Welding body panels

[72chevylwbmo]

Hey guys, starting to fix some rust on my sons 72. All I have at the moment for welding wire is S.S. wire with the Tri-Mix gas. Do you think this will work fine for welding in body panels?

[72chevylwbmo]

Any Ideas?

[Tinkermc]

I use Argon gas and 35 wire.

[StingRay]

Stainless wire will weld it but any time an area of material is significantly different than the surrounding area it can promote corrosion. Also for bodywork you want the softest weld you can get. I don't know if stainless will give you that. Best to buy the correct wire.

[KMC3420]

I use 75/25 argon/co2, and .023 welding wire. Has worked the best for me on body panels.

[vidman]

Agree with kmc3420. Have been using this setup with ER70 wire for years. When I weld thicker material I will change over to .035 wire..

[67 chevelle]

Originally Posted by vidman

Agree with kmc3420. Have been using this setup with ER70 wire for years. When I weld thicker material I will change over to .035 wire..

agree 23 or 25 for sheet metal going slow , 35 is for frames and thick stuff , allso last time I welded sheet metal it was perfect , then I grinded the welds , totally screwed it grinding , too much heat , take your time grinding also

[Fitz]

Originally Posted by 72chevylwbmo

Hey guys, starting to fix some rust on my sons 72. All I have at the moment for welding wire is S.S. wire with the Tri-Mix gas. Do you think this will work fine for welding in body panels?

No. 0.023 in mild steel wire and an Argon-Co2 mix is what you want to use.

[hugger6933]

I used to use 0.35 just because i didn't know any better. I use 0.23 and still use the 75/25 argon mix it is SOOO much better than it was. I found out the other wire one day I had a guest in the shop wanting to weld something and asked if he could change the wire and of course wanting to be a good shop host I said sure. Went and got him some small wire and then found out for myself it is the stuff for the small jobs for sure. Jim

[cableguy0]

Stainless wire is usually thick. Thick wire is no good for body work because you build too much heat just melting the wire. Also stainless wire will be a lot harder which makes grinding it more difficult as well as building more heat in the panels. .023 mild steel wire is the way to go as stated.

[FlameOut]

Wow, I'm glad I read this thread. I always have used 0.030 wire. Just today I bought another spool, even though I have a spool of 0.023 in my cabinet. I'm gonna swap to the 0.023 tomorrow and see how it works out

[cableguy0]

Originally Posted by FlameOut

Wow, I'm glad I read this thread. I always have used 0.030 wire. Just today I bought another spool, even though I have a spool of 0.023 in my cabinet. I'm gonna swap to the 0.023 tomorrow and see how it works out

Just remember to turn the heat down a notch or so. The thinner wire melts at a lower temp so you don't need as much heat to actually weld your material.

[dwcsr]

C25 (75/25) and .023 is better but .030 will work well. As for stainless with trimix, the issue is that the bead will have a much higher tensile strength and when it cools it will shirnk quicker and may pull the panel out of shape because its not cooling and shrinking at the same rate as the base metal.

[72chevylwbmo]

Awesome info, thanks guys.

[72chevylwbmo]

With all of this info that you guys have provided. Is there also a good thread on the best way of cutting and fitting the body panels? I was somewhat successful at installing one. But it wasn't as good as I was hoping for. A good tutorial would be helpful.

[KMC3420]

Here is one of my favorites and has great pictures, it will get you in the right direction for sure. MP&C is a member on here as well, but not 100% on his user name on this site.

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/s...3534&showall=1

[MARTINSR]

Here is a "Basics of Basics" I have been told is very helpful. Print it out and put it by the john read it a few times.

http://www.hotrodders.com/forum/basi...els-44009.html

Here is one on spot weld removal when cutting away old panels.

http://www.hotrodders.com/forum/basi...ls-222549.html

Brian

[72chevylwbmo]

That is good stuff. I will hopefully get better at it with practice.

[kaycee]

I have been using 023 wire on some body braces and such was having a hard time seeing the wire (yeah age has something to do with it).I had to weld some thicker stuff recently and put in some 035 decided to try and weld some sheet metal just turned down heat and it's working great personal preference there is no wire YOU HAVE TO USE experiment and use what makes you happy

[72chevylwbmo]

Well as much as I hate to do this, I'm going to post pictures of the panel I installed last night. Go ahead, tell me how bad of a job I did. But also tell me how to fix and make it look good, please.

[MARTINSR]

Originally Posted by kaycee

I have been using 023 wire on some body braces and such was having a hard time seeing the wire (yeah age has something to do with it).I had to weld some thicker stuff recently and put in some 035 decided to try and weld some sheet metal just turned down heat and it's working great personal preference there is no wire YOU HAVE TO USE experiment and use what makes you happy

How about bi-focals! OMG did that change things, holy crap. I just started gas welding again just for old times sake, and it's very cool! Anyway, I really had a problem with the welding goggles and ended up getting one of these with a tinted lense for welding. Man what a difference, this old man can see the weld now!

And no, that's not me, it's some OTHER stud.



But for my MIG welding, I got one of these years ago and never looked back. I can't stand the auto dark, this thing has really worked well for me. And forget all the weird stuff about forgetting and your chin hurting using it to open and close the lense and what ever, unless you have a medical condition where you have a problem with your chin this thing works GREAT and it is second nature you don't even think about it just minutes into using it. It has a very large lense so you can really see what you are doing.


http://www.accustrike.com/



Brian

[MARTINSR]

Originally Posted by 72chevylwbmo

Well as much as I hate to do this, I'm going to post pictures of the panel I installed last night. Go ahead, tell me how bad of a job I did. But also tell me how to fix and make it look good, please.

What you have done there is fine, just take it easy! Read what I posted on this thread about this, take your time or you will end up with a warped mess.

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=634624

Brian

[cableguy0]

Originally Posted by 72chevylwbmo

Well as much as I hate to do this, I'm going to post pictures of the panel I installed last night. Go ahead, tell me how bad of a job I did. But also tell me how to fix and make it look good, please.

It looks like your doing just fine. Welds are spaced out. Panel doesn't look warped. You cleaned down to bare metal. Just take your time and slowly fill the gaps with more tack welds. Let things cool down in between. Once you think your done welding the gaps closed then slowly start grinding and finishing the welds.

[Bomp]

Originally Posted by KMC3420

I use 75/25 argon/co2, and .023 welding wire. Has worked the best for me on body panels.

I use this too.
On finer work like roof skins or door skin I switch to Lincoln Electric .025 wire.

[blazer2007]

Originally Posted by MARTINSR

How about bi-focals! OMG did that change things, holy crap. I just started gas welding again just for old times sake, and it's very cool! Anyway, I really had a problem with the welding goggles and ended up getting one of these with a tinted lense for welding. Man what a difference, this old man can see the weld now!

And no, that's not me, it's some OTHER stud.



But for my MIG welding, I got one of these years ago and never looked back. I can't stand the auto dark, this thing has really worked well for me. And forget all the weird stuff about forgetting and your chin hurting using it to open and close the lense and what ever, unless you have a medical condition where you have a problem with your chin this thing works GREAT and it is second nature you don't even think about it just minutes into using it. It has a very large lense so you can really see what you are doing.


http://www.accustrike.com/



Brian

how does it get dark ?