Too rusty to save?

[athawk11]

Randy,

Great approach.  Something will come along when you least expect it.  It's karma!!  Positive thoughts...positive results.

We're all here for you man!!

Tim  

[1955CJ-5]

Tim,

Thanks for that!

And you are right about the Karma. I just know this will work out.....something tells me that the other 3A is not the solution...This rusty little jeep has smitten me...

Randy

[1955CJ-5]

A friend who has several jeeps came over today to look at the "new" 3a. He commented that the rust looks worse in person than it did in the pictures. But we talked about it and I think it was F Bill who first suggested just making my own floor boards.

I can make the template, but I'll leave the cutting to a local shop. I'll try to fit them in. �I think it's gonna work...

[bretto]

That's what I did on mine. �My floor was a bit more solid, but used its pieces I cut out as a pattern. � Was able to pick up my sheet material for cheap at a local sheet metal shop that sold remnants from their jobs. �The pics are somewhere in my photo page. �Looks like you are moving forward in fixing what you have. �Good on ya. �Did you purchase a welder?
What's your location anyway, I see you are in SE Idaho according to your profile.
Brett

[1955CJ-5]

No welder yet....I'll visit the sheet metal shop tomorrow and see what happens...

Need to fix my profile...I got my SW and SE mixed up....I'm in Boise....still not all that far away....

[1955CJ-5]

That's what I did on mine. �My floor was a bit more solid, but used its pieces I cut out as a pattern. � Was able to pick up my sheet material for cheap at a local sheet metal shop that sold remnants from their jobs. �The pics are somewhere in my photo page. �Looks like you are moving forward in fixing what you have. �Good on ya. �Did you purchase a welder?
What's your location anyway, I see you are in SE Idaho according to your profile.
Brett

I just went through about 200 of your pictures....amazing and very informative. I like the way you bent the edges up on you floor panel..

Do you use a nibbler or a power shear?

Where did you get those hat channels?

[bretto]

 I just used a real thin cut off wheel in my angle grinder to make all my sheet cuts.  I always tend to do things economically and try to use what I can make due with what I have at the house.
For the hats, I had the same sheet metal shop fold those.  I gave them a sample of the old hats and they just bent me straight lengths then I cut and welded as needed.  I got the hats cut and braked, the sheet for my floors (both in 16 gauge) then enough 18 gauge material for other patch work all for $60.  Saves a ton of $ if you put in in your own labor in anything you can do yourself.

[CJPilot]

Great choice!!

You have started down a road to fix up your old Jeep that will have more rewards than a �fixed up Jeep when you are done. �

Best of luck
Steve

[1955CJ-5]

I have a grinder....nibblers are pretty expensive but you can get an attachment for a hand drill that is not too bad...I'll try the angle grinder route first....

Thanks Steve...I really am enjoying this..I look forward to it everyday..

[F Bill]

A $35 jigsaw with a fine blade will do an acceptable job of cutting out to a measured line on steel. I made most of a Ford pickup cab in college that way. It gets noisy, and you need to support your cut well while cutting it...If you have a particularly intricate cut to do you can clamp the metal to plywoood and sacrifice the plywood toa �decent cut.

For straight cuts you can get at thin blade for your angle grinder Wear eye protection (goggles and face shield)and breathing masks as it is a dirty process. There are air powered cutoff tools that are inexpensive if you have the air to run them.

I see you have found posterboard or similar to use designing your patches....It is great stuff and essential to get things to fit properly.

I have purchased both Harbor Fright sheet metal shears and they are not bad at all. For the price point they sell at they are pretty darn good. A jigsaw is more controllable however.

Your local Lowes �and Home Depot have Wiss sheet metal shears, you will need one left hand and one right hand set, to cut in both directions. Prepare to build up your grip! I don't use the ones that look like scissors, the compound ones do it better for less effort.

[1955CJ-5]

I have a good jigsaw, and a compressor...and I've got the wiss shears but maybe a new (sharp!) pair would be a good purchase...

Going to get some Por-15 and some sheet metal today....stay tuned....

[1955CJ-5]

It turns out sheet metal is kind of expensive. Two pieces large enough to make floor panels is about $75....then it needs to be cut. I can get a Bosch nibbler at the local rental place for $36 for 24 hours. I could easily get these cut out and ready to install, but I'm beginning to question whether or not there is anything to weld to..

There is a lot of empty space here...and the sides are in really poor shape..they already have an overlay panel on the outside....and no lip �along the bottom edge...

And there is a big hole that needs covering, with no support.

[calvinhunt]

Randy,
  You've surely seen the many posts on the ills and woes of a MD Juan reproduction body.  I have one and many of such posts were mine.  However the ills and woes are all surmountable.  Just look at the many completed Jeeps to prove it.  However, during the year and a half of my restoration project I spoke with Dan, the owner, at Willys Overland in Toledo.  Their tubs and other components are a little more expensive, but Dan told me they have corrected ALL the misgivings of the MD Juan products.  Maybe you should consider that.  By the time I got the end of my project I would have gladly given a few hundred more dollars to escape some of the head aches.  Just a thought.  

  No matter which way you go there will be challenges and expenses.  Trying to find an acceptable and enjoyable balance is the trick.

  Good luck!!!

[Stack_O_Lee]

I only mention this because I was also curious about the price of sheet metal.  I called the metal supplier here in town this week, and I assume prices are pretty close everywhere, but maybe I'm wrong. For a 4' X 8' sheet of cold rolled 16 gauge sheet metal, it's $61 here.  I specifically asked if this is what he would recommend for auto body repair, and he said yes.

The pieces of steel that are for sale at Home Depot, and other hardware stores are really overpriced.

Good luck!

[1955CJ-5]

I only mention this because I was also curious about the price of sheet metal. �I called the metal supplier here in town this week, and I assume prices are pretty close everywhere, but maybe I'm wrong. For a 4' X 8' sheet of cold rolled 16 gauge sheet metal, it's $61 here. �I specifically asked if this is what he would recommend for auto body repair, and he said yes.

The pieces of steel that are for sale at Home Depot, and other hardware stores are really overpriced.

Good luck!

I think you may be right. I went to a place that would cut the floors out, and he told me that if he bought a full sheet the price dropped dramatically...the $75 price I got was for pre-cut pieces. So there is a premium charged for the cutting and for leaving them with an odd sized fragment. The way this is going I'll need a full sheet anyway.

Going out to Harbor Freight today. They have a power shear that gets 5 stars and is only about $35....and it's supposed to cut up to 16 ga....I've got a whole list....

One other thing...Why are the floor panels from Kaiser Willys so expensive? They are more than twice the cost of floors from Classic Enterprises..I've gotta call them. I still might get hat channels.