Author Topic: How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10  (Read 27755 times)

Offline Mike86c10

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How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« on: May 30, 2013, 10:32:35 am »
I bought an 86 C10 a few weeks ago and thought I had a minor leak issue.  (I have a post in the general forum).  Well I just removed the wiper motor and scraped off some black sealant on the firewall and found a huge gaping rust hole.   How deep in the hole am I?  I was going to attempt to fix some issues myself but this just went beyond my abilities and tool inventory. 
I assume the rust spreads further than can be seen.   If you could recommend anybody  that lives in the Philadelphia area or 30-40 mile radius I would greatly appreciate it. 

Here are the pics:
Before removing wiper motor - http://i.imgur.com/GUywQGKh.jpg
After - http://i.imgur.com/RrxMQV9h.jpg

Full Gallery - http://imgur.com/a/lgrpJ
Original post - http://forum.73-87chevytrucks.com/smforum/index.php/topic,26191.0.html

Offline gildardo01

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Re: How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« Reply #1 on: May 30, 2013, 10:48:49 am »
woah you weren´t kidding about the size of the hole...  since you have such a nice truck i assume you wan´t to do it the right way... so you kinda have to cut the piece out and weld in new metal... we´ll see what other members have to say about it...

Offline Fairlane514

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Re: How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« Reply #2 on: May 30, 2013, 12:10:13 pm »
You will need to cut beyond the rust into "good" metal and use the piece you cut out as a template to cut your new piece. Then butt weld it back in place.

Welding is a good skill to learn and can save you thousands in repair bills.

Offline gildardo01

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Re: How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« Reply #3 on: May 30, 2013, 12:49:59 pm »
You will need to cut beyond the rust into "good" metal and use the piece you cut out as a template to cut your new piece. Then butt weld it back in place.

Welding is a good skill to learn and can save you thousands in repair bills.
seriously... usually a weld at a welding shop cost from 1-2 dollars per inch of weld... at least thats what i heard... think how much welding is going to be needing for a patch like this....

Offline Mike86c10

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Re: How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« Reply #4 on: May 30, 2013, 01:02:23 pm »
I don't have a garage so it's tough for me to do anything that requires major work.  I have a few people lined up that are going to take a look at it and give me their opinion.  At least you guys are saying its repairable instead of buy a new cab.

This post here shows what kind of work goes into completely fixing a firewall.  These guys are working it themselves though. I can't imagine how expensive it would be to remove the engine components and fenders at a shop to then have to weld. 
http://forum.73-87chevytrucks.com/smforum/index.php?topic=10512.0   

Offline gildardo01

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Re: How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« Reply #5 on: May 30, 2013, 01:39:27 pm »
i really dont think you need a new cab... and probably dont need to remove the engine or the fenders.. it might be hard to weld but nothing impossible.. have you seen pipe welders weld... now does are some tight spots and their able to weld the pipes and get them approved/certified... with this its just a patch with very little to no stress on the welds...

Offline Mike86c10

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Re: How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« Reply #6 on: May 30, 2013, 02:01:29 pm »
Good point, thanks for the insight.

Offline Fairlane514

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Re: How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« Reply #7 on: May 30, 2013, 06:15:49 pm »
Gildardo,

Not sure what you are questioning about my statement. I have done repairs like this on many cars and my process is exactly what a body shop would do, at least a good one. You can expect to spend from 50-70 dollars an hour on rust repair.  I learned to weld and fix this kind of problem out of necessity.  If there is a reproduction patch panel it can make it a little easier. Cutting a salvage piece out of an original truck is usually a better fit. 

Mike, you dont need a new cab, you can repair this.  If you decide to look for reproduction patches check with AMD they make excellent reproductions.

Offline Macj1983

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How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« Reply #8 on: May 30, 2013, 06:32:59 pm »
You will need to cut beyond the rust into "good" metal and use the piece you cut out as a template to cut your new piece. Then butt weld it back in place.

Welding is a good skill to learn and can save you thousands in repair bills.
seriously... usually a weld at a welding shop cost from 1-2 dollars per inch of weld... at least thats what i heard... think how much welding is going to be needing for a patch like this....
jb weld :) last ditch though you can buy a 99.00 wire welder form harbor freight it actually works good to be a cheapy

Offline gildardo01

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Re: How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« Reply #9 on: May 30, 2013, 09:42:37 pm »
Gildardo,

Not sure what you are questioning about my statement. I have done repairs like this on many cars and my process is exactly what a body shop would do, at least a good one. You can expect to spend from 50-70 dollars an hour on rust repair.  I learned to weld and fix this kind of problem out of necessity.  If there is a reproduction patch panel it can make it a little easier. Cutting a salvage piece out of an original truck is usually a better fit. 

Mike, you dont need a new cab, you can repair this.  If you decide to look for reproduction patches check with AMD they make excellent reproductions.
I´m not questioning anything i´m actually agreeing with you about how much you can save by learning how to weld and doing the the welding yourself... i guess i didn´t explain myself...

Offline Fairlane514

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Re: How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« Reply #10 on: May 30, 2013, 10:19:41 pm »
No problem, things get lost in translation through text.

  We are on the same page though..............its definitely worth learning how to weld if you are going to mess with old cars and trucks.

Offline Mike86c10

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Re: How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« Reply #11 on: May 31, 2013, 08:24:50 am »
I'm going to look into purchasing some equipment.  I will update the post with my progress.  Thanks.

Offline Fairlane514

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Re: How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« Reply #12 on: May 31, 2013, 06:44:00 pm »
Dont buy a cheap welder they are more trouble than they are worth. I like Miller.   

Offline Irish_Alley

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Re: How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« Reply #13 on: May 31, 2013, 10:59:24 pm »
and make sure you cover your carpet up with something that will protect it and anything else that might catch on fire
If you can’t tell yourself the truth, who can you tell it to?~Irish_Alley

When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth ~Sherlock Holmes

Offline Cabcorner

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Re: How screwed am I? - Found huge Firewall hole - 86 C10
« Reply #14 on: June 01, 2013, 09:48:58 pm »
       Be care full, I've set the firewall insulation on fire several times myself .