Bottom of Tourer rust issues help needed

[Vigil]

Today i found out i have a very bad rust issue on my 1960 tourer.
Just in front of the spring hanger there is a seam busting open.
This caused the right side spring hanger to pull loose or droop down .
The view from the top (after removing the seat) i could see a support about where the seam is located.
I tried to poke a screw driver into the floor in the areas i could get at even inside the support.
The screw driver did not go threw the floor any where i was poking.
Can some one tell me how to fix this problem and how hard it is to fix.

Thanks for your time and help,

Vigil

[bmcecosse]

Pretty major welding I'm afraid - and if one side is like that, chances are the other side won't be far behind. You can buy repair panels from eg MOSS item 10 Other suppliers have them too of course - the MOSS site just happens to have best diagrams, http://www.moss-europe.co.uk/shop-by-mo ... anels.html

[mike.perry]

Find someone reliable with a welding torch and give him a big wad of money.
It is always worse than it looks

[Vigil]

What would some thing like this cost in the UK?
All the welders i have called in my area do not want to deal with it.
They all feel like they paid there dues and only want to weld the easy stuff.
One told me the liability was to high If some thing happened later.
The only person i have found so far wants way to much to do it in my opinion.
I would hate to strip the car and scrap it. It is to much fun to drive.

Any guesses on what the welding would cost to fix on your side of the pond?

Vigil

[bmcecosse]

We would need to see some pictures..........

[Vigil]

I will try to get a few to post -

Vigil

[ManyMinors]

I would say the only person who could tell you what it'll cost to fix is a person who has
a) seen your car. and
b) is prepared to carry out the work.

It is pretty pointless anyone speculating otherwise but the repair panel pictured above is only going to do part of the job from your description. The area you describe is poorly served by repair panels and if the car is badly rusted - usually caused by years of rainwater getting inside the car and laying in that lowest area - the rear seat platform will need to be removed by drilling out all the spotwelds, repairing the front face of the seat support, repairing the rear floor and the spring mounting itself before refitting the seat support. All this can be done but takes time and a certain amount of skill. The cost will depend on the number of hours it takes and the cost per hour which will vary according to undertakes the work......

If the rest of the car is in reasonable condition there is no reason to write it off just yet. A tourer has some value and the repairs shouldn't cost anything like the value of the car.

[kennatt]

if you have somewhere to work,buy a mig welder,and hand held angle grinder ,the best you can afford. Get some scraps of metal,have a look on the mig welders forum for tips,U Tube to see how its done. Then practice on the scraps. You will be suprised how easy mig welding is,with a bit of practice you will get perfectly acceptable welds. Obviously not as neat and tidy as a pro,but good enough to be a strong and safe repair. I can't see how the rot will have travelled very far,out there in california,you never get rain or so the song goes .Put some photos on here you will get loads of advice and information. There is nothing that can't be repaired,it could be that all you need to do is clean up the area and re inforce the spring hanger. It depends on how good the rest of the car is.From your description it dosen't sound that bad to me.You should see some of the re build thread on cars over here ,subjected to road salt for 4 months of the year.

[bmcecosse]

You'll need to find a small repair business willing to take on the job - without worries about 'liability' . Is there parhaps a local classic car club -any make - who could point you in the right direction? Alternatively - in UK there are often 'mobile welders' who come to your premises and do the work under your supervision. Plenty of help on here about what to do -you would buy in the panels, and he would do the work for you. Just make sure the costs don't run away beyond all sense..........

[mike.perry]

Any guesses on what the welding would cost to fix on your side of the pond? Vigil

Welding seems to work at £100 to pick up a welding torch, extra if he has to light it.
I reckon on about £200 a corner
I wish that I had learned to weld when I was younger, it would have saved me a fortune

[kennatt]

do it now mike,It's not exactly rocket science,Also very handy for other round the house jobs,garden gates,wheel barrow etc.I was once told by a pro(When I was still using a gas torch.) If you have a steady hand and can draw a straight line,you can learn to mig in and hour.Not that quick but not far off.It's mainly about getting rid of the rust to clean metal and getting the machine set up correctly for the job /thickness of metal.It is easy with a bit of practice and a decent machine.

[smithskids]

As he says its quite easy Mike I was nearly 60 before I learnt and I am 76 now!

[Coalmossian]

There are some folk on this site who are mighty handy with a mig welder. Unfortunately I am not one of them!! Wish I was!
What you need to do is offer someone the opportunity of a couple of free weeks in California in exchange for welding up your car. "A fair exchange is no robbery," as my late dad used to say. I would reckon that if you bought the repair panels, a mig welder and a grinder you'd get everything done to a good standard and at a very reasonable price!!!

[mike.perry]

Unfortunately I fail on most criteria,
I am well over 60. I do not have a steady hand and I have never been able to draw a straight line to save my life.
The only thing in my favour is that my son in law's parents live in California so a free, well cheap, holiday is no problem
I will just stick to jobs which need spanners