TR 3 with Plastic Surgery Survey

[mountainman]

I have my 59 TR3 in the body shop and it is being "NIP&TUCKED" with some bondo. I was wondering how many TR3s are out there without bondo? Lets say out of 100 what percentage would you say has bondo in some form?
Greg

 

[billspit]

My old one had a lot on it. Probably on all four fenders.

 

[rlwhitetr3b]

My right rear finder is sculpted from bondo.
I plan to replace the finder as part of the restoration.

 

[Gordon_Dedrick]

Greg
My 59 had lots on EVERY panel. After my nip,tuck,liposuction,and panel replacement
I still have some skim coats, but a lot less overall.
The body shop said I should get 4-5 more MPH after the removal of all the bondo!
Gordon

 

[Marvin Gruber]

Greg,

Of a 100 TR3's out there, I be willing to say 95 of them have some bondo or filler on them. Filler in small quantities/depths is no problem. Half inch thick filler is another issue.

Marv

 

[Andrew Mace]

Nothing wrong with a little bit of filler, but it's no substitute for decent metal-working skills! I still remember (still a 17-year-old snot-nosed hippie then, circa 1970!) working on the bonnet of my second Herald. I chipped and peeled away sections of filler well over 1/4" thick in the area around the side/flasher lamp. After doing so, I spent about four minutes with a proper body hammer and dolly :hammer: , then primed, spot-glazed, reprimed and painted. Made me kinda wonder why there had been so much filler.... :confuse:

 

[tdskip]

My TR3 has two rocker panels made out of the stuff!

 

[Moseso]

I bet a dollar that, out of 100 TR3s, actually on the road, ALL of them have at least some bondo. There might be a garage-and-trailer queen, out there somewhere, that has none -- but any TR3 that gets driven has had it's corners chunked up. Those bumpers are WORTHLESS!!!!!!

Mine is in the body shop, as I write, getting sorted out from this summer's side-swipe. The body man is a metal master! But there will be some skim coats of bondo, you can be sure. And, yes -- there was already some bondo on it prior to this trip to the body shop -- though not "much."

 

[M_Pied_Lourd]

From what I have uncovered so far, mine does....and some fiberglass patches as well.....

Cheers,
M. Pied Lourd

 

[Banjo]

My TR2 had absolutly NO bondo in it! now lead on the otherhand......
It shows signs of body repair. really old body repair. My best guess is that it last saw the road in the early 60s. all the body work is done in lead! Now, when I'm done it will have some bondo. skim coats, like others have said, but I have the oppertunity now to make sure all the metal work is done well.
MY TR4A on the otherhand was an absolute bondo buggy! some of the worst I'd ever seen!

 

[angelfj1]

Greg: During the rebuild of Grey lady we found some bondo where accident repairs were made. However, we also found quite a bit of lead which I am sure was applied at the factory. lead isn't used often today mainly due to health and environmental concerns. The materials available today like the medium and high build primers and catalysed fillers and adhesives are superior to what was available just ten years ago. Make sure your body guy is up to date on the latest techniques. I do agree with Andy that a little is OK, but too much filler could be a sign of shody job and a fast buck!

 

[Don_R]

Greg,

My 59 is a plastic surgery disaster under the paint. My dad enjoyed driving the car and we did what was needed to keep it on the road. Now I want to fix it properly.

 

[Guest]

Heard there was one ,but it rusted away..........

 

[PSUTR3B]

When i got my 3B the fenders quarters doors and apron were all off and stripped to bare metal except one fender which was from another car and I stripped that one. There was very little damage and no rust except pin holes in the bottom of one fender and the bottom of the other fender was almost rotted away and required a replacement piece. I was fortunate and I suspect it is unusual that little work had been done or was required.

From my experience working in a body shop as a teenager in the '60's, good body men used lead and scoffed at anyone who used plastic. By the late '60's that was changing as the metal got thinner and thinner. If your car has lead, it could be from the factory but more likely was repaired by a real craftsman back in the '60's or earlier.

Gary