Home Grown Patch Panels

[mikkojay]

Hello,
This is my first post at thesamba-
I recently purchased a 77 bay window for $750 and have it pretty much gutted to the point where I can start attacking the few misc rust spots. I have a few good sized holes in the passenger step, so no matter what, I am going to be cutting some of it out. I ordered a restamped step from busdepot.com, but had a hard time keeping a straight face when I pulled it out of the box! I know it is a somewhat complex blend of curves, but jeez- it was all crinkled and folded. I wouldn't install that on a... you know. Anyway, has anyone had any luck whipping up their own custom panels? As I looked at the area I want to repair, I thought that I might just bend a piece of sheet metal to get it in the ballpark, then maybe heat it up with a torch while teasing it into shape with a ball peen hammer. I could then trim off the excess, paint both sides, and tack it in- sound like a plan? I don't want to badmouth busdepot- the rest of the things I ordered looked fine- and the step was only 20 bucks, so I don't really care. This is not going to be a nit pick restoration, but I want to fix the rust right the first time before I shell out a few bucks on paint.
Thanks, Mike

[aggro_jo]

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[mikkojay]

I was thinking something more along the lines of this:
http://members.cox.net/mnorth1b/bands.html
I just had to try it.
Thanks, Mike