Repair Panels

[Alphabet]

So I’ve got a ‘66 BJ8 that is all there, as far as can tell. I bought it as a "project car." I was told the engine turns over but doesn’t run.

From 20 feet away it looks great, but closer up I can see that the lower portions of the right rear wing have some body filler that’s been added. This was to be expected as I’m aware of the problem with rust in the lower quarter panels. From the start I figured on building a rotisserie to be able to access everything.

So with all that said, the other night I was perusing the different body panel parts suppliers and noticed that the body patch panels come with or without a wired edge. I’ve never taken apart an original panel so I don’t know if they came with them or not. It also makes me question why there would be two different types. Is one bettter than the other, and why?

Any and all comments are welcome! TIA.

 

[Jack T]

I believe the wired edge is how the cars came from the factory. It provides a stiffer, more rounded finish around the wheel opening. If I had a choice, I'd opt for the wired edge.

 

[red57]

All wheel openings have wired edges to stiffen them and give a nicer visual - anything else would not look right. The option of with or without wired edges is to tailor the cost of the parts to what you need for any given repair. If you can cut away the rusted metal without cutting thru a wired edge, the degree of difficulty in welding a patch panel is exponentially easier. Picture of a rear fender dog leg where it was possible to leave the wired edge undisturbed (I did not need a wired edge on the patch panel therefore it was both much cheaper and much easier to weld).

 

[Alphabet]

All wheel openings have wired edges to stiffen them and give a nicer visual - anything else would not look right. The option of with or without wired edges is to tailor the cost of the parts to what you need for any given repair. If you can cut away the rusted metal without cutting thru a wired edge, the degree of difficulty in welding a patch panel is exponentially easier. Picture of a rear fender dog leg where it was possible to leave the wired edge undisturbed (I did not need a wired edge on the patch panel therefore it was both much cheaper and much easier to weld).

Thank you so much for the pictures and the explanation - I hadn’t considered a repair that didn’t include the whole width of the panel - after looking at your repair my hope is that I’ll be able to do the same thing ( fingers crossed ! )

 

[Alphabet]

Thank you so much for the pictures and the explanation - I hadn’t considered a repair that didn’t include the whole width of the panel - after looking at your repair my hope is that I’ll be able to do the same thing ( fingers crossed ! )

Another follow up question would be; if the whole width needs replacing is it best to try and insert some of the wire from the patch panel up into the original panel for support ?