Image 95 of 230
January 2005
The underneath of the driver side panel. You can see the clamps at the wheel well seam on this side as well. We also use sheet metal screws in every other hole during the welding process and special butt-weld clamps at the seam between the two panels.
While plug welding, we use a damp rag to cool the surrounding sheetmetal and to minimize warping. Foir stich welding the center butt seam, there is no substitute for a lot of patience! You place a small weld (about a 1/8" tack) cool it with the rag, move 6" or more along the seam, weld another 1/8". cool ,move etc. Takes a long to weld a 34" or so seam this way, but the end result is so much nicer than an overlapped flange seam in the middle of the trunk floor - a dead giveaway that the trunk floor was replaced.
Gil's goal is to not be able to tell thbat the convertible ever had the trunk panel replaced.
The underneath of the driver side panel. You can see the clamps at the wheel well seam on this side as well. We also use sheet metal screws in every other hole during the welding process and special butt-weld clamps at the seam between the two panels.
While plug welding, we use a damp rag to cool the surrounding sheetmetal and to minimize warping. Foir stich welding the center butt seam, there is no substitute for a lot of patience! You place a small weld (about a 1/8" tack) cool it with the rag, move 6" or more along the seam, weld another 1/8". cool ,move etc. Takes a long to weld a 34" or so seam this way, but the end result is so much nicer than an overlapped flange seam in the middle of the trunk floor - a dead giveaway that the trunk floor was replaced.
Gil's goal is to not be able to tell thbat the convertible ever had the trunk panel replaced.