1953 Chevy Bed - Tears With No Fears

Before any welding occurred Sam set the Lincoln ARC welder SP-100, with .023 wire, to Wire Speed 5 and Volts 5, the appropriate settings for a job this size. He then began welding the patch in place.

Instead of welding the piece in with one pass, Sam stitch-welded the filler piece. Stitch welding the piece will keep the heat down and prevent any warping.

Once the piece was fully welded in place Sam then came back with his air grinder and ground down the welds.

Can't get any better than that. Cosby said it best: "The proof is in the pudding." Here it's obvious if you follow the steps and take your time the final result will be a perfect patch that mounts flush with the bed.

Finishing off cleaning up the rear of the bedrail includes filling in the stake pocket. Sam used the same process to make the patch, only this time he couldn't hold the patch piece, therefore a magnet did the trick until he could get it tacked in.

From there the piece was welded in place and ground down just like the bed cap.

Check out how smooth and sleek the bedrail looks now. Doesn't it seem logical that GM would have done this from the beginning? We think so.