patching bulkhead

[scott]

hey all, i cut out some rust on the right hand footwell, patched it and got a nice seam weld on the sides and top of a 14x4" patch but the patch should have been a bit wider. the bottom edge has a couple of good welds and some gaps. i'm thinking of filling the gaps with some caulk. any thoughts on this? thanks

[leafsprung]

do you just want it done, or do you want it done right?

[scott]

right would mean removing the patch and making it wider, or at least laying another patch over the bottom of the first and down the footwell. this means lugging my buddy's welder back over here. my welding is fair. ran into a problem when the thin sheet metal of the foot well melted away. orginal patch footwell overlap was only a 1/2". i got some good penetration across the bottom so structurally i'm happy. just thought i could prevent water from getting to the underside of my carpet with a bead of caulk. this truck will never be a show truck. it's made to be off road. so i'm more concerned with function over form.

[Eric W S]

Re-weld it. It's the spine of your rover. It deserves better than caulk regardless of it's intended use. Plus, you'll get to practice your welding.

[I Leak Oil]

You've got it torn down that far and have put that much work into it already. Why not just make it right? The caulking will most likely come back to bite you or the next owner in the arse. Don't be an SPO!
Jason T.

[scott]

damnyouall, cracks like "or done right?" and don't be a "SPO" means i gotta go make another patch...and i at the speed i work i'll never get the motor back in...

and speaking of motors does anyone know the legnth of a new cold start cable housing?

[solihull109]

Well if doing something right is beyond your grasp, maybe you should hire it out.
You never have enough time to do it right the first time, but you always have enough time to do it over...
If you're planning on keeping the truck, do yourself the favor and fix it right, you'll be much happier with the finished project.

[scott]

it's not beyond me, i just overestimated the old sheet metal. cut away all the really rotted, and when i cleaned up the rest i guess i hoped it was still thick enough to weld. no problem. just wish i had more free time. next to driving it, working on it is some of my happiest times. i just really want to put it back in the dirt

[I Leak Oil]

damnyouall, cracks like "or done right?" and don't be a "SPO" means i gotta go make another patch...and i at the speed i work i'll never get the motor back in...

You love it here and you know it......As for the motor...Do you need us to give you some advice on what to do with it before IT goes back in?

Jason T.

[thixon]

I'm all for doing it right, but if positively dont want to take out the patch panel you already have in, and don't care about the looks, then why not just weld up the gap instead of caulking?

[scott]

You love it here and you know it......As for the motor...Do you need us to give you some advice on what to do with it before IT goes back in?

Jason T.

motor is done, 8.5 head, shave a bit off the block, 2.5 cam, new bearings, balanced crank, new timing crap, new seals. new paint and all new grade 8 bolts (they look nice all yellow and shiney) it's just sitting there on the stand and it and my wings and a bunch off other parts have force my wife's lr3 to park in the drive. motor has been done for a couple of months. i just didn't want to put it back in a diry bay so i start cleaning it up and find the rot under the right wing on the bulkhead.

thix, i can't weld that gap. it was created as the original footwell sheet metal after being sanded down on both sides has become so thin that i melted away most of the 1/2" overlap of the patch. my patch material is thicker (14 gauge) galvanized sheet metal. what i will be doing next w/e is making another patch that overlaps the first and probably goes all the way down. after i get a good weld i'll cut away the old from the inside. it'll all get a por15 covering before i spray on the limestone.

[Rineheitzgabot]

I'm not against caulking it. You seem fairly clear that it is not being restored, and will never be a show car.

The bulkhead is not the spine of the vehicle, the frame would probably be the spine. The bulkhead is more like a pair of underwear on the Series "anatomy" (to stick with the physiological metaphor) Is it important? You bet. Not sure that it's as important (for your purposes) as everybody here thinks.

Brand new cars are filled with caulk, in some cases the caulk even has structural purposes.

Two caveats: 1. I can't really tell how big the gap is from the picture, and I can't tell from your description, what the orientation of the gap is. So, if it is too big, I wouldn't do it. But if it is small enough to caulk, this begs the question that Thixon had, "why not fill it with weld?". 2. I really don't know what kind of torsion the bulkhead sees. If it sees enough, the caulk will crack and fall out after it hardens.

No matter what you do at this point, it will not be show quality. It has already been hammered, cut, heated, and manipulated, and now looks like the surface of a lake, and cutting it out and starting over will probably make that worse.

I would still consider filling it with weld, using brass on the other side of the gap while building up. Or cut a patch for just the gap. If you still think this is too much work for what you gain, then caulk it.

[Eric W S]

I'm not against caulking it. You seem fairly clear that it is not being restored, and will never be a show car.

The bulkhead is not the spine of the vehicle, the frame would probably be the spine. The bulkhead is more like a pair of underwear on the Series "anatomy" (to stick with the physiological metaphor) Is it important? You bet. Not sure that it's as important (for your purposes) as everybody here thinks.

Brand new cars are filled with caulk, in some cases the caulk even has structural purposes.

Two caveats: 1. I can't really tell how big the gap is from the picture, and I can't tell from your description, what the orientation of the gap is. So, if it is too big, I wouldn't do it. But if it is small enough to caulk, this begs the question that Thixon had, "why not fill it with weld?". 2. I really don't know what kind of torsion the bulkhead sees. If it sees enough, the caulk will crack and fall out after it hardens.

No matter what you do at this point, it will not be show quality. It has already been hammered, cut, heated, and manipulated, and now looks like the surface of a lake, and cutting it out and starting over will probably make that worse.

I would still consider filling it with weld, using brass on the other side of the gap while building up. Or cut a patch for just the gap. If you still think this is too much work for what you gain, then caulk it.

Underwear? Physio? Fashionable, maybe. A good anology for underwear would be powdercoating or painting the frame whcih covers it (and protects it from the elements). If you think of your spine, or any biped's, then the anology is correct as it would run vertically.

Anything that you can't easily replace is better off repaired properly. Trust me. I scoured just about everyone in the rover community looking for a replacement bulkhead. Ike and Marc were the only two to that either had a bulkhead or could get one. Ike is pretty much the only one doing what I would call a correct factory restoration at a damn good price as well. That includes cornflakes and Lanny Clark, and the Rover Ranch, and... You get the idea.

Love thy bulkhead. When is restoring anything a bad thing?

[scott]

i had to refinish the floor of a 97 chevy p/u. seams running from footwell to the rear of the cab were spotwelded and caulked. my welds are structurally sound. it would problably hold up to a passenger doing one of those phantom brake stomps during one of those oh my god moments.

the next owner would be one of my kids or a savage yard so i'm not concerned with screwing anyone over. i guess what i was looking for from you guys was confirmation on my shortcut. i'm counting one for and a few against. guess it's time to have another beer and make the call.

[daveb]

just put another patch over it. weld it up. no big deal. moisture is the enemy. keep your enemies closer does not apply in this case. seam seal when you are done. caulk is for bathtubs and other household repairs. not getting into semantic arguments equating to certain human body parts. bulkhead is important and structural, not a place for cheesy repairs.