TR2/3/3A New left front wing body panel from TRF?

[GTP1960]

Preparing for a winter project:

Anyone have any experience with TRF replacement body panels?( front Left exterior wing in particular)

https://gar.zeni.net/wc/specials7.13/index.php?menu=&page=5

According to Chuck at TRF, they are made in England, metal, based on original design & original thickness. Holes are not pre-drilled, for individual alignment.

but they are not cheap either, at about $1000 including ship cost.

my lower left front has paint bubbling issues, that I assume is caused by rust corrosion .
(But that appears to be the only place)

I am also considering the TRF repair panel, but since I would have to have the welding body work done professionally, I figure it's about a wash between patch & new wing.

your thoughts & experience appreciated.

best regards,
Guy

 

[JerryVV]

I'd use the repair panel if it covers the area that needs repaired. OE is always a better way to go with sheet metal.

 

[Kleykamp]

2nd the repair panel and if someone is going to charge nearly $1000 to weld in a patch, go somewhere else. You'll get a lot better fit using the original fender with the patch.

 

[DornTRoriginal]

I am looking at a similar situation for the left rear fender on my car, I thought I read a note from Charles at TRF explaining he was not particularly fond of the supply he had available and was looking for a better source, I am not 100% certain that is still the situation now. The cost is steep for both alternatives, true enough. I am suspect about buying something that does not match the other side. I was/am hoping to find a good used one but based on the used one I obtained or that was incorrectly modified by my body shop, there seems to be a lot of variation in the dimensions from one car to another, which is hard for me to understand completely. I can see a little bit of a difference but in my case the difference is 1/2 inches in the radius of the curve and it is very noticeable when looking at the car from the front. If the body/welder is professional, I wish my shop had been, at least you will be assured to have a matching pair that will look nice when completed. Maybe I am too concerned with the details and no one else would even notice?

 

[charleyf]

I agree with Jerry. I have used the repair panel on a TR3 and though it needs to be done with care, I think that you will be money and time ahead with the repair panel. You should consider having the new repair panel placed on the car with the original fender bolted in place before welding it. The front and rear portions of the panel need to be a very good fit. The front portion needs to look correct with the bead on the original fender and the rear portion needs to be just so that the door will open and close without hitting it. I got mine on and the front looked good but the rear was about 1/16" to long and the door hit when opening and closing. Easy fix was to grind back a bit of the repair panel. Unfortunately, I didn't discover this until I had it painted.
For me the new panels are close but not nearly as good a fit as you would hope them to be. They are NOT made up from the original stampings on the TR3.
Charley

 

[Geo Hahn]

...For me the new panels are close but not nearly as good a fit as you would hope them to be. They are NOT made up from the original stampings on the TR3...

And even if they were made from the original tooling, I suspect they would need fettling to fit most cars.

 

[CJD]

And...

...for what you'll save on the repair panel, you can get a decent MIG welder!

 

[TomMull]

I am looking at a similar situation for the left rear fender on my car, I thought I read a note from Charles at TRF explaining he was not particularly fond of the supply he had available and was looking for a better source, I am not 100% certain that is still the situation now. The cost is steep for both alternatives, true enough. I am suspect about buying something that does not match the other side. I was/am hoping to find a good used one but based on the used one I obtained or that was incorrectly modified by my body shop, there seems to be a lot of variation in the dimensions from one car to another, which is hard for me to understand completely. I can see a little bit of a difference but in my case the difference is 1/2 inches in the radius of the curve and it is very noticeable when looking at the car from the front. If the body/welder is professional, I wish my shop had been, at least you will be assured to have a matching pair that will look nice when completed. Maybe I am too concerned with the details and no one else would even notice?

Unlike front wings, which are prone to rust in the same places, decent used rear wings are available and that was my choice. I think if you stay in the same production range, post 60k for example, the fit seems to be extremely close.
Tom

 

[malbaby]

I would remove all the paint and perhaps bondo [as you call it] from around the effected area and the other lower sections first to see what I was faced with, before I made the decision what to replace.
Post some pics once you have done that.

 

[PowderBlue]

Unless the rot is extensive and has included the lower part of the wheel arch I would just cut out the rot and fabricate the repair pieces. Using the repair panel needs careful alignment and special treatment of the rolled wire edge. I used the commercial repair panel on my left fender and fabricated repair sections for the right and in retrospect I wish I had taken the less invasive approach on the left fender also.

I documented my experience recently:

https://www.tr-register.co.uk/rebui.../1960-TR3A-Restoration-Front-left-wing-repair

https://www.tr-register.co.uk/rebui...1960-TR3A-Restoration-Front-right-wing-repair

 

[martx-5]

I used repair panels on both of my front wings. I got them from Moss. The repair panels I got are flat up their entire height (about 8-9 inches), whereas the original wing has a slight curve that only straightens out lower down. I didn't use the entire height of the repair panel, as then the wing would not have had the correct curve. I used as little as I could get away with, about 3-4 inches worth on both wings. The repairs worked out fine. Other then not having the correct curvature, the repair panels from Moss were high quality in every other respect.

 

[GTP1960]

Thanks guys.
i guess the take home is don't buy anything until I know exactly what I'm dealing with & use as much of the original panel as possible.

thanks Powderblue, for sharing the links to your resto.

very helpful.

CJD,

And...

...for what you'll save on the repair panel, you can get a decent MIG welder!

i wouldn't know what to do with a MIG welder if I had one., (though YouTube does make it look fairly easy)

cheers to Friday.

thx against n for your inputs!