

I am prepping a 1976 280z for paint.  I'm assuming most people separate the sugar scoop from the fender when painting the car and paint both separately?  Is there a gasket or anything that sits between them?

 

Anyone have any experience or pictures where the scoop is welded to the fender?   Obviously there would be a chance to warp the metal.  But given they are tightly bolted together, curved surfaces, and it's a flanged butt joint, seems like it would be fairly resistant to warping.  Seems straightforward to jump around making a lot of tack welds, grind smooth and finish with a skim coat of filler.

 

 

 

But I wanted to get some opinions.  Any pictures would be great.

 

 

 

Thanks in advance.

[jhm]

I think you’ll find that a lot of people will fill that seam for a “cleaner” look....I did it on my last Z (late-version 260).  Can’t really think of a major down-side to welding it — although it does make it a bit more unwieldy when installing and removing the assembly as a single panel. The small mounting studs on the sugar scoops often rust and break off anyway.

[AydinZ71]

I don’t think it will warp too bad… There is quite a bit of steel (albeit thin) on both the scoop and the fender mounting surface. As always, go ultra slow. I doubt you could fit the gap with just steel alone unless you make many super slow passes. If you try to fill it outright, it will warp. 
 

I would do a single pass, grind, and finish with filler. 

[Exposed]

are you welding with tig or mig?

If you doing a tig weld I'd do what AydinZ71 suggested and run a single pass or as close to one as possible. I have no doubts that it'll warp but just take a dolly and a body hammer to the tig welds and hammer them into themselves. You'll restretch the metal and it'll flatten out again, then you can grind down whats left of the welds.