Only you can see it to judge properly but I'd be tempted to carefully remove all the outer and see what's what.
Cracking on with removing the rotten L/H sills. Think I'm going to try and save the inner sill, although I'll need to patch part of it. I've removed the outer sill completely and drilled out the spot welds that hold the middle sill to the inner sill. The RAC book 'How to restore Volkswagen bus' suggests cutting the old middle sill out along its length, just below the door runner track, and then cutting a piece of new steel to size and slipping it behind the old middle sill to provide a lap joint... this makes sense and will save a hellova lot of filing and cutting, so that's what I'm going to do! Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
Removed the front l/h outrigger and jacking point - muchos rusty - and trimmed the inner and middle sills back to good metal ready for the new stuff to go in. Not pleasant in all that sunshine! Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
Having previously thought I'd just cut the inner sills back to good metal and cut the new inner sill to suit, I decided to go the Full Monty and remove the old inner sill completely. As expected, it was a pig of a job, but I'm glad I did it as I exposed some hidden rot that I wouldn't otherwise have seen. After much fiddling, I'm about ready to fit the new inner sill, but will clean and prepare the area thoroughly before doing so. I've decided to leave the part of the middle sill with the sliding door guide in place and just add new metal to replace the lower part, but that will be a job for next weekend. Anyhoo, here's some piccies of the new inner sill and front outrigger clamped temporarily in place. Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
It's been a few weeks since I've been able to spend any time on Freckle, but today I managed to cut out some Swiss cheese and weld in a repair panel to the front of the L/H rear tub. A few more minor repairs to go and I'll be able to fit the inner sill at last! Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
Not much done since my last post other than to repair the end of a top hat, make good the rear corner of the floor and rebuild part of the left hand rear tub... it's slow going but at least I'm adding new metal in rather than cutting rot out! Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
It's been a month or so since my last update (sounds like a confessional!!) as I've been busy with some other stuff. However, I spent a day last week scraping underseal off one side of the floor but didn't take any piccies as it's sooooo booorrring! I'm generally pleased with the condition of the metal beneath but now wish I hadn't had the underseal done in the first place! Ultimately, I want the underside all in paint so I can see any rust developing in the future. So... back to yesterday's endeavours! Having previously bought a short rear quarter panel (which I think was made by Klokkerholm) I decided I wasn't happy with the way it was fitting so ordered a full rear quarter panel from Schofield's. Apart from being a lot better quality, it's clearly a better fit. Also, as the Schofield's panel is taller, I was able to cut away more of the old metal, which meant I could access and repair more of the D pillar, which clearly needs attention. I decided to remove the metal up to the swage line (which I'll weld back afterwards) to make it easier to clean and paint the metal behind the vents, so I'm now pleased I went for the taller Schofield's panel. I've also ordered a new tailgate hinge panel from them too as the original has clearly been filled in the past. Anyhoo, after much cutting, cleaning and preparing, this is where I am now. Gonna be another couple of weeks before I can do some more, but after repairing the D panel, I hope to fit the new tailgate hinge panel and rear quarter panel, which will leave the new rear arch panel and l/h sill replacement for the following weeks. Although it's slow progress, I'm happy with the way it's all coming together! Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
Had an hour or so free this afternoon so decided to cut the outer hinge panel off. It had a few rust holes and had been filled previously so I ordered a replacement from Schofield's a few days ago. Must admit, I'm very glad I decided to cut the old one off rather than repair it as I was quite surprised by the amount of surface rust inside, especially in the seam where the outer panel was spot welded to the inner. Over time, it would otherwise just have rusted from the inside, ruining any new paint! Won't get time to do more for a week or so, so it'll have to wait for the new outer to go on. Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
Today I've been making up a repair section for the left side D-post and getting some Red Oxide down. Took a while to make the repair piece but I'm happy with it. Hopefully get it welded in tomorrow. Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
Good skills Good bravery too. My welding isn’t to a very good standard and it puts me off tackling the stuff you’re taking on. As for fabrication - let’s not go there Stirlingmoz
Neither was mine initially, Moz, but it's got better over time and watching a few YouTube vids has definitely helped. I'd say give it a go... take it slowly and expect to get things wrong occasionally. Over time, you'll get better! Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
Today I welded in the D-post repair I made yesterday and am really pleased with how it's come out. Also cut away the bottom edge of the tailgate opening - ie the strip that holds the engine lid seal in place with the tailgate latch pressing in the middle. Glad I did that as most of the curled lip had rusted away and I wouldn't have been happy with the edge otherwise. It's slow going, but getting better every day. Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
Wow! That is a major amount of fabrication and welding going on there Andrew. What are you gonna call freckle when he’s not freckally anymore?
We’re all fine thanks mate, hope you, Ellie and the boys are good? Have you done any camping recently?
Not as much as we had planned but manage te, two weeks in Cornwall and a weekend away. Have you done much?
