Ford F-100 Patch - Remedies For Rot

10. Holes were punched in the new sills for rosette welds. Clecos held the panel in place while its alignment was checked before welding.

11. Once the sill was secured the bead-blasted body mount was welded back in place. Note the holes for rosette welds to the sill.

12. After cutting away a portion of the lower cowl, the damage to the lower hinge pocket could be evaluated. In this case a replacement was in order.

13. The distance between the bolt holes in the hinge pockets was carefully measured before the post was cut to accommodate the replacement.

14. LMC’S replacement hinge pocket can be trimmed to fit. We elected to carefully trim the body to use as much of the new metal as possible.

15. The remaining portion of the lower cowl was removed by drilling all the spot welds. Again all the inner structure was wire brushed and coated with Eastwood’s Rust Encapsulator.

17. Here’s the finished lower hinge pocket. Note how the new section fits over the sill, which is why it was replaced first.

18. A common problem on F-100s, the rear cab corners collect dirt, which holds moisture, and this is the result. The round hole on the back panel is where the cab mount attaches.

19. The rotted portion of the original inner panel was trimmed leaving a lip around the edge of the floor. Holes were drilled in the replacement panel so it could be rosette welded in place. The cab mount was transferred from the old panel.

20. Jake carefully marked the rear of the cab before trimming it for the replacement panel. This is a critical cut as the panels will be butt welded, not overlapped.

21. Satisfied with the fit, Jake held the panel in place with Eastwood welding clamps (item number 19016).

22. They leave a small gap for welding and are removed after the panels are solidly tacked by loosening the wing nuts and then pulling out the crossbars.

23. Some light taps from a body hammer brought the replacement panel into alignment; the adjacent clamp was then tightened.

24. Our antique inside radius tool was used to perfect the alignment of the door opening.

25. After tack welding and light grinding the fit was perfect.