Reuse quarter panels???

[cudadave72]

Tommorrow is D day for the start of tearing the Cuda apart to begin a full restoration. At some point the quarter panels where replace with skins and were overlaped onto the remainder of the original panel. They are in perfect shape other than they were incorrectly installed (bondo cracks along the seams) so my idea was to take them off, trim the excess and butt weld them back to the car so they are seamless. Any thoughts?

[Topcat]

Sounds like more work than just replacing quarter panels as a whole.   

I did the center trunk floors in my car butt welding. Took forever. That was my first metal project. After that, I never did that again. I just replaced complete metal portions.

[wagesofsin]

you have the right idea , strip all the filler , cleco the excess , and air saw in the center , stitch em on every 3 inches or so. rinse and repeat. will be waaaaaaay easier than doing a whole 1/4. take your time.

[Cuda Cody]

Agreed.   Just replace the complete quarter.

Sounds like more work than just replacing quarter panels as a whole.   

I did the center trunk floors in my car butt welding. Took forever. That was my first metal project. After that, I never did that again. I just replaced complete metal portions.

[cudadave72]

I guess my hope is to avoid spending 1200 dollars on sheet metal even if I spend more time on it.

[mopardave]

cleaner less labor intensive with just putting new FULL panels on. but its your project. if it is just the old seam your wanting to correct, then I agree with Wages. small welds at intervals dont over heat.

[cudadave72]

I guess the best thing to do is strip the panels down and see what I am working with. Like mopardave mentioned I'm looking to repair the seams correctly. It seem a shame that there is nothing else wrong with these skins other than being improperly installed from the get go.

[wagesofsin]

I guess the best thing to do is strip the panels down and see what I am working with. Like mopardave mentioned I'm looking to repair the seams correctly. It seem a shame that there is nothing else wrong with these skins other than being improperly installed from the get go.

i coulda swore i saw that somewhere.....
that daves a real genius. at least he got it.   

[torredcuda]

My cuda was also done with skins and when I redo it again (soon I hope)I will spend the money and buy new full quarters,one pc trunk floor etc. and the end result will be much better.

[cudadave72]

i coulda swore i saw that somewhere.....
that daves a real genius. at least he got it.   

Your my hero John!!!

[Topcat]

First time I ever replaced a whole quarter panel on my car or any car for that matter. It was a bit of a wrestling match at first. If I had to do it again, I know it would be much easier and less hours to do from what I learned the first time.

[cudadave72]

Well I started stripping the right side quarter panel and found that the idiot that installed the skins layed it over parts of the original panel that still had rot in it. Luckly I started this project now because were the quarter meets the rocker was done incorrectly and the rocker (otherwise super solid) was starting to rot underneath the bad work. Good news is that I ground off the rust and it was still solid underneath. Now it looks like shes getting full panels.

[mopardave]

well if your needing full panels or another set of skins i have them on the shelf.

[elitecustombody]

Well I started stripping the right side quarter panel and found that the idiot that installed the skins layed it over parts of the original panel that still had rot in it. Luckly I started this project now because were the quarter meets the rocker was done incorrectly and the rocker (otherwise super solid) was starting to rot underneath the bad work. Good news is that I ground off the rust and it was still solid underneath. Now it looks like shes getting full panels.

So much for saving the quarter,lol.Yeah,it usually helps when you have the mud off the panels for a closer inspection.  I think you'd sleep much better after replacing full quarters and alot less work.

[Challenger III]

Keep a close eye out when you clean off the rust on your rockers. Even if there no holes, they might be thin. Here's mine (Inside the car). I'm replacing all of the pitted metal area even though the pits are not all the way through.