Fitting fender cup

[Fbks_Cruiser]

Well, just like everyone else who has done this job, I found that the fender cup patch fit like crap. So, I thought I would share how I am going to tackle it.

I first cut off the minimum amount of the original fender necessary to get to good metal - pretty much where everyone cuts em. I then rough trimmed the patch panel and laid it up against the fender to see how bad it was and found the 1/2” too small problem. But it appeared as though if I just added a 1/2” to the full patch top to bottom as others have done that the curve of the fender lip/wheel opening arch looked goofy - too vertical. So, I made a cardboard template of the good left fender and laid it along the fender I am repairing. Sure enough the bottom tip of the fender cup was about where it should be but the top along the splice is off.

So, I cut a pie-wedge out along the back edge to stretch it like in the picture. I think it will be okay. Doesn’t have to be perfect as this is an old fender I got from the wrecking yard for free. It was pretty dented up. I figure it is a good project to hone my metal bumping and fab skills on and hasn’t cost me anything but a bunch of my time and a patch panel.

I’ll post more after I get it welded on

[68Gold/white]

Looks great to me!
Thanks!
I have a couple to do!

[Roostre]

Looks almost exactly how I did mine. Hopefully that means mine is right! The only difference is that the curve on the front of mine was off too, so that's where I took my pie cut from.

[tinman_local2]

The last one I did fit pretty good. Took a little adjustment, but did not have to cut any pie pieces. It was Tri-Plus brand. I've had really good luck with their stuff. I may post some pictures tomorrow if I get time.

[Fbks_Cruiser]

Finished up the metal work today. Almost filler free repair. I think it came out okay for my first attempt at welding in a patch panel.

[Getter-Done]

That looks Great .









.

[Fbks_Cruiser]

Thanks. Amazing how many hours can go into a single fender. Of course most folks probably wouldn’t even have tried to save this one. I’ve probably got 100 hours into it and still not quite ready for body work. Options for finding a good used GMC fender are slim around here and shipping to Alaska is outrageous.

[72 tigger]

Very nice work! You should be proud

[chewychevy67]

That looks very nice.

[Rich72C10]

it always impresses me what you guys can do with metal. I wished I had skills/talent like that!

[Roostre]

Well done. I hope mine ends up half that good.

[68Gold/white]

Originally Posted by Fbks_Cruiser

Thanks. Amazing how many hours can go into a single fender. Of course most folks probably wouldn’t even have tried to save this one. I’ve probably got 100 hours into it and still not quite ready for body work. Options for finding a good used GMC fender are slim around here and shipping to Alaska is outrageous.

Did you have to use a "sliver" of metal to fill the gap, or just weld it shut???

[darkhorse970]

Very nice repair! I’m about to do one of them myself. Thanks for the pics!
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[Fbks_Cruiser]

Originally Posted by 68Gold/white

Did you have to use a "sliver" of metal to fill the gap, or just weld it shut???

I welded a sliver of metal into the pie cut in the first picture. The gap was about 7/16" at the top.

Thanks guys.

In order to bump out all the dents from the fender, I cut all the spotwelds and removed the bracing inside. ( it is temporarily bolted together now cuz I didn't want it out of "shape" when I welded in the new cup). Just a bit more dents to finish bumping, then weld the bracing back in.

I then need to graft in a side marker light as this is a '67 fender. Ordinarily I would never dream of cutting a good '67 fender, but this one started out so bad that I don't feel horrible about it. I figure I will be taking two junk fenders and building one goodish one.

[StingRay]

I did that to a 67 fender. Same situation. It was bent. I used one layer of fibre glass cloth and resin to make a 3D pattern of that area of 68-72 fender. I then cut out the area of the template where I wanted to cut the light opening from. I used that piece to mark my donor piece from the 68-72 fender and the bigger piece to mark the cut out that could receive it in the 67 fender. It worked good. There was definitely some hammer and dolly stretching to be done to get it all straight again. Oh yes I generously applied a mould release agent before I slathered on that fibre glass. There are other ways to make a pattern but this way is bulletproof.

Originally Posted by Fbks_Cruiser

I welded a sliver of metal into the pie cut in the first picture. The gap was about 7/16" at the top.

Thanks guys.

In order to bump out all the dents from the fender, I cut all the spotwelds and removed the bracing inside. ( it is temporarily bolted together now cuz I didn't want it out of "shape" when I welded in the new cup). Just a bit more dents to finish bumping, then weld the bracing back in.

I then need to graft in a side marker light as this is a '67 fender. Ordinarily I would never dream of cutting a good '67 fender, but this one started out so bad that I don't feel horrible about it. I figure I will be taking two junk fenders and building one goodish one.

[sick472]

Fantastic for your first patch, truely!...it would easily compete with my 10th. Nice exercise of patience isn't it?