1938 Chevy Coupe

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2872 East 3400 North

Twin Falls, ID 83301

HOME
PROJECTS
MISC.
SHOP POLICIES
10 RESTORATION MISTAKES
EVENTS
CONTACT
TESTIMONIALS

Already stripped , sandblasted and ready for repairs

owner furnished new rear pan, will only use part of it.

rust holes inside trunk

dent

tail light mount area damage

rust and lead in cowl, fender mount area

will clean up previous repairs

drivers side cowl also rusty

removed lead to see damage

removing rusty rear panel

starting to straighten dents in trunk opening edges

inner panel has a lot of rust

left rear corner was hit in the past, shadows show lots of ripples

body shop repaired the rear fenders several years ago, made the dent in the right one look good. Will fix correctly.

lead was hiding rust and a dent

Bolted the trunk lid on, found left corner very low.

A little bending and prying got the corner up near perfect.

Right side lines up.

lid is 1/4 inch higher than front panel. Will raise the front panel to match

Rust and filler in trunk lid.

More rust

Will pull dents out and replace rusty steel.

Reproduction rear panel, edges are not stamped very sharp, will keep the original trunk edges.

Remove what I won't use.

Install fenders to check straightness and gaps. Gaps at the damaged tail light area and bottom 6 inches.

After a little metalwork, much straighter.

Apparently the body shop that repaired the rear fenders thought this indent was supposed to be there. Its not, will repair correctly

Hammering out the dent, filler cracking off.

Very thin metal is cracking, will replace with new steel.

Need to bend the trunk corner outward a little, won't move, found a large area of lead, melt out to let it flex easier.

5/8" deep dent filled with lead.

With the extreme stretching of the metal, it easier to cut the deepest part of the crease, straighten then weld back together.

5/8" deep

Removing the rusty corner, also hole thru inner skin.

Pencil and a long tooth inside this corner.

Shrinking the dent on the outer corner and straightening the trunk crease.

Ready to cut holes for bumper mounts.

After about a dozen fittings and trimmings, finally tack welding in place, trying to keep an even gap for the trunk lid.

More welding and patched the inner trunk lid hole.

Patch tacked in place.

More welding.

Need to remove fender to finish a little welding and grinding, then a little more metal work.

Trunk done, more grinding of welds , still fighting with the gap where the crease was.

Rust holes under the fender, will cut out, weld new steel in.

Welded in, time to grind

From all the hammering, bondo fell out of 5 holes in the trunk lid, will weld them shut correctly.

Finally got the gap opened up.

Crack in edge of rear fender has to be welded.

I tape plugs into holes then weld

Spot weld and cool then repeat

Welds ground smooth

Bottom of right side cowl, rust

Still found trapped dirt inside.

Hand formed replacement piece

Clamped in place and start welding

Welded and ground smooth, on to the corner

2nd piece formed and welded in

3rd and final section welded in and smoothed

Front floors cleaned up , ground owners welds

Owners weld to smooth out

Previous patches in firewall

Smoothed out welds

Attempted to weld small rust holes, just melts away, will cut out and replace.

Welds ground smooth

Lots of grinding to smooth out previous welds.

Did a little shrinking to flatten the firewall.

Removed all the paint, found one more dent near the top

Cleaning it out and sanding the flat areas, then will sandblast edges and deep contours

Getting ready to seal the floors with POR-15

Cracks on the original lead, moisture may have crept into and start rusting under neath. Will remove and re-lead.

Floors and lower seams all sealed

Both seams had a little rust near the trunk opening(dark spots)

New lead added to factory seams, and filed smooth

Primer sealer sprayed on whole body, inside and out, top to bottom.

Thin filler added to low spots.

Found more cracks filled with bondo, will weld

Bolt fender on to hold shape while sanding

Light coat of black guide coat then more sanding to show low areas.

more careful sanding til low spots disappear or metal starts to show.

All primed again.

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2872 E. 3400 N, Twin Falls, ID 83301 (208) 324-1073

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