Howdy. I have an 83 240 DL that has the usual rusting in the rear wheel wells and the rear passanger floorboards. I posted about this about 6 wks ago, and the general suggestions was it should be cheap to get someone to weld in some new metal (hack and weld) and then I could do sealing/primer/paint. After visits to several body and welding shops, almost no one will do the job ("Why should I make my profit on an all-labor job when I can make it on mark-ups of replacement fenders?") The one welding shop that said they would do it gave me a price of $600-$800, more than I have budgeted for this. So, I now have a car with lotsa holes in it, and winter is rapidly approaching here in NY. So I guess I am down to fixing this myself.

I've read through the archives, and it seems like I'd want to do something like this:

1) cut out all the rusty metal. Do tinsnips work for this? Is there a better, modestly-priced tool?

2) Apply a metal patch (from the inside or the outside?). Maybe buy some 22 gauge steel from Home Depot? (maybe thinner for wheel wells) Would galvanized work? bend it to fit and attach it somehow. Some people say pop rivet gun - never used one. Some say a "body panel adhesive" = does this stuff work? Roofing tar?

3) treat the metal with POR-15. Do I need to clean the new metal first with Metal-Ready?

4) glop on several layers of a fiberglass compound like Duraglass. On both the inside and outside? sand in between or not? I'm not looking for pretty, I'm just looking for "last a few more winters".

5) prime and paint? Can I just pick up some cans o' stuff from Autozone? Would that spray-on underbody coating be a good idea?

Anything huge I'm missing here? I know welding would be the best way to fix it, but I'm out of time. I can feel Old Man Winter breathing down my neck...

Thanks,

Brian
bthart@yahoo.com