Too rusty to save?

[1955CJ-5]

Thanks Tim,

The grill has primer on it...final will be a gray (I think) but darker, closer to Picket Gray..

The solenoid could have been anything.....The ignition key is a single position, and the starter is the correct type, and had a matching coat of grease and crud....

I think the solenoid will just be one of those Willys mysteries...

I'll get that brace welded and then the fenders will go to the sandblaster and then I'll get them ready to paint....

Randy

[PaulS]

When I first drove the Jeep I now have (years before I owned it), you had to turn the key to start *and* press the foot button to start it.  The starter at the time was an original core, but had been rewired not to use the starter button on top.  Instead, a solenoid had been added.  But you still had to manually engage the pinion with the pedal.

A year or two before I bought it, though, the PO had the starter rebuilt (which it sorely needed), and the rebuilder actually knew how a 3A starter was supposed to be wired.  When reinstalled, that left the solenoid redundant.  When I bought it, the solenoid was bolted to the fender, with no wires going to it, just like yours.

-Paul

[athawk11]

Paul,
That could be the answer.  This is one of the things I find so interesting about these old flat fenders...the historical modifications and trying to decipher why it may have been done. 

You know, the old adage...'Things that make you go, Hmmm."  :-/

Tim

[1955CJ-5]

When I first drove the Jeep I now have (years before I owned it), you had to turn the key to start *and* press the foot button to start it.� The starter at the time was an original core, but had been rewired not to use the starter button on top.� Instead, a solenoid had been added.� But you still had to manually engage the pinion with the pedal.

A year or two before I bought it, though, the PO had the starter rebuilt (which it sorely needed), and the rebuilder actually knew how a 3A starter was supposed to be wired.� When reinstalled, that left the solenoid redundant.� When I bought it, the solenoid was bolted to the fender, with no wires going to it, just like yours.

-Paul

That is a pretty good explanation...jeeps were tools to be used, like any other farm implement or tractor, and you did what you needed to do to keep them going.

"fix it up, make it work, wear it out..."

[1955CJ-5]

Worked on the tailgate today...I found this rust repair strip on ebay, made by a fellow who made one for his own jeep....it took a little fitting but the result is worth it...

[1955CJ-5]

More fender work...after getting these back from the sandblaster there was more work to be done...the good news is the rust was gone and welding was much easier...

Before..

[F Bill]

Nice work!

If you were to condense what you have learned from your jeep body rebuilding journey into the top 3 or 5 or ten things you learned.....What would you say are the most important things to do or not do.....The best tools to use, the best way to cut out rot, etc?

I gotta say it is really nice to see the progress your skills have made since the start of the project...From "is it too rusty? to" looks like an easy fix instead of replacing...."

Again.job well done.

[1955CJ-5]

Thanks Bill,

Wow, where to start?

Get hearing protectors a face shield, dust mask, leather gloves...overalls or a shop apron...and saline solution for washing out your eyes, because you will get bits of rust-steel-bondo-cutting wheel or whatever in them...

Then.....have a plan.....I started plugging the really big rust holes and now I'm down to the little holes...but if I had admitted to myself that all those holes needed repair, I wouldn't have had to do some of the areas twice..or three times....I ignored much of the rust to begin with thinking I'd just ignore it....but every patch makes it look a little better and you want a nice result...and once the rust is cut out, it's just a hole that needs filling...

As a follow up to #1, just get the tub sandblasted...it's amazing how many holes there are that you didn't think were there...and clean steel is soooooo much easier to weld to.

I bought a 4 1/2" side grinder and I cut almost all the rust out with it....I bought a DeWalt because I liked the feel and the paddle switch..and just buy the economy 10 (or 25) pack of cutting wheels because you will use them...I have used it a lot....and you can get twisted steel wire wheels that will remove old bondo very fast...and nearly everything else...!

I have a $39.99 Harbor Freight electric shear that I figured would last a little while, bit it's still going strong and cuts that 18ga like butter....I bought a set of hand shears also but they don't get that much use. Almost all the metal cutting is done either with the electric shear or the side grinder.

I finally bought a bench grinder and put a wire wheel on one side...I use it more than I imagined.

And of course the welder. It's amazing what you can do with a welder. Suddenly the possibilities are almost endless. Build what you need and repair almost anything....

That's all for now....there are probably a million other things...

[athawk11]

I have recently starting using a tool that is useful when trying to grind down plug welds in very tight places.  It's the oscillating style tool.  I think Fein came out with it, but now all the tool suppliers make one.  They have a varity of cutting blades and sander heads to choose from.  Dremmel has a straight blade with carbide teeth.  Turn the tool up to 'High' and this blade will literally chew the weld down to flush.  It almost carves it away.  You don't have to be as stategic when choosing where your plug welds are.

Tim   

[1955CJ-5]

You know I have one of those and I'm still trying to find a use for it......we bought it to cut up and remove a fiberglass bathtub.. it didn't work well..but the angle grinder made short work of it.

I'll try one of those carbide blades though...there are a couple of spots I'd like to clean up before paint......

[1955CJ-5]

So yet another patch this morning...It was so small I was going to just patch it with bondo as it's directly over the hat channel....but we all know that just wouldn't do....

This one is only about 1" by 5/8" so I cut out the rust with a Dremel tool and a cut-off disk.





The grinder smooths it out nicely..



Now it's time for the other fender.....

[1955CJ-5]

So the tub is nearly there.....I've been filling and sanding, and now the glaze coat had been applied...



Then the filler/primer



I think it's ready...



Way back when the plan was to use rattle cans for final color coat....I've put so much time into this I want a nice result, so an auto painter/restorer friend of mine will either do the final paint or he will help me through it, either way we will use a real paint booth and paint gun and 2 part paint....

[1955CJ-5]

The passenger fender is coming along....

[1955CJ-5]

So at one time not so long ago I patched the passenger fender hat brace....when i had the fender sandblasted the remaining part of the brace didn't look too good and neither did my patch..

So I took the old one out.





And welded a new one in....



Much better....

[1955CJ-5]

And i patched the rusted out corner on the fender...








And now I'm thinking that I should assemble the entire thing before painting........there have been lots of changes, and everything should fit, but......