rust repair

[acthomp781]

Hello. I want to start with a big THANK YOU to everyone on this site. This site has made owning an M1009 much easier. I have looked, maybe not enough, but have not found any info on the rust I have. I want to repair this so it will not get worse. I am assuming the antenna hole on the passenger side was left open causing this. I have no experience with body work. Thank you for your time.

 

[MarcusOReallyus]

That's cut it out and weld in new steel territory. You aren't going to patch that.

If you can do that kind of work yourself, go for it. If not, see if you can find a body shop that does. Not all will.

 

[The FLU farm]

I'd guess that being in Ohio has much more to do with that corrosion than does the antenna holes. Anyway, rust is rust, no matter what vehicle it has attacked and has to be taken care of in pretty much the same way. In other words, it's generic, not CUCV specific, which may be why there aren't many posts about it.
You may want to check the more important stuff underneath before worrying about what's shown in the photo.

 

[hndrsonj]

You will almost certainly find more once you cut into it.

 

[Drock]

If you have a Mig welder, floor pans and inner structure like this is a real good place to learn rust repair. You can basically make all the pieces out of 18 gauge sheet metal, tin snips, and a hammer & dolly. just remember, focus on making strong welds, the grinder will make it pretty

 

[eme411]

after you are done get your truck oil sprayed, also check the truck for water leaks , they all have them, and you need to get the oil into the vehicles structure, almost all the sheet metal parts are out there new after market,

 

[Ilikemtb999]

I've found a decent amount of it at rock auto with reasonable shipping prices in comparison to lmc

 

[M35A2-AZ]

If you can MIG weld try to do it yourself, if not have a shop cut it out and replace. In the long run that is the best way.
LMC truck has a lot of body part for sale, they are new and should not be to bad to weld in.
http://www.lmctruck.com

 

[The FLU farm]

If you can MIG weld try to do it yourself, if not have a shop cut it out and replace.

Buying a MIG and learning to use it (if I could, anybody can) would pay for itself on that repair alone, I would think.
And then there's the chance that there's more rust damage to be found, so getting a MIG would really pay off.

 

[MarcusOReallyus]

Buying a MIG and learning to use it (if I could, anybody can) would pay for itself on that repair alone, I would think.
And then there's the chance that there's more rust damage to be found, so getting a MIG would really pay off.

Agreed. Mine paid for itself with the first repair I did.

 

[acthomp781]

Thanks everyone. I think getting a MIG welder and learning my self is the way to go. I am sure there are somewhat inexpensive MIG welders that will be good for occasional use. Yea! I get to buy more tools!

 

[M35A2-AZ]

When you get the welder be sure to just do short welds on the new panel and move around from spot to spot a lot. That way you do not warp the metal.
Some thing like this and then just keep working from spot to spot till it is all welded. slow but sure.

 

[acthomp781]

M35A2-AZ. Thanks for the tips. Are the smaller holes on top of a support or cross member? If they are, is that so the welding material goes through the hole to the metal underneath? Thanks again.

 

[M35A2-AZ]

Yes, The holes are so you can get a good weld to the cross member. I think they are called plug welds. Then on the out side I welded it 100% just a little at a time. Also if you can not get to the back side to paint I would get some weld through primer and paint it before you weld it in. Some thing like this.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Sem-Prod...62769&wl11=online&wl12=51563997&wl13=&veh=sem

 

[The FLU farm]

Thanks everyone. I think getting a MIG welder and learning my self is the way to go. I am sure there are somewhat inexpensive MIG welders that will be good for occasional use. Yea! I get to buy more tools!

Good decision, I think. And there are lots of MIGs to choose from.
You may want to get something better than inexpensive, though. It'll be easier to use and last longer.

 

[MarcusOReallyus]

Thanks everyone. I think getting a MIG welder and learning my self is the way to go. I am sure there are somewhat inexpensive MIG welders that will be good for occasional use. Yea! I get to buy more tools!

There are a ton of good welding vids on Youtube. This guy has a lot of good stuff:

https://www.youtube.com/user/weldingtipsandtricks

OR just search for "MIG welding tutorial" and you'll get a bunch of links.

 

[honda]

Rust never sleeps. Every rust spot I cut out was followed by the following
http://www.eastwood.com/ew-silver-rust-encapsulator-15oz-aer.html
before welding in the patch steel. The product comes with a very long tube to insert
way up into the passage way in all directions between the two metal surfaces.
I figured that as long as I was cutting out a rust hole
there might also be some hidden rust that this stuff might slow down.

 

[The FLU farm]

Oh, and you might find it easier to practice a bit on 1/4" to 1/2" scrap steel before trying to weld sheet metal. Once you have the principle down it'll largely be a matter of having the Amp and wire feed settings right for thin stuff.

 

[joshuak]

Thanks everyone. I think getting a MIG welder and learning my self is the way to go. I am sure there are somewhat inexpensive MIG welders that will be good for occasional use. Yea! I get to buy more tools!

Good call!

I'd like to suggest not trying to use flux core wire for sheet metal. IMHO, it brings the suck.

0.023 wire with shielding gas, is much more user friendly. YMMV

Good luck.

 

[The FLU farm]

I'd like to suggest not trying to use flux core wire for sheet metal. IMHO, it brings the suck.

I should've mentioned that. I'd take oxy acetylene over flux core in most cases, even though I barely remember how to weld with gas anymore.