Well, I have a 1970 914 parts car in the garage now with near perfect fenders and all. I purchased a 1972 that has some traffic collision damge on the passenger side, but really has no rust. I am thinking that I have to get into AX and want to build the 72. It has a 2.0 in it now with a side shift. The interior is shot, but then again, it has no rust.

How hard would it be to take the right rear quarter panel and right front fender off the 70 then re-weld them onto the 72? I dont weld as of yet, but am planning to buy a mig and do some practice. Gint I know you have been practicing your welding, can you give me some insight on this?

I will attach some pics of my 72, please any and all advice is greatly appreciated. Shit, my wife is really gonna kill me now

And some more

Just fix what you have there. Pictures don't really show there side very well but from what I can see I'd fix the original panels.

besides, it is ALWAYS easier to beg forgiveness and promise to NEVER do that again than it is to get permission! Trust me
I know!
I have three 914s!
and I still havent finished the bathroom remodle

Looks fixable to me too....

look at the interior shot:

what kind of speedometer is that?

don't look right..

I'll take better pics on Monday. The speedo is a 120. I'll have to look at the car again. I probably could just fix it without replacing the fenders.

I haven't tried sheet metal yet Rod. Let alone body panels. I farmed my tub out to Brad and his boys to do that stuff. If I get a cheaper beater teener again I might give it a try. Or replacement panels on my 72 Chevy truck. No time soon though. As for the job itself, replacing rear quarters is entirely do-able, if not time and labor intensive.

Two things:

I agree with the others. The 72 metal looks fixable to me.

Based on everything I've heard and read, *I* might not ever use MIG to do body panels. Tig or gas is easier to metal work.

I would fix the panels as they look decent. Geez, atleast put a sock in the throttle body!
Using a MIG with gas is okay for the welding repairs. Its hard to get the feel and the settings right. too many knobs. Lots of burn thru or blobing but that can be ground down. It takes alot of time to do this right and have it turn out. Practice on scap metal panels so you get the feel of the MIG on this light gauge stuff. Gotta use the gas setup as the flux wire is a joke.
Just finished welding in a patch on my only rusty spot below the sail on the drivers side. What a easy repair that is! NOT!

Geoff

For the record, I didn't say you couldn't MIG sheet metal. I just said I wouldn't. How else am I going to justify the purchase of a TIG unit to the CFO?

speaking of Tig. Has anyone seen the Esab 160/161? it'll do Mig/Tig/Arc for a reasonable price. Watched a couple on ebay go for 11-1200.

It's really hard to see what's dented. If the rear damage is only on the top, just fix it.

If the sides of the fenders are pushed in and the metal is stretched, it's gonna be a pain to get behind those areas to push them out and lay flat.
Ask me how I know.

Use 2 cars to make one good one. The best parts go on the keeper and the worst are spares.

I swapped front fenders on my car for 2 reasons. One, the rain gutters in the fenders corrode. Pull up the hood seal to see if that makes your decision. Two, there are parts of the front fender (towards the rear of the car) that are double walled and don't respond well to repair. The double wall design also rusts easily. If rusty, swap them out. Had mine dipped.

Dunnow whats wrong with you MIG guys.
My Miller makes any welding a piece-o-cake. Once you learn how to run one, burn through and blobbing is hard to do.

Coupla rules on MIG welders for teeners with thin sheet metal.

One. Use gas and solid wire, not flux core wire.

Two - buy a good one with with INFINITELY
adjustable feed and volts. Use very low voltage settings on teeners.
Them 4 setting voltage thingys just won't cut it.

Three, take a 2-3 inch long piece of copper pipe, pound half of it flat and secure a wood dowel into the open end. Place the flat part of the pipe directly behind the weld area (bend the flat if ya have to) and have at it. The weld won't drip through because there is a copper backing behind, the copper acts as a heat sink and makes it seem like the metal is thicker.

Oh yeah, a light touch, tack welds, the right backing, and the right settings go a long way towards success.

Ken

Goeff, my man! I was just talking to Rod about aquiring some sail material for the same fix on the 73.
The blue painters tape has gotta go.
Id like to see (or hear) whats entailed.