Found some bad news...

[1974ChevymediC]

...after taking the cab down to metal i found the cab corners to be rusted through. Its not as bad as some i've seen but needs to be replaced i think. The guy who had it before my buddy masked the cancer pretty well with bondo and paint:






and under the window just about from side to side is bondoed pretty thick...

[NovaMan]

DANG! Looks like that guy bought Bondo by the gallon and mixed it by the quart! Bondo sculptor extraordinaire...

[GreaseDog]

thats nothing out of the ordinary really. might not have even been the previous owner. the rear of the cab is going to be one of 2 things probably. missing rear cab trim, or something has come forward in the bed and hit the back of the cab.

thats nothing to hide with bondo really. i had a '65 ElCamino for a while. got to sanding on it and found that the ENTIRE rear quarter on both sides had been cut out and replaced by galvanized sheetmetal and covered with bondo. we knocked on it, and poked at it beforehand, looked down the body lines... everything was arrow straight, and it sounded like metal with heavy paint on it. the 3 different colors in the door jambs sort of confirmed the heavy paint. looked good enough to be metal, sounded like metal (to my dad who is a professional bodyman), but was 100% cobbled together. ended up parting it and cutting up the bones for the shredder.

[GreaseDog]

maybe that's too low for cab trim now that i look at it again. possible rear end colision. that will leave a dent like that in the back of the cab when the bed hits it.

[smiles383]

that doesn't look that bad . Just check where all the cab mounts bolt on as they're prone to rust there .

[44gmcnewf]

my old 84 had twice as much filler then that. I know cuz i put it on it hahaha. Couldnt afford to fix it right ended up selling it for scrap. If your going to restore the truck i would strip it all off and start fresh see what kind of damage is under it. Also might want to use a stud gun to pull the metal out a bit to you dont have thick spots of filler

[FordeatinZ71]

i can sympathize. i was looking around at my girl and i found some rust in each weatherstrip channel (where the door seal mounts on the rocker panel) because the drain holes had plugged and then i found some more on each cab corner...a very small hole on the driver side and a slightly bigger one on the passenger side. i am pretty bummed over it but i'm gonna fix it...just gotta decide how...i wanna keep as much original sheetmetal as i can and i don't really wanna use bondo but i will if i have to...

[44gmcnewf]

only one way to repair rust cut out and replace if not it will only come back twice as bad.

[1974ChevymediC]

i have no background in welding and don't have any one that i know that does it. what the best place to go to have this done? will a body shop cost me an arm and a leg? i can do the rest i just the welding done.

[44gmcnewf]

cab corners are only like 30 bucks here you can glue them in but i wouldnt. rockers are in the 60 dallar range here.

[1974ChevymediC]

Originally Posted by 44gmcnewf

cab corners are only like 30 bucks here you can glue them in but i wouldnt. rockers are in the 60 dallar range here.

yeah i found some replacements on eBay for about $45 a pair. i really want to just get it done right the first time and have it welded. and i took the paint down to the rockers just a little bit ago and they're flawless so i don't have to worry about them.

[NovaMan]

If you did all the cutting and fitting and then took it to a body shop to have it welded on, the cost probably wouldn't be too outrageous. I'd look for a shop that does at least some restoration type work, because so many body shops these days just do late model insurance jobs where they just replace the panel and respray. You want someone who can set the welder properly, and then not warp your sheetmetal while he's welding it.

[1974ChevymediC]

so i took all the bondo off of the back of the cab where grease thought it was filling where the trim should be and sprayed a coat of primer. i can't even see any dents at all. when i apply a little pressure and rub my hand along it i can feel that it moves in and out like its thinner metal at that spot. is this just how they are at that spot? there are no welds so its definitely the stock metal. anyways, i really don't see any reason to apply filler there at all. i'll try and get some pics up to see what u guys think.

[44gmcnewf]

could of been high and lows ( metal warpage ) and they filled it to make it look smooth.

[RTD]

Aren't patch panels pretty much a fact of life on 30+ year old trucks?
I wouldn't bother welding them. No matter how good of a welder you are, the WILL be SOME warpage. They have epoxies now that are so good that the steel will rip away before the glue lets go. No warping from the welding. Of course, there are other instances where welding is a must.

[83K1500]

Originally Posted by RTD

Aren't patch panels pretty much a fact of life on 30+ year old trucks?
I wouldn't bother welding them. No matter how good of a welder you are, the WILL be SOME warpage. They have epoxies now that are so good that the steel will rip away before the glue lets go. No warping from the welding. Of course, there are other instances where welding is a must.

The epoxies are meant for non integral structural repairs.
Structural ALWAYS has to be welded.

Cab corners are non structural.
Floor pans ARE structural.

Just giving examples, not ragging on you or poster. Just FYI on the epoxies proper and intended use.

[Joe]

Should be an easy fix.
Cabs tend to rust there and 1974 was the WORST year for GM metal to top it off. It will look better than new when you're done

[GreaseDog]

Originally Posted by 83K1500

The epoxies are meant for non integral structural repairs.
Structural ALWAYS has to be welded.

Cab corners are non structural.
Floor pans ARE structural.

Just giving examples, not ragging on you or poster. Just FYI on the epoxies proper and intended use.

depends on which epoxies you use. some are intended for structural purposes. i've used SEM brand expoxies, and they have some seriously strong stuff.

[1974ChevymediC]

alrght i'm kinda rethinking what i should do now. to weld or not to weld? isn't the rust just going to keep spreading if i don't cut it out?

[RTD]

Originally Posted by 83K1500

The epoxies are meant for non integral structural repairs.
Structural ALWAYS has to be welded.

Cab corners are non structural.
Floor pans ARE structural.

I agree 100%.