Rust in all the Usual Places...

[Runamuck Bus]

I bought one of those buses and it's true. All you Left Coasters, Dry and Non-Salt State people go give your "rust-free' buses a hug, I'll wait.
Back yet? Anyhow here's is one of the pictures.



I've seen some of the miracles and read a few war stories, but I still have questions. I have the 'bus depot' pieces (show in photo). They fit well but seem to need some trimming and bending. Here come the questions...

Should the pieces be trimmed and bent?
Do I cut the frame out to match the width and height of the pieces or should I allow an 'overlap' to weld?
Is it necessary to weld a 'bead' or can the welds be ''spots'?
After grinding the welds, should I use a 'metal filler' (Alvin Products - Lab Metal, for example) or fill with regular body putty?

I could go on but I think you folks get the idea of where I am going with this. I am about to make some serious cuts and grinds and attempt to mate some moderately expensive metal pieces back into place. The hope is that the end product will - look good, not leak, allow windshield reset, and not haunt me again for a few years. (Hey, I can dream, can't I?).

Here are some of the other 'usual places'...


battery tray


lower nose

p.s. CEO IAC - photos depict actual (cramped) working space, refund deposit to my paypal account if you have second thoughts.

[Amskeptic]

Should the pieces be trimmed and bent?
Do I cut the frame out to match the width and height of the pieces or should I allow an 'overlap' to weld?
Is it necessary to weld a 'bead' or can the welds be ''spots'?
After grinding the welds, should I use a 'metal filler' (Alvin Products - Lab Metal, for example) or fill with regular body putty?

I would cut back the body metal only so far as to find a logical curve or crease line to help you hide the new metal edge. Think like a plastic surgeon. You will want to fit the metal as close to original lines/elevations/position as possible.The windshield will fight you at installation if you have an overlap along the bottom, and you will compromise the sealing ability of the windshield seal if there is any bump at the overlap point. Bead versus spot depends on the mating surfaces. Overlapping metal sheets spotwelding is fine. Butting edges prefer running a bead. As far as weatherproofing, imagine water trapped under the channel. If you have a spot welded run, water will find its way between the the two surfaces unless you caulk which is what VW did with every spot weld run on the car exposed to water. I can't help with metal vs plastic filler. I went Hog Bondo and it is fine after 7 years (except for a couple of off-gas bubbles under the final paint because I was too impatient to let it cure fully.

p.s. CEO IAC - photos depict actual (cramped) working space, refund deposit to my paypal account if you have second thoughts.

I have worked in places far tougher than that . . . . . anyways, if it is a nice day we'll find the room, if it is raining heavily we will just crawl under the bus and get er done.