repair panels floor/chassis area 107 350sl

[goldman 107]

my lovely old sl has finally give in to some rust. rear quadrant, bulkhead etc ,(inside wing arch front) and advisory, front floorpan passenger area, which concerns me because it is backed with very thick insulation which i think is factory glued to the floor area, is this going to pose difficult problems i.e welding, and which panels (repair) are available for all floor areas please any help and advice VERY gratefully received to keep this lovely old car up together G.D

 

[turbopete]

talk to some of the panel manufacturers like Hadrian panels or similar people. they may manufacture panels etc for your car. MB may even be able to supply them to you! unlikely, but possible. failing that, buy a classic car magazine. there will be lots of panel beaters advertising in them, with the skill to actually beat you a new part from sheet metal, unlike the panel beater at the bodyshop who whacks things roughly to shape then uses filler! many of the specialist panel beaters will ask you to supply them with the part you wish to replace, to use as a template to make the new one with. not a cheap option, but im sure the old girl is worth it, cos youre asking the question! mind you, theyre all worth it in my view!

 

[SilverSaloon]

my lovely old sl has finally give in to some rust. rear quadrant, bulkhead etc ,(inside wing arch front) and advisory, front floorpan passenger area, which concerns me because it is backed with very thick insulation which i think is factory glued to the floor area, is this going to pose difficult problems i.e welding, and which panels (repair) are available for all floor areas please any help and advice VERY gratefully received to keep this lovely old car up together G.D

pretty sure MB dealer will still stock these panels new - there was a 107 in for new floor panels a couple of months ago at my local dealer.

check the epc:

http://www.detali.ru/cat/oem_mb2.as...&L=765.701&CT=F&cat=048&SID=61&SGR=015&SGN=01


you'll need to remove all the underseal before the repair can be done.

probably best to weld in localised repairs. this is what i've done rather than replace whole panels.

if you've not seen my blog, its here:

http://r107restoration.blogspot.com/

 

[D1gger5]

If the black insulation glued to the floor is like a 4mm piece of bitumen like material then I found an easy way to remove it.

Use an electric paint gun and the wall paper/paint scraper. The trick I found was to heat it a little until the bitumen becomes soft and it just scrapes off easily. Heating it too much and it becomes like a thick soup and it smokes and also puts more heat into the metalwork. Also be careful around plastic pipes/wires and rubber grommets.

Diggers

 

[Xtractorfan]

You can ..if you so wish.. go to the other extreme and chip it off when it is cold..but if you are replacing the floor pans then there will be no need to remove it...

 

[White230CE]

you'll need to remove all the underseal before the repair can be done.

probably best to weld in localised repairs. this is what i've done rather than replace whole panels.

if you've not seen my blog, its here:

http://r107restoration.blogspot.com/

Hi Silver,

I followed your link on the 'hole in sill' thread and found your blog fascinating. I'm having my sills welded tomorrow. What should I put on the bare metal before priming and painting, and what after painting, before I put back the plastic sill mouldings? I only know yellow Waxoyl and black Waxoyl. Is black Waxoyl what you mean by underseal? If so, does it go on before primer, or after paint?

Thanks

White

 

[Xtractorfan]

The proper procedure for protecting the metal afer welding is as follows, grind the welds as necessary, fill the area with body fillers if required, to level up the sill panel,
now use an etch primer on the bare metal..this is an acid based primer that grips and stops the bare metal rusting.. a good aerosol primer is one called ...ACID 8.. from any motor factor..spray 2 coats, and use a quality face mask as it is not healthy stuff. next prime the area with a high build primer, aerosol again will suffice, 3 or 4 coats.. allow to dry, heat gun, hair dryer or direct sunlight.. not too much heat otherwise paint will overharden and crack..
now apply your paint colour and lacquer..you can spray on the underseal after the primer if the sill is covered with an outersill.. again aerosol body schutz will be ok.. but a coat or two of wax and underseal mixed will protect the sill ..

Now inside there should be a rubber bung in the front and rear wheel arch adjacent to the sill panel, remove these and liberally fill the inside of the sill with wax..if no access holes, drill them and then treat the bare metal edges and fit rubber bungs to the holes..

 

[White230CE]

Welding

Hi all,

Got the car back from the welder.

You know how the jacking point is actually a pipe, and the end of the pipe is the hole that you put the jack in? Well, the welder didn't weld the patch to the circumference of the jacking pipe. He left a gap - a bit like this: [_(O)_] - and filled it with sealant of some sort.

When I questioned this, he said that it was ok sealed with sealant, and if he had welded it, it would have narrowed the pipe and prevented the jack being inserted.

I was somewhat unconvinced, and when I persisted in my enquiries, he threw his toys out of the pram and wanted to walk off without payment. While that might have been a fair result (!), I decided to try and generate light rather than heat.

After calming him down, I suggested that if he did weld round the circumference, we could always use a round file or a 'boring' drill bit to ream out the hole afterwards. Anyway, he's agreed to try that, so I'm back on Tuesday to have that done.

Was I right or was I misguided? Replies and comments before I return to him on Tuesday would be really appreciated.

Many thanks

 

[turbopete]

id say you were right. if the tube didnt need to be welded to the outer sill in the fashion you thought it should be, MB wouldnt have welded it in the first place!

 

[Xtractorfan]

Welding to the jacking point ..pipe.. is really part of the strength of the car, by all means make sure he welds that area. The pipe is much thicker than the sill panel and will never be affected by the welding process..

 

[SilverSaloon]

whos doing the welding? Bob the builder?!!

the jack point needs to be welded to the sill to allow for strength, otherwise it will probably break off as you jack the car up. the strength comes from the inner sill (end of the "pipe") AND the outerill (where the "pipe" ends).

he should be able to shape/cut the new metal to be the shape of the sill before welding it.

I covered the whole with metal on the drivers side and then drilled the hole for the jack afterwards slowly until it matched and was the right size. then i hammered it to be a nice snug fit before welding it onto the new sill. then i cleaned it up and made sure the jack still fitted. on the passenger side i cut the hole 1st as i wasnt replacing the whole sill here, just the bottom half, so 1/2 the jack hole was still attached to the old sill.

i'm new to welding but i managed to go from this:

to this

Dont pay him and get someone to weld up his bodges!

surely leaving a hole in the sill defeats the object of repairing it in the 1st place.

 

[White230CE]

Thanks Silver. Nice to know that his accusations of me being 'awkward' were unfounded.

I do have a friend up north who can help me/teach me to weld if I take the car to him. What gauge/type of metal sheet did you use?

If not, would you happen to know what a reasonable charge would be for a welding job like that to be done by someone reputable? I'm in Herts.

Thanks

 

[SilverSaloon]

Thanks Silver. Nice to know that his accusations of me being 'awkward' were unfounded.

I do have a friend up north who can help me/teach me to weld if I take the car to him. What gauge/type of metal sheet did you use?

If not, would you happen to know what a reasonable charge would be for a welding job like that to be done by someone reputable? I'm in Herts.

Thanks

hi

i used just over 2mm steel i think for the sill repair. i would of used thicker if it were more of a repair here. just under 3mm is the original sill thickness i understand.

i managed to get good quality steel at a good price as instead of buying sheets of it from my steel merchant, i just had some of his offcuts for a few quid - fine for me as i would be cutting them down to smaller sizes anyway. i'm in scotland so no idea on a good welder for you sorry.

 

[White230CE]

Hi Silver,

Thanks. By sheer coincidence, I searched online and found a welder nearby who was advertising on Gumtree. Made contact, and he turned out to be the son-in-law of my son's go-kart engine supplier, back in the days when my son and Lewis Hamilton were contemporaries at Hoddesdon kart track. Small world or what?!

Hopefully, this will make for a better welding job and a 'not too steep' quote...!

 

[SilverSaloon]

Hi Silver,

Thanks. By sheer coincidence, I searched online and found a welder nearby who was advertising on Gumtree. Made contact, and he turned out to be the son-in-law of my son's go-kart engine supplier, back in the days when my son and Lewis Hamilton were contemporaries at Hoddesdon kart track. Small world or what?!

Hopefully, this will make for a better welding job and a 'not too steep' quote...!

any pics of the original "repair". it sounds shocking!

 

[White230CE]

Hope to take some pics when the fresh underseal and paint are stripped back. He was supposed to take pics of each stage with my camera and claimed to have taken about 10-15 when he returned the car, but on checking, not one pic had been taken. On top of everything else, this lie just confirms that anything he's done is probably bad. Of course, I may be proved wrong. I will report back.....

 

[White230CE]

Sooooo, what's the best way of removing underseal and paint that is 4 days old?

That's the only way I'll know how good or bad a job he did, and be able to post some pics for all to express a view.

 

[SilverSaloon]

Sooooo, what's the best way of removing underseal and paint that is 4 days old?

That's the only way I'll know how good or bad a job he did, and be able to post some pics for all to express a view.

i used a flap disc on an angle grinder to remove paint. underseal, it may be easier to scrape it off with a large chisel or something like that, and then once the thick is gone, use the flap disc again.

many also use a wire disc on an angle grinder.

 

[White230CE]

Right, here's the evidence. I used Nitromors to take the paint off, then a wire brush on a drill to grind the filler off.

First pic: OSF. After Nitromors, with filler still in. Representative of OSR and NSF.

2nd pic: OSF. Stripped to bare metal. Note the nodules and the gaping hole.

3rd pic: NSF. Welding? What welding?

4th pic: OSR. Claimed to have filled holes in with Mig rod. Note hole!

5th pic: NSR. Claimed did not need a 'cut and patch' (I agree). Claimed to have stripped back to bare metal before painting. I wire-brushed the paint off and voila: the rust is still there!

Rang him to inform him that I had stripped back the paint and filler and seen what he had not done; that he had not done what we agreed; that I should not have to pay; and that I wanted my money back. His response was that he had come across people like me before and that he would put my money in an envelope and drop it through my letterbox tomorrow morning. Let's see if it happens. I will be up early to make sure he does not vandalise anything of mine in the process.

I guess I'll be using engine man's son-in-law after all. Only worry is that when he took a look, he knocked the sills with his knuckles and said he didn't think it was a bad job!

Just in case, does anyone know a good, honest welder in Hertfordshire please?!

Thanks

 

[turbopete]

with all that filler etc over it, it would seem like a good job!!! my sister would have made as good, if not a better job, and ive yet to show her how to plug a welder into the wall socket!!! :lol::lol: