What is terminal rust?

[sstevo05]

G'day

Just after some opinions from those in the trade or who have been down the resto track as to what constitues 'terminal' rust in panel van bodies?

I know almost anything can be repaired, but i imagine the cost of some rust repairs would make fixing it not worthwhile when you could just search and wait and find a decent donor body.

How have you guys gone repairing roof gutter rust, front firewall/floor seams and ute/panel van side joins?? What have been the costs of your rust repairs if you have paid 'beaters do to it?

What are some signs on a body where you would immediately decide that it would be too much work and to find another one?

Do 'beaters fabricate their own replacement panels or do they use rare spares bits if they are available?

Any assistance/advice is much appreciated.

Thanks in advance

[GTS]

It really depends on what you are calling "terminal"..... Check out my thread in the HJ section then try and determine if yours is terminal.....and I havent finished yet:eek:

I checked the body of the van I'm doing the resto on pretty good....I thought... only to find out I didnt check it as well as I thought.....s**t happens....but it is all repairable

[ozbox]

terminal rust is generally where the car is not desirable and not worth fixing...to...a desirable collectible that has serious structural rust..by structural i meen inner support panels and floor and body bracing channels have major issues...a bit like some of these cars pictured..





"How have you guys gone repairing roof gutter rust, front firewall/floor seams and ute/panel van side joins?? What have been the costs of your rust repairs if you have paid 'beaters do to it?"

roof gutter rust isnt too bad to do if there is not heaps..best way is to get cut sections if you can find a donor..
if the firewall/plenum chambers are gone then so is the floor..its easier to source a front cut and patch that in..
ute/panelvan side joins are a bitch because of the way it all joins together..very hard to fix properly..
ive never paid a beater because just the quotes used to scare me so i went out and bought the equipment and then taught myself..that was 30 years ago.

"What are some signs on a body where you would immediately decide that it would be too much work and to find another one?"

i will post a couple of pics tomorrow as it will be easier than describing it..

"Do beaters fabricate their own replacement panels or do they use rare spares bits if they are available?"

a good beater will fabricate what he cannot buy or buy inferior quality repair panels and modify or use parts thereof..or buy cut sections...fabrication takes a lot of time and time is your money..a good beater should also be able to look at your car after its pulled down and blasted and tell you its past it rather than taking you on the road to repairs hell.

[sstevo05]

This is some of the rust on my windowless body :

(not sure what im doing with the photos so apologies if they dont work)

Front passenger corner

http://i1028.photobucket.com/albums/...813_133510.jpg

roof

http://i1028.photobucket.com/albums/...813_141844.jpg

ute/van seam

http://i1028.photobucket.com/albums/...813_141819.jpg

side of ute body

http://i1028.photobucket.com/albums/...813_141814.jpg

What do you guys think? Easy fix by a panel beater or scrap it and find another one?

Thanks for your help.

[sstevo05]

Thanks for the explanation ozbox, much appreciated. Thanks too GTS, your blog helps.

Cheers

[GTS]

Going by the pics I'd say you have some serious rust going on....but possibly repairable by the right person.

The reason I say its serious is because for rust hole to be that big on the outside I imagine the problem is 10 times worse on the inside.....a little bit of recent experience talking there I've been lucky in that my panel beater mate of 41 years has made me cut and repair the rust myself....well some would call it lucky He has shown me what I need to do, how to do it and how to make it a finished product. Not everyone gets a chance like that when doing a resto/repair. He normally charges around $40.00 per hour and so far I've saved thousands by doing it myself.

Up until 6 weeks ago I would never have taken to the van with a cutting disc in an angle grinder and cut a hole.....just to see what was behind it :eek:...but thats exactly what I ended up doing and found that it wasnt as scary as I'd thought. So far all the repair panels have hand made by me, although thats about to change since I found that the rear outer beaver panel was beyond repair and I bought a Rares one which I'm fitting tomorrow....assuming it's not like the cowl panel I got off them that didnt even go close and (with thanks) they refunded me the full purchase price...but thats another story.

A job the size of yours, if you pay someone to do it, is going to cost you the national debt. Look around your local area and see if there is a TAFE that offers a panel beating/metal work or even just a welding course where you can learn what you need to so you can do the job yourself.

Your first attempt may not be show quality...but what you learn along the way will be with you for life, and many other cars.

A wise man once said " If you learn something new every day you will die a very intelligent person":Tongue:

There are plenty of experienced people on the forum so if you get stuck just ask the question.

Having said all that, it does look like a big job (especially those 1/4 panels) and probably not one for a beginner like me. I wouldn't take it one knowing what I know now.

[adam perth]

G'day

Just after some opinions from those in the trade or who have been down the resto track as to what constitues 'terminal' rust in panel van bodies?

I know almost anything can be repaired, but i imagine the cost of some rust repairs would make fixing it not worthwhile when you could just search and wait and find a decent donor body.

How have you guys gone repairing roof gutter rust, front firewall/floor seams and ute/panel van side joins?? What have been the costs of your rust repairs if you have paid 'beaters do to it?

What are some signs on a body where you would immediately decide that it would be too much work and to find another one?

Do 'beaters fabricate their own replacement panels or do they use rare spares bits if they are available?

Any assistance/advice is much appreciated.

Thanks in advance

Thhat van doesn't look too promising.
best thing to do is get a compressor and an orbital sander and wizz it back and see what you have underneath. Cost $200

[ozbox]

steve,have you got a couple of overall pictures?
i would have to disagree with gts and adam about the seriosness of that rust just on what i see in pictures..
i do agree but that it needs to be looked at to see how deep it really is.
i would not classify that as terminal rust if its a windowless body.

[mcdvi]

Hi, new to the forum, thought i would throw my 2 cents in.
Last car i had work done on was 75h/r.
Things have slowed quite a bit since then so i doubt the rate has increased.
You will be surprised what a good tradesman can fix in a short amount of time. I spent about 5 grand having
my hj rust repaired & repainted approx 20 yrs ago. At the time every one said i was stuipid spending that kind of money on it.
Not one sign of the rust reappearing after all these years, money well spent I say.
So question is what is the car worth to you,(governs what you spend) the rust in those pics is certainly fixable
Cheers Vic.

[GTS]

steve,have you got a couple of overall pictures?
i would have to disagree with gts and adam about the seriosness of that rust just on what i see in pictures..

If you look at the pic of the 1/4 panel it has, what I'd call, big rust holes from the inside of the panel. I had a hole in the sill of my van about the size of the end of a pen....it turned out to be rust the size of a carton of pens once I opened it up. The little bit that actually makes it to the outside of a panel is hiding a multitude of sins beneath it.
And, like I said in my reply, it is possibly repairable by the right person. Most of the rust in the pics looks repirable although it will be a big job.
You really have nothing to lose so start cutting to see what you've got....if it all turns to crap then you have lost nothing really.