PROJECT 51: More Fender Repair. At the rear end of the right front fender there were a couple of holes where the Washington-state rust had eaten through the steel. I attempted a welded repair, but the metal surrounding the holes was too thin, and burned through very easily. I didn't want to fill the holes with Bondo out of fear of it cracking later on. So, I went old-school like they would have done in the '50s, and I used lead.
Using a propane torch on the underside, I melted the lead on the surface, filling the holes. I then filed and sanded the area (wearing a breathing mask), then primed it. Like the other fix, a coat of spot putty will smooth the surface out, ready for paint.
(Using lead as a filler while doing body work on cars back in the '50s is where the term "lead sled" for a highly-custom hot rod came from, by the way.)
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| Rust holes peeking through. |
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| Prepped for lead. Able to weld one area, but the rest was too thin. |
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| Holes filled with melted lead. |
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| Filed and sanded smooth. |
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| Primed and ready for spot-putty and paint. |
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