Dane Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 I have a rust hole in my front wheel well that I want to try repairing myself. I don't have a welder, but I do have a torch that I can use for brazing. I haven't brazed before, but I've been doing some reading about it, and I know that to braze a joint the metal needs to be very clean, and the two pieces need to fit tightly together with decent overlap for the filler metal to bond properly. I was planning to grind the area around the hole to bare metal, take a sheet metal patch and use a hammer to get the patch to conform to the body of the car, probably put in a few screws to hold the patch in place, and then braze. One of my major concerns, and this is another thing I read about, is that on some cars you're not supposed to use brazing for sheetmetal repairs (if its a certain type of steel, if I remember correctly). So can brazing be used to install a sheetmetal patch in a '71 240Z wheelwell? By the way, I did a search under "brazing" and not much came up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shift Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 I would advise against brazing. the brass can eat away at the steel over time (or so I've heard). and using a torch, even though brazing uses lower temps than welding with a torch, it will cause the metal to warp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evan Purple240zt Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 Why not find a local welder who does good mig work? Prep and make the replacement part. Pay him an hour or so labor to weld it in. Evan BTW, i have a shop who does that for me in IL. its a small local shop that does exhaust work actually. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 Search the internet and you'll find lots of auto body sites that basically echo the guys above. I cut out all the brazed patches in my shell and mig welded in replacements. For the cost of having a shop do several patches (which I'm guessing you need if you have a hole in the fender) you could almost buy a good welder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pop N Wood Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 You can torch weld the patch in. It doesn't have to be a MIG weld. It is easier to control excess heat with a MIG, but if you are careful and work slowly you can torch weld the car without any drama. I once had a ford fiesta that needed major body replacement. The guy in that shop said the steel was tempered in some fashion and the excess heat from the torch would make it brittle and prone to failure. That is what he told me anyway. Maybe that is the genesis of such talk. But Z cars torch weld fine. We have had members say as much. I have read a number of old body books that talk about hammer welding with a torch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dane Posted November 1, 2007 Author Share Posted November 1, 2007 My torch is a Bernzomatic MAPP gas torch. It has a fuel tank on it, but no oxygen tank. I've read that this type of torch doesn't produce enough heat for welding. The package it came in specifies that its for soldering, brazing, and heating, but it doesn't say anything about welding. When I have the time I'll go get some estimates. Off the top of your head, does anybody know what a typical hourly rate for MIG welding labor would be? If its too high...maybe I will just look into buying my own welder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SHO-Z Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 If the hole is not too large here is an old school way. Clean the metal both inside and outside. Place the repair metal on the back side with a soldering paste like Nocorode on between then and pop rivet in place. Solder the panels together using BODy Solder. It is made for doing body work. Grind off the pop rivets and fill the holes with solder. Then do your normal body work. I have done this in the past. A mig welder is realy the way to go. Get with the Denver Z club, someone should have a mig welder and help you out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shift Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Just get a cheap welder from like craigs list or something. I got mine use and works fine for like $50 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobbyc Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 i'm in denver and have a mig...i wouldn't mind givin you a hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.