jstantherprsn

Hello Everyone,

I noticed a few holes in the rear quarter panel of my jeep. The holes are not that large and when ground back and squared off it would be about a 2" by 3" rectangle. The rust doesn't appear to be able to be encapsulated. Filling the hole with fiberglass just seems ludacris. Does anyone know if its possible to potweld this patch panel in place instead of using a mig? I'm just curious because I don't have access to a mig welder anymore. I don't feel its justified to go and buy say a 110V version for this and maybe another small job.

The patch would be just a straight flat section. I don't see why it would not hold. 4 sides are holding on this small piece and it doesn't have much weight. I'm curious if anyone knows the limits of this idea.

G_P

What is a potweld? If you dont have your own welder and cant find one to borrow/use then just rivet it on.

RENIXBEAST

x2 whats a potweld, is it brazing with a torch??

jstantherprsn

its a lead substitute used for filling holes and all. Super alloy #1 eastman sells it. Think of it as a type of solder. They also used to use lead or this substitute a long while ago to fill seams for when you applied patch panels instead of using seam sealant.

caged

yeah, that should work. heck, bubble gum and bondo will work. just depends how picky you are with the finished product.

BlueXJ

You can gas weld in a patch panel but make sure you leave no exposed metal edges or it will rust again.

5-90

"Leading" is a filler - and certainly not something to be used structurally. At a minimum, I would braze it (and only if it was a section smaller than an index card, and not near a welded seam!) or weld it outright - a good welder can weld sheet with a stick machine without burning holes through it.

Bear in mind that lead and its alloys are not very strong at all - Trying to use lead to affix a patch (particularly in any shear panel - by definition, any panel in a unibody vehicle) is just asking for the thing to pop out at a later date.

I'd allow at least 1/2" of overlap, use a flange roller to allow the panel to sit flat, and drill a series of 1/4" holes around the edge (somewhere around 3/4"-1" apart) to allow for better penetration of the braze filler metal - something akin to a rosette weld. Given a chance, I'd do this on both panels (although that would mean more spacing, and do not let the holes line up at all! It would end up with a hole every half-inch, with the surface the hole is in alternating.)

You can then braze around the edges, braze in the holes, and braze around the inside edge of the hole.

Fill, sand, paint, and you're good.

(NB: If you're going to rivet, braze as well. Why? Because pop rivets - which you're sure to be using - don't have a great deal of shear strength, and could therefore benefit from the addition help of brazing the panel. I'd also use CRES rivets, instead of aluminum. I seriously doubt you have a bucking bar kit for solid rivets - most people don't...)