Rust Repair Options

[Loser_Cruiser]

Hey does any one know of a good place to get body sheet metal to replace rust. My 76' 2.0 has some but I've seen worse.I'll try and post some pics if i can figure out how. I wanna try and stop it now and repair it when my bug is drivable. I have all the tools to do it but was wondering were to order it from or if i should cut it out of a junk yard car.
Thanks

[SpecialK]

I think the general consensus on metal parts is Restoration Design:

http://www.restoration-design.com/

I personally haven't purchased anything from them (yet), but those who have gave the parts a big thumbs up!

[riverman]

Let's see some pics. Sometimes it's easier and less expensive to do a patch yourself than to buy new sheet metal. Depends on the area, how particular you are about finished product, and your skills. There's lots of help here, though.

[cdmcse]

I've bought sheet metal from both Auto Atlanta and Restoration Design. Restoration Design's stuff was fantastic. It was all shaped and trimmed perfectly. It fit right in with no problems. It also came galvanized using the same method as modern cars.

The AA parts I bought were not trimmed, some were painted, some were bare metal. The fit was still pretty good, just required a little more work to get it in.

RD is a small shop and it takes a while to get the stuff ordered and shipped, but if you plan in your project for several months of waiting to get it, I think it is worth the wait.

Just my .02

[1bad914]

RD is about 35 minutes from my house, great guys to work with a very good quality product.

[Loser_Cruiser]

Heres the trunk rust. there are a few holes but small. Im gonna stop the rust for now because the metal is not soft yet.Then when i have another car to drive i will replace the metal.

[Loser_Cruiser]

This is the worst rust of all its on the driver side and the same on the passenger side only not as big. should i buy a whole new pan or make my own patch.

[SpecialK]

Well, the first thing to do is remove all of the sound deadening material from hell from the floor and tunnel. I had pretty good luck using a heat gun and putty knife. It's sucks, but it has to be done to assess the damage. Actually I've found that the more the tar mat puts up a fight, the better....that means there's actual 'metal' below it.

You also need to remove the backpad and rubber firewall mat....evil things can lurk behind it (Thank you Paul for the replacement firewall section, gonna work perfect! (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/beer.gif) ), and by the looks/area of the rust you've got, I'd say your back window is most likely leaking/loose. If you haven't already, pull out the rust promotion mat from the engine side of the firewall as well..............then show us some more pics of what's really there (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/hide.gif)

[riverman]

Personally, I would kill the surface rust with a converter and make patches for the rusted through areas and then coat the whole area with a POR-15 or similar product. Neither area is strength critical nor will they be visible afterward. Just my $0.02.

Also, if you've got rust there you should check the areas Special K mentioned and the rest of the nooks and crannies. You never know what's lurking in the body of a teener.