BUICK 1964 Skylark Coupe Project

[DRIVEN]

Hard to know when to say when.

 

[pagrunt]

Today I removed the rusted out rear window to trunk panel. I don't know whose job it was to spot weld this thing in place, but they must've been going for employee of the month. There were spot welds everywhere

Must of been the same guy who put in that trunk floor we pulled out of that Regal. Spot welds for days.

 

[joesregalproject]

Hard to know when to say when.

I just want to be a little more cognizant of it. I don't want to be revisiting a rust issue down the road but I'm not going to obsess over perfection.

Must of been the same guy who put in that trunk floor we pulled out of that Regal. Spot welds for days.

Not sure how well you can see it, but there is about 12 spot welds in this ~6 inch section.

 

[ck80]

View attachment 217081
I'm generally not a huge fan of POR-15 type products, but this seems like an ideal application for it (or their POR Patch product) and I really want to avoid going down a rabbit hole of sheet metal replacement. Of course if I start poking and it gets any worse, I'm gonna have to weld some metal in.

That's probably one of the few areas I'm not as big a fan of their type products.

They only work if you encapsulate the rust entirely. When there's multiple layers of metal spot welded into a sandwich layer, that's just not really possible. You can coat the front. You can maybe coat the back. But you aren't going to coat all sides of each layer.

And in between the layers it can continue to get moisture, and, that allows it to continue to rust, then swell as it corroded, then create yet another water leak, more rust, so on so forth.

Being a garage queen can help some, but... pinch weld seams and glass channels don't seem like the best location. Maybe if it's just sealing/cleaning up surface rust. That's one thing, to make a solid adhesion surface.

Eh... I dunno.

 

[pagrunt]

Not sure how well you can see it, but there is about 12 spot welds in this ~6 inch section.

Maybe if it was a Chevelle there might of only been 3.

 

[CopperNick]

I dunno, I've seen a lot of guys get crappy support from holley, and, general observation on these 'fi kits' from most anyone is they don't seem to be keeping up with quality replacement parts, once enough years go by the answer is 'upgrade to our newer model' .... and secretly I think their 'tech support' often isn't a car guy or someone who has ever worked on a car, but, instead it's someone who clicks through computer screens of troubleshooting prompts just reading off what they see.

Spent the better part of a decade trying to get the Throttle body version of FI-TEch FI system to cooperate. Finally got thaaa-t close to sorting it out and the TPI caffed. I can a replacement; they are offered but elected to yard out the entire system and went back to Carb; specifically the AVS. Like night and day. The AVS was totally responsive right out of the box and I haven't touched anything on it except to reroute the fuel delivery circuit be exchanging the stock item for a 90 degree banjo and bolt that I could clock better. The only additional part required was a short air horn spacer to get the air cleaner to clear the delivery tube for the t-mission stick.

As for the FI-tech, if I wasn't so bummed out by all the grief and misery dealing with it, I might consider it for my 85SS but it already has a good Holley Spread Bore waiting on the bench for it that I know will work so no plans to trade a known entity for a bag of snakes.


As for pinch welds and multiple layers, about the only thing I've found is to repeatedly soak the seam with Rust Mort or similar until the stuff starts leaking out the other side/end/bottom, and then apply some more. Literally saturate the area. You can even use a siphon gun and air to push the Rust Mort into the seam under pressure. And have a pump bottle of water handy because Rust Mort will etch your concrete if you don't. Ask me how I know...........................................




Nick

 

[CopperNick]

About that panel, yeah it sure seems like someone got a little OCD with the installation at one point or another, but the lead is old school for sure. Hope you were wearing gloves and a breather mask when you ground it out; the new fillers are pretty much "lead" in name only but back before Cali Prop 65 became a household word, metal filler was almost all lead and the material of choice for the customizers and rodders.

Nick

 

[81cutlass]

Are the body panels easily sourced for replacements? Early A bodies, especially BOP's don't get nearly the support 68-72 stuff does.

 

[joesregalproject]

About that panel, yeah it sure seems like someone got a little OCD with the installation at one point or another, but the lead is old school for sure. Hope you were wearing gloves and a breather mask when you ground it out; the new fillers are pretty much "lead" in name only but back before Cali Prop 65 became a household word, metal filler was almost all lead and the material of choice for the customizers and rodders.

Nick

I put a mask on as soon as I realized it was lead. I was aware they used lead on the pillars but didn't know these were leaded. I didn't wear gloves, but I don't make a habit of licking my fingers.

Are the body panels easily sourced for replacements? Early A bodies, especially BOP's don't get nearly the support 68-72 stuff does.

Skylark specific stuff is tough but anything that interchanges with Chevelle is easy to find. Most inner structures, firewall, core support, and roof are all the same as the other A Body siblings.

 

[ck80]

I put a mask on as soon as I realized it was lead. I was aware they used lead on the pillars but didn't know these were leaded. I didn't wear gloves, but I don't make a habit of licking my fingers.

When working with the dust, the cleanup, or anywhere else that crops up? Just an FYI, lead is a tricky sucker and absorbs through the skin, not just the mouth.

Orally it absorbs faster to be sure, but, skin does absorb it and it's one of those heavy metals that stick around for a while once in.