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HybridZ

Body work... 18 gauge sheet???


Horatio

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I'm doing some body work on the Z. Been shaving side marker lights, fuel door, antenna hole, etc...

 

I was sure I was supposed to pick up 18 gauge steel to fabricate my patches but it seems considerably thicker and harder to work with than the metal on the car.

 

It's welding up just fine... just a bit harder to work with than I thought it would be.

 

Shall I try some 20 gauge???

 

Found a great source for flat stock near my home. Guy charged me $15 for a 2' x 4' piece.

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18 does suck to try and use for body work. I too used it and combination of probably a 22 gauge. If your just shaving stuff like that it won't matter. I only used the think stuff on the custom taillight setup I did.

 

That is a good price on some metal. I pay about $30 for a 3*3 piece.

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You should use what is closest to the original metal your repairing. Going up the next size can make things more complicated and will not resolve metal distortion issues due to forming or welding . When the panel is formed at the factory you wind up with different thicknesses in different parts of the panel dependent on how the metal draws and streches in the die. If you have to form a crown or the like in a patch the difference will become apparent quickly.

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I used a 18 guage section for the rocker panels on my car and it worked great. However, I tried forming over the old battery tray rot with the same metal and I found that I couldn't stretch or pull the metal like I wanted so I switched to 22 gauge and made it happen. However, I am no body shop pro. I would assume 20-22 gauge would work fine. Good luck :icon14:

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