A Question Of Rust..................

D

dailewis

0
Afternoon All,


the time has come for my beloved Commer Autohome to have a bit of work done on her as watching her front end rot away outside my house is not good for the health.

As I have not done anything like this before (I am getting some Mig Welding lessons in the next few weeks/months) I was wondering if anybody could give me some tips on where to start...

There is rust on the peak (quite substantial), around the air intake (or rain intake as it should be called) and around various patches on the front. The back is made of aluminium and wood and is all OK for now.

I guess what I am trying to ask is, do i start by cutting out all the rot and a bit of metal around it to to start with and what should I use (I have seen a nibbler thing which you attach to a drill).

Does anyone have any recommendations on what I should use to then protect the bare metal before I get achance to weld a nice shiny new bit of metal in place.

AS for that metal, what would be the best source of metal and does anyone have any simple advice on how I might shape this metal.

I would probably imagine that this would need a book rather than a quick reply so sorry for that, but if anyone has any advice to share then that would be great!

cheers

Dave

Dave
 
Cut out bigger sections than you think, and if possible keep them square rather than shaped to the size of the rust - this makes it neater for putting in replacements. If possible I would wait until you are ready to weld the new bits in before cutting out the old bits. Once done seal them on the back, and paint the fronts, having given them a good clean first.

Invest in some simple folders from machine mart or similar, simple curves can be done by hand, stay away from complex ( 3d ) curves if you can, or cheat (see Frodo thread on Readers Rides for how I did a rear corner on Frodo)

I bought my metal from http://www.metals4u.co.uk/ who are great, and sell half and quarted sheets, which are much more practical for the DIY user.

have a play before touching the van proper, and remember that the metal on the van will be thinner than you think in many places, keep the power low until you feel comfortable. Tack weld, then go through and slowly fill in the gaps, to prevent it warping. Make sure everything is clean bare metal for more than an inch around where you are welding.

I have learnt some of these things from bitter experience, and probably didn't pay enough attention to others, as I will probably regret in the coming years, when I have to go and do it all again!

And don't forget to ask questions and post progress here, there are a bunch of helpful and knowledgable peeps here, who will do what they can to help!


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Thanks for that.

Could you tell me what thickness of steel I need to purchase to replace the rot?

CHeers

Dave

Dave
 
0.9-1.0 for panelwork and 1.2-1.5 for structural ;)

http://www.commervanspares.co.uk/

http://www.yorkshireclassiccampers.co.uk/
 
Thanks for the info folks.

After some hopefully successfully welding, I was wondering what I could use to protect the bare metal before I actually get to put a few coats of paint on it?

Would I use some primer perhaps? Or maybe some of you have some suggestions of some kind of protector/rust inhibitor?

cheers

Dave

Dave
 
Hydrate 80 by Bilt Hamber is very good and always gets good reviews in magazine tests.

http://www.bilthamber.com/corrosionremoval.html

BazRockscropped.jpg

Peggy's been to Snetterton!

If I told you I was a pathological liar, would you believe me?
 
Remember to treat the insides with waxoyl so you dont have to do it agian in 10 years

Cheers
Jules

RatSport www.ratsport.co.uk
 
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