I attacked the cab step with an angle grinder mounted wire brush today. Bit worse than i originally thought. I don't have metal moths but bloody miners. Mine working where the A pillar bottom is supposed to be. Thats a light on one of the miners helmets in there i think. ;D Bigger hole than i thought i'd have to fill. It did give me a chance to look in places i would never have seen normally though (looking at it in a positive light see ). Inside the bumper deformation panel: Inside the panel above the bumper (behind the kick panels): Has anyone got a piccy showing what the bottom of the A pillar should look like? And maybe some dimensions? All the metal on the areas its supposed to attach to on mine seems to have patches on top of patches so i have no reference points to work from.
A bit more work than you were hoping for mate I've got some pics of the A posts on my resto thread and how I made them. Keep meaning to re post my "how to" for bottom A posts ....think I'll do that in a min I've not put my front panel on yet so I can get some measurements at the weekend if I remember and if it would help. (if I dont remember you'll have to remind me ;D)
Cheers. Very useful. I've probably got the biggest collection of cab step replacement piccies on the planet now after hours of googling.
After the corner of the front panel became a snowstorm of filler when touched with a wire brush it was cut back to good steel. I might cut it back a little more above the folded flange so i can access the hole in the top of the deformation panel. Door pillar will need to be cut back to just below the hinge i think. Everything seems to have had atleast one patch welded over the rot so its all getting cut out. Front chassis legs are 100% solid. Just the stuff all around it that isn't. Cab step looks like it'll fit nicely though once i've built something to weld it to.
Cut a bit more rot out: Hinge still looks a little bent to me. Will have a go straightening it a little once its all welded up and doesn't wave around in the breeze. Had a quick go at making a replacement bit for the A pillar bottom: It would be useful if Just Kampers (or someone) made the bottom 6 or 8" of the pillar instead of just selling the full length complete A pillar.
Yep, should fill the gap nicely. Got the bottom of the A pillar solid again. Makes a change from it just waving around in the breeze. ;D Just need to fill all the rest of the rust holes with metal now.
I'd try the door before you hammer the hinges. Maybe someone deliberately bent one for door fitting reasons. Done it myself.
My doors bottom hinge is a little wobbly so maybe thats why it was bent? The latch catches the B pillar slightly and the top rear of the arch too. Its slowly getting there but i'm finding it hard to find the time to actually crack on with it. Looks like it'll be friday before i can do anything next.
nice work why is it the welder always packs up at the most inopertune moment......if its not that, it will run out of gas or wire just when you need it most
Sods law. If anything can go wrong, it will. VW law: Anything that can go wrong will do so at the worst possible moment. The first 90% of the job takes 90% of the time, the last 10% takes the other 90%. An object will fall so as to do the most damage.
Bit more done. High winds and driving rain are slowing me down somewhat. Need to sort out the rear of the cab step and then take the door off and finish the bit of the A pillar i can't get to. The door still catches the arch so has taken paint off the edge of it.
It scares me too. I've made a new bit to replace the cut out section in the front panel, but can't fit it until i remove the blasted door again and its a 2 person job. Theres so many patches welded over rust and chunks of filler everywhere i've nearly got a full carrier bag of rubbish from the step and arch alone.
