help with rust work on Dodge d5n

Any repair work done near hinges need to be done with metal. They have to be welded in and with metal the same thickness as the parent metal. If you don't ,you risk it being cracked or torn out with vibration from the road.

all the rust repairs that are going to be done on this vehicle will be metal welded in, hopefully all the same thickness (although i am sure using some a bit thicker is probably OK)

i have a qestion though, do the repairs on outer body panels need to be fully welded or just spot welded in?

personally i would be happier with fully welding everything but i have heard it can cause warping to weld in the same area too long


would the correct procedure be to spot weld it and THEN weld it all around? or would it still warp?

or if i welded all around but in small chunks, rotating around (say doing an inch and then skipping to a piece further along

All welded sheet metal needs to be fully welded to prohibit any moisture from getting behind the filler you’ll be using after. As you stated there will be some warping of the panel. To minimize that I tack weld and work with dolly and hammer keeping the panel in line where I want it to be until it’s completely sealed. Time consuming yes; however, worth the added effort down the road.

Using a MIG is what works well for me and spot welding is how I do it. I'll spot about an inch apart to start with then come back and do it again between each spot and keep doing that until it's solid. May not be the right way but that's what works for me.

at the moment time is not an issue

i have pretty much 5-6 days a week to do it

any tips for rebuilding corners? and also how do you make seams



thanks