65 Mustang floor pan job

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So, I'm undertaking what might be a lot of money coming my way.. Dude has a 65 mustang that needs pretty much the entire floor replaced. I'm headed over tomorrow to start working on taking out the old floor and might get started.  I'll post some pics tomorrow evening. Just wondering if anyone had any tips or advice?  I've only done one floor pan before but it was on a modern cheap car and the guy didn't care about aesthetics at all, it was just "get it done, it's getting covered with carpet anyway" but on a classic mustang...I really want to make it as perfect as possible.  Also, he has plenty more work to be done on other parts of the car, so if I impress him here...might be the beginning of a great thing for both of us.  thanks in advance for any comments. cheers.Millermatic 211 Miller Blue Fire 140@swiftwelding on Instagram
Reply:Buy a replacement floor then cut out the old. Use thin wire and manage the heat you are putting in to avoid warping.GravelThe difference between theory and practice is that in theory there is no difference.
Reply:Buy new floor pans lay inside old ones give yourself 1/2 inch of overlap. Old man has 65 mustang with Flintstone floors. I fixed them. 110v machine take your time. Hammer is your friend. Tack, hit, tack, hit. Work the metal around and take breaks.Any severe access on bottom remove with torch or grinder. Make it all lap welds as that old car has more rust then Kellogg got corn flacks. Sent from my SPH-L710 using TapatalkUsing Tapatalk
Reply:Cut out old before welding new. Dont try to ve perfect on fitSent from my SPH-L710 using TapatalkUsing Tapatalk
Reply:Push mig to lay in flat less grindingSent from my SPH-L710 using TapatalkUsing Tapatalk
Reply:Most people on floor pans dont care..... took me a week on my pickup to make perfect.... you dont have that long. Or that much Bondo lolSent from my SPH-L710 using TapatalkUsing Tapatalk
Reply:Yeah, he ordered the floor pans - they came in today. I went over last week to see how bad it was. It's pretty rough, but only on the lowest spots. Hopefully the rust won't be into anything structural. Thanks, guys!Millermatic 211 Miller Blue Fire 140@swiftwelding on Instagram
Reply:Im currently doing a trunk pan in a 71 firebird formula resto....and its all butt welds that have to be finish ground on the inside of trunk and under neath the car because of showing....no laps it must be like it was never replaced. Ive been working on the fuel tank support brackets filling all the holes from drilling spot welds out and when removing them some of the metal ripped near edges so im having to build up and square off the edges so they look factory. Lap it if you want but thats not how to do it. It needs to be perfect or why do it at all? ESPECIALLY on a classic..attention to detail is what wins.if you lap weld then technically the floor will be the metal thickness higher than its supposed to be...  just my opinion....Miller Syncrowave 210 w/CK FlexLoc 150  3/6/14ESAB PCM 1125 Plasma CutterAtlas 12x36 LatheACER 9x42 3hp millHarig 612 Surface GrinderDRINK Machine              welding&fabrication
Reply:Yeah classic cars guys who are serious demand perfection. You can quickly destroy the value of a classic car if you don't do this right. It's a really good way to make bad blood between you and a customer and get a reputation as a hack. Do it right and you'll get more customers by word of mouth.the guys who want it cheap and fast are kidding themselves. Guys who know what is what know that do do this right, it's often not cheap or fast.Depending on how bad this is, I'd be really tempted to say frame off restoration if he's going to be serious about this. That lets you get where you need to be without all the interruptions. Also he'll need to do that to do the paint right anyways. Blast it so you know what is good and what isn't, then go from there.If fit up has to be perfect for a show quality job, keep a few things in mind. Rough out the hole, but make sure you are undersized. That will let you fit your patch and mark the exact location for the final cuts. Then remember you can always make the hole bigger, but making it smaller can be a PITA. I've seen plenty of guys doing body patches who end up with gaps the size of a zip wheel because they cut on the wrong side of the line or decided to just say "F it, let's  just git ur done" and cut thru  both pieces at once. Then they get to figure out how to span the gap and not make a giant mess, usually where you can't back up the weld with a piece of copper for support. My old boss learned that lesson the hard way when we did a new floor for the Mack one winter. I was "taking too long" and was being "too precise", so he would show me how it's "done". We got to spend the next few hours trying to fix his mess and in the end he wasn't happy with it and I just cut it all back out and refabbed the whole section I'd made all over again, just bigger, to fix the mess he made. He left me alone after that and let me fit the way I wanted while he just welded up my work, complaining if I got the joint just a hair too wide.....No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:If the floors are gone then 10 to 1 says the torque boxes are gone also...Have fun!...zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:Originally Posted by SwiftyYeah, he ordered the floor pans - they came in today. I went over last week to see how bad it was. It's pretty rough, but only on the lowest spots. Hopefully the rust won't be into anything structural. Thanks, guys!
Reply:We got real lucky the firebirds only rust is the trunk and lower rear quarters...everything else is great I had to chase a little surface rust with scotchbrite on the underside of the floors. If any one wants to look....search 1970 challenger panther pink bruce hershberger. Theres an article by hemmings muscle machines. The guy who did that 1 of 5 car is my uncle here in alaska. That car is a show king...so far the people who own this formula have invested 41000 into the resto....it may cost another 10 but when we showed them the progress they seen and understood that the money pays for details. When someone drops that kinda cash they CANNOT be disappointed in any way or like others said your rep is done for. We got two days into removing someone elses hack repair and roughing the new panel. Take your time bud.Miller Syncrowave 210 w/CK FlexLoc 150  3/6/14ESAB PCM 1125 Plasma CutterAtlas 12x36 LatheACER 9x42 3hp millHarig 612 Surface GrinderDRINK Machine              welding&fabrication
Reply:Didn't get out there today. going first thing in the morning. Hmmmm...Burpee, I'll be the first to admit I'm not a huge car guy. I mean.. I love old cars as much as the next guy, but I'm by no means a mechanic or hot rod enthusiast. I had no idea. Dang.  I'll be more careful. Thanks for the heads up. And this isn't some guy with tons of money trying to make a show car, just a guy with a rusted out 65 mustang he bought for like 2500, trying to get it drivable by summer time.  That being said,  I'm going to do it as right as possible but I'm also aware of him being more of the "wanting it done fast and cheap" kind of guy... it's a budget build, yeah? Anyway, I'll post pics once I get into it tomorrow. thanks again, everyone!Millermatic 211 Miller Blue Fire 140@swiftwelding on Instagram
Reply:As far as a right way and a wrong way its up to the guy footing the bill. Be sure to get all the paint off where you want to weld as this will help with burnthrough. For a car that's to be driven just overlap and small stitch welds. Cover seam top and bottom with a good seam sealer. Check out a company like Eastwood for seam sealer and the P.O.R. coatings.Miller xmt304,  Miller S22 p12, Miier Maxstar SD, Miller 252 w 30A, Miller super32p12, Lincoln Ranger 9, Thermal Arc 181I with spoolgun, Hypertherm 10000 ,Smith torches. Esab 161lts miniarc.
Reply:Originally Posted by zapsterIf the floors are gone then 10 to 1 says the torque boxes are gone also...Have fun!...zap!
Reply:If this is a coupe, weld a few inches at a time, spread it out, if not, it will likely 'oil can' on  you. If it's a convert., get inside ,close the doors, put the roof up, as you'll have less chance of body twist. Even though the converts have a different sub frame, they will twist. This is one of our main sources of work for over 30 years.
Reply:Weld through primer is your friend! All the places that can't be painted after welding need to be weld through primer coated also. It helps control corrosion long term and you won't have to re clean a bunch of stuff after fitting. I use the Eastwood stuff, works well for me.(Home)Miller Maxstar 152 (sold)MM211/spool gunLincoln AC 225C(Work)Dynasty 350Powcon 300STLincoln SP-175TWeldlodgic AWS150sWeldlodgic AWS300Custom Resistance seam weldersCambridge Vacuum EB weldersI smell something burning.
Reply:I got the passenger side floor cut out yesterday, he was going to coat the exposed frame with POR and I'm headed back in a little bit to weld in the pan I've cut to size. I asked him what his preference was and how perfect he wanted it to be. He said he just wants it drivable and doesn't want to put his feet through the floor. so, leaving myself a little bit of overlap. the worst part of yesterday was that after 50 years the floor had pretty much fused itself to the framework. drilling out spotwelds did NOTHING. had to pretty much grind the last bits of the floor off of the framework. but, got everything cut in with just two small gaps that will be no problem to fill. Leaving the seat risers and everything in back, the only problem was the front floor boards. Lucky! I really expected it to be a lot worse after I looked at it with the seats in. now that they're out it's really not that bad, though. really didn't need to take out that much of the front , either, but I figured it'll look better with most of a new floor pan in the bottom instead of just one tiny little patch.Millermatic 211 Miller Blue Fire 140@swiftwelding on Instagram
Reply:also, notice someone else already put some extra metal in here before? right over the rusted floor. d'oh!Millermatic 211 Miller Blue Fire 140@swiftwelding on Instagram
Reply:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Absetzzange-blech.jpg Anyone tried this type of joint?---Meltedmetal
Reply:what is that? and why post it here?Millermatic 211 Miller Blue Fire 140@swiftwelding on Instagram
Reply:Originally Posted by Swiftywhat is that? and why post it here?
Reply:Dont see it mentioned, but if you do any lap joints be sure to apply weldable primer to both mating pieces. As you probably know the new metal, and old, once heated attracts rust right away. Had a guy put new metal in my car, before I owned it, and it rusted out, starting at all his welds.
Reply:On thing with lap welds is that you almost always leave a small space that will trap dirt and water. Since most guys weld from the inside of the car, that open joint is underneath and exposed to all the dirt salt and road grime as well as water. Using those tools to do an offset is an easy way to help deal with thin sheet, but you are trading ease of welding with the almost guarantee you will have worse rot later. ( learned this lesson the hard way years ago as a teenager when I "fixed" my 1st car...).No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:well,darn. wish I'd read all that earlier. got the passenger side welded up this morning. he is planning to coat the everloving crap outta both sides before putting anything else down, though. enough primer and underbody coating will ...hopefully keep it solid for a long time? hmmm....Millermatic 211 Miller Blue Fire 140@swiftwelding on Instagramalso- Joggling can also mean this : Millermatic 211 Miller Blue Fire 140@swiftwelding on Instagram
Reply:Originally Posted by DSWOn thing with lap welds is that you almost always leave a small space that will trap dirt and water. Since most guys weld from the inside of the car, that open joint is underneath and exposed to all the dirt salt and road grime as well as water. Using those tools to do an offset is an easy way to help deal with thin sheet, but you are trading ease of welding with the almost guarantee you will have worse rot later. ( learned this lesson the hard way years ago as a teenager when I "fixed" my 1st car...)
Reply:You will often find a "mastic" type seam sealer between factory panels, even spot welded ones. Deadens noise, seals out water, probably acts a bit like glue....No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Couple local body guys don't weld patches anymore, haven't for many years.The fancy auto body epoxy that comes in a double tube and uses a special $100 two sided caulking type gun works excellent on the lapped areas.They use an air flanger tool to quickly flange the panel and then epoxy it up.Dave J.Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance. ~George Bernard Shaw~ Syncro 350Invertec v250-sThermal Arc 161 and 300MM210DialarcTried being normal once, didn't take....I think it was a Tuesday.