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Old 09-24-2020, 08:31 PM   #1
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Bondo or Weld patch - give me a vote

Weigh in for me. Bolt holes are patched with bondo. Few areas are obvious weld patch, but What about the wheel well edges?

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Old 09-24-2020, 09:07 PM   #2
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I'm not sure Bondo is commonly used to fill bolt holes in the floor (although I'm sure everything has been used at least once). It would probably work OK, I guess, unless it had some problem with adhesion.

By "wheel well edges", you mean the semi-circular cutout on the outer skin?

Some pictures of your bus and the rust situation would be helpful.
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Old 09-24-2020, 10:42 PM   #3
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Sorry. Pics didnt post from my phone.


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Old 09-24-2020, 10:53 PM   #4
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Yeah, on those wheel wells you'll want to cut away all the hopelessly rusted stuff (bang on it with a hammer and if it bends it's got to go) and weld patches over it. Not sure how bad your rust is under there, but possibly the cross-members there are damaged, which would entail a bit more work on the repair.

Check out my build thread for an example of dealing with an extreme version of this problem; yours is probably not that bad.
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Old 09-25-2020, 03:17 AM   #5
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I totally agree ... welding is the way to go


You *could* get by with using self-tapping screws and seam sealer to adhere a piece of sheet metal over the holes ... but you would have to be sure to treat the corrosion (looks like you have) then prime and paint both the floor in the area AND the underside of the patch metal.


If you can, weld it.
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Old 09-25-2020, 06:09 AM   #6
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Originally Posted by Native View Post
I totally agree ... welding is the way to go


You *could* get by with using self-tapping screws and seam sealer to adhere a piece of sheet metal over the holes ... but you would have to be sure to treat the corrosion (looks like you have) then prime and paint both the floor in the area AND the underside of the patch metal.


If you can, weld it.
sealer and screws as native suggested as welding rusted steel is a highly difficult thing.
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Old 09-25-2020, 07:24 AM   #7
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My vote is - WELD !

Don't use Bondo on rust, it will not do a dang thing...rust will continue to grow.

Cut out the rust area back to healthy steel, and treat with Ospho and seal with epoxy paint then weld in new patch!
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Old 09-25-2020, 09:17 AM   #8
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If welding is not your jam...

Riveting is a perfectly acceptable method of patching or assembling sheet metal.

Cut away all the bad metal first -- don't just lay good metal over bad...
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Old 09-25-2020, 11:50 AM   #9
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I planned on cutting and welding patches, just wanted to take everyone's temperature to be sure that I am not over complicating things... at times I think most of us run that risk
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Old 09-25-2020, 11:57 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by musigenesis View Post
I'm not sure Bondo is commonly used to fill bolt holes in the floor (although I'm sure everything has been used at least once). It would probably work OK, I guess, unless it had some problem with adhesion.

By "wheel well edges", you mean the semi-circular cutout on the outer skin?

Some pictures of your bus and the rust situation would be helpful.
Sure. Bondo has been used pretty widely. I did plenty of forum research. Here is the steps for what it is worth that seems to be working well:

1. Wire wheel floor
2. Rust converter / sealer.
3. Grind bolt hole areas clean for good surface and bondo.
4. Re-apply Corroseal over the floor.
5. Glue down 1/2" runners along the exterior with Locktite PL
6. Add 1/2" iso board and glue with Locktite PL
7. Add 5/8" T&G ply glued to Iso and screwed at the exterior runners.

The Corroseal product has been a good one. Through its hardening process it makes a plastic like film and hardens. Feel like another coat to re-cover everything is a good idea prior to insulation to create a solid near 2 layer vapor barrier.

-D
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