Treatment for rear of patch panels and new floor.

[Kameirocco]

Howdy all, i searched but cannot find the exact thing i need an answer to.

i have my 73 super beetle that has a good bit of rust repair needed... I have a welder, i have repair panels and metal to make patches... that part i'm fine with.

However, its the treatment of said patch panels i need some assistance with. I'm going to be butt welding everything except for the floor pans.

1) For the body patch panels, would i just use weld thru primer and then coat with something like cavity wax? would i use epoxy primer?

2) for the floor panels, would i use the same weld thru primer and then seam sealer on the bottom and top? do i need to coat it with anything else?

3) I'm trying to avoid buying an air compressor if possible so i can have extra money for the repair of this bug. What are some good budget chisels for removing the floor pan spot welds? would these from lowes work? or would i be better off getting an air hammer/chisel and an air compressor?

[viiking]

I assume you are talking about painting the INSIDE of the welded patch panels?

If they are accessible after welding I would coat with Master Series or KBS Rust guard. These are moisture cured polyurethanes and are VERY tough and seal off the metal surfaces. They don’t need hardener and can be brushed on with great results.

With the pans I would paint again with KBS or MS, then if you want to use seam sealer, then overcoat the seam sealer with some more paint. I’ve found that if you flood the weld area with paint you may not need the seam sealer if you ensure you get it into all the pinholes.

With the pans, you can just cut off the pan at the perimeter leaving a 1” flap on the outer edge. Get a sharp chisel/ screwdriver/angle grinder and cut through the flap. Grab a pair of pliers (strong longish nosed pliers) and grab the end of the flap perpendicular to the flap and start twisting the flap around the pliers like an old fashioned sardine can. The twisting motion will easily lift the metal between the welds. With a bit of judicious twisting a lot of the welds just pop off and those that don’t can be coaxed off with any sort of chisel or sharp screwdriver you have. Then just grind the nibs flat.

If you don’t want or cannot afford the air compressor then this is an easy way.
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1968 1500 RHD Lotus White Beetle since birth. In the hospital for major surgery
1966 Lancia Flavia Pininfarina Coupe - in the waiting room
Discharged: 1983 Vanagon, 1974 1800 Microbus,1968 Low Light,1968 Type 3

[bomberbob]

Good advice given. It would not hurt to buy one of those manual chisels in your photo, just in case. Most of the spot welds will twist off. But there are sometimes some where the metal breaks off (weakened by rust), and you got nothing to grab. Compare this to the old pop cans where the opener broke off, and you had to use a can opener to get to the liquid. What size and length you get is up to you.
You appear to have rust in the usual places, Master Series is a good choice, I have used several quarts, and have an unopened can on the shelf for the next project. It is moisture cured, I think I read somewhere that it might actually pull moisture out of the rust as part of the chemical reaction. This might account for how well it works. You will have problems with the backside of the panels you weld in, as Master series applied to those will burn off from the weld heat. Get some cavity wax and one of those long wands, and stick it up in there and give it a good spray.
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1968 Beetle torn apart again
1990 Jetta GLI megasquirted, burning E85 (currently in storage)
2004 Jetta turbo GLI
Marion, Iowa

[Kameirocco]

Thanks for the help! The master series rust stuff is out of stock everywhere it looks like. But I still have a lot of work to do before I am able to work on that specific sections… pull the body from the chassis, pull the doors and windows, gas tank and all that jazz. Should be fun, but I got some work ahead of me!

It’s not that I don’t want a compressor but I can’t imagine much I’d do with it after this one repair, but I’m sure I can find some stuff… with that being said I look for stuff on marketplace but not many deals… but I’ll keep looking.

Thanks guys!