Body Panel Question

I did mine a couple years ago, and here's the basics: first I carefully cut out the indentation where the '68 reflectors went. I used a die grinder with a cutoff wheel and took my time. Then I filed the opening to get it nice, then used some sheetmetal that was slightly thicker than the original '68 sheetmetal to fill the opening. I simply held the sheetmetal inside the trunk opening and traced the shape with a felt tip pen. Then cut the new metal to shape, and be sure to take the time to get it perfect. I used a woodworkers profile gauge to get the compound curve right on the outside. Then I mig-welded the piece in, but you can't just start laying a bead. I taped the patch in place and tacked it in about four places. Then I removed the tape and rechecked my contour. Welding shrinks the metal around the tack, so you need to "adjust" this as you go. Do this by using a body hammer and dolly (please don't be tempted to use a ball peen hammer and a brick) and hit the tack weld ONLY! The idea is to use the hammer on one side and the dolly on the other side of the tack and hit the weld hard enough (three or four good solid hits should do it) to actually "relax" the metal by stretching it out. Once you hit directly on each weld a few times (assuming you didn't break your weld) then move on to four more solid tacks and repeat the hammering process each time. Try to do this while the tack is still hot, but if it cools don't worry. Keep feeling the panel around the area your working on and anytime you can't hold your hand close to the spot your welding, stop, you'r getting the panel too hot and risking warpage. After all the tack welds touch, you're about done. LIGHTLY grind the weld down (I use flapper discs on my 4" grinder) being careful not to touch the patch or the original panel. You may find you need to weld a couple more spots at this time. Once you've got the weld almost flush with the panel, use some 80 grit on a block and sand in an "X" pattern across the bare metal patch. Anywhere your paper isn't touching is a low spot. Try tapping it up from the inside but don't get too carried away, just get it close enough for filler. I try to keep my filler at 1/16", but realistically, you could go a bit deeper with no problem. Just make sure to keep an eye on your shape, I use a straight edge to find the highs and lows. It's not that hard, I've got some pics of mine around here somewhere, let me know if you want to see them and I'll try to dig them out and post them.

Thanks Zoo,
I had thought about posting this same question, as I got the 67 front fenders to eliminate the fronts and wanted to do the rears. Nice write up and perfect timing "68FBJJZ109".

Nice write up Zoo! I don't have that exact project, but I have a few other patch holes I need to take care of.... thanks!

Great description zookeeper!!!

Thanks for the compliments, guys. As far as my scoops, yes they are functional, which means they are '67 scoops which took a little work to get them to fit my '68, but it wasn't too bad. 68FBJJZ109 , If your quarters are really bad, you may want to replace the whole thing, but if they're just bad around the trunk drop-offs, why not replace that part? A partial panel that goes from about the height of the top of the wheel-well down is available and you can trim it to fit only what you need. Replacing an entire quarter is a huge undertaking, and I would think long and hard before I did, but sometimes it's the only way to go.

I'm no professional, but I've been told that the best metal is the original metal, if it's not too dented or too rusted, it's best to keep as much original as you can.

I agree with that, and I've also seen a few quarter replacements that got out of hand. The biggest boo-boo is to not make sure your hinges are in good shape and your door is propery aligned BEFORE cutting the old quarter off. If the door's sagging and you align your replacement quarter panel to the door, it'll never be right. My car was a nightmare to get everything close and it's an undamaged, low mileage car. At least it was until I cut it up...

Great writeup zookeeper!