1959 356A S/R coupe project chassis # 108625

[JTR70]

Overall body profile down the side.
Dialing in a preliminary attachment point between the nose and the fender. This will most definitely change as fitment continues but I just need a jumping off point for now.
I need the fender to run pretty much flat and to carry on the line off of the door. It should start to grow and flare ever so slightly as it transitions to the nose. Its very nuanced flare however. Fortunately I have an original undamaged reference. I've seen many a car with this area too flared and strong. Even the entire fender profile itself could be pulled out and flared too far.
Right now the fender shape is still a little rough so I am just shooting for close contour as a starting point. I can either make the flare/ muscle profile shape grow or reduce by moving that nose joint back and fourth. Because the fender is bent its initial profile shape was starting out too flared but I kept manipulating it closer to the contour I'm looking for. A ways yet from committing to a final cut and weld line for sure.
The exaggerated sections in this body profile above is what I am watching out for. The rear fender opening is pulled way out of alignment. The front is also too strong at the back of the opening on up to the top of the arch. The general side reflection is all over the place as it also tucks and rolls at the door gaps. I've learned the hard way that you can't get focused just on one panel at a time as your building it. You have to keep one eye on the entire picture as it goes otherwise the final result is mixed at best.
Heading back to work on this rear repair section next.
Thanks for looking!

Justin

[JTR70]

Thanks again for the link the John. I've watched them and it looks amazing. I am really looking forward to your first hand accounts and impressions on its performance once you take delivery. Justin

[Jbrooks]

I just ordered a 2Kw laser welder, I have been watching them for a few months. Watch, don’t listen the chinglish will give you a brain cramp. I saw a hot rod guy up in Canada cleaning some machine tools after a building fire. He convinced me I needed one. Appears perfect for my restoration projects. I will post an article and how it works. Start saving your money, they are spendy.
here is a play list link, most have no filler wire, fusion welds. The video #5 with the different beam scan patterns is extremely interesting.

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLy1IH9lmpPejynAZuNbI8Hv0aIW5nCWiu&s i=YO_6bg-fsyEORhue

[JTR70]

Now that I have a basic hood gap its back to building outward from there. Dialing the best preliminary adjustment between the fender and the nose joint. This joint has major influence on the fenders basic overall contour and shape.
More relieving than just the hood gap spacing was the near uniformity between these two panels along this gap. This mean I don't have to mess with the flange height on the closing walls any further. Corner of this hood has to come up though.
By the time this is butt weld joint these two panels should flow together pretty well. I deserve a break every now and then.
Added the rear repair strip and the rocker skin; the last two pieces of this puzzle as part of the overall confirmation process.
Here was my answer on that earlier question I had as to how well the wired lips were going to contour and line up... Not very well at all but all Par for the course.

[JTR70]

Thats it Roy, just one small bite of this elephant at a time. Its all I can do.

[roy mawbey]

Justin the things you have to find to even resolve are not easy, Step by step and it gets clearer its just finding those steps to put it right !!

Roy

[JTR70]

The skin also buckled right at the 12 o'clock position above the wheel opening. The wired edge also had kinked right a across from that top screw hole in the new nose skin. This poor old car took a hit and it was the right side that bore the brunt.

The fenders shoulder was mounted along my heavy welding table as it was used as my hammer form to begin truing up this edge. Slight improvement with each round of hammering.
Not perfect but much improved from where it started. A ways off from final installation so lots of opportunity for fine tuning as it continues.
Now I can move forward with this fitment.

Thanks for looking!

Justin

[JTR70]

Ironing out residual crash damage:
The front group revolves around a consistent gap with this hood so this fender refitment had ground to halt until I could get this line cleaned up.
My straight edge confirmed that the problem was not on the hood side of this gap. The gap issue coincides with that bit of damage that you can just make out by the 33 and 34 inch marks.
The camara has trouble picking it up but this is old residual crash damage. The fender buckled here and was quickly pounded on but the shoulder was never brought back to true below this area.
The underside of this spot shows where the kink was a little more clearly. Now that I'm really working with this fender it actually had buckled in two other places.
It buckled at the crown here just ahead of the cowl. It even cracked the original factory weld joint up at the corner next to the hood. It was reversed but not completely ironed out.

[JTR70]

Sorry about the trouble Roy, your post was there just had to hit a button. Thanks for taking some time to look through this latest series again and on your holiday no less! What I'm up to on that pinch seam is clenching it as close as I can while still keeping the ability to slip on and off the splash pan flange. I want that leading edge as close to final "clenched shape" as I can because once its hammered tight the leading edge is going to grow just a touch and I want to be sure I still have a 3mm+ gap with the door to work with when its finally installed for good. It is thinner than the 18 gauge so it was safe to hammer it over tight on that small section. The scrapper knife was inserted to release that section as it went. Thanks again for all the great words and support Roy!

Justin

[roy mawbey]

Justin we have this Monday as Easter holiday and I have just spent an hour going through and then going through again those last series of photos on the work you have just been involved with. I don't know how you are doing this by yourself anf getting in the end such good results !! To see the headlight symmetry alignment become perfect, to see the door closure gap fit come into place is just so good. The remaining bonnet to fender gap I am sure you will contain too. The pull up of that headlight angle in the way you did slipping the panel under the other must have made you smile!

However I have one question I cannot work out, When you'hammered over' the fender panel and refitted the door to see if the gap clearance was okay it was too tight in places.so you had to re-hammer it in places to correct it. You showed the scraper in between those two steel inserts. To re-hammer did you firat have to 'open up' the bend over sections flat and mark and start hammering over again?
I have thought about it and my mind can't work it out it looks so difficult to do and get right ? This work is not easy I just hope other people on here who have been looking at heis thread have the same impression as me in thinking how well you are doing my friend.

Roy

[JTR70]

Remounting the fender:

The upper closing wall on this side had suffered a bit of deformation from the previous accidents. The upper mating flange had a bow and a slight kink in it up by the cowl. After some straightening I now have zero against the hood with this trial fit.
The leading edge of the fender doesn't run consistently down the length of the hoods edge either. Tapering away about mid way down.
Just shooting for a general 3mm gap at this point. Began by trimming back about 4mm out of the reshaped mounting surface to allow the shoulder of the fenders trough additional clearance.
Improving but the mounting flange needed a touch more shaved off.
But this tapering gap issue was really starting to bug me. More on this next.

Thanks for looking!

Justin

[JTR70]

Again the lingering issue has been that the left side bucket opening insisted on leaning back an extra 5 degrees when mounted to the inner closing wall. You can just make out this discrepancy between the two openings. I thought I may have set the closing wall too low on this side but cross measurements confirmed they were even. Didn't have the answer as to why it insisted on laying back more so I left it loose for later.
Now that I had a new confirmation with this fenders fitment and continued contour to the nose...
I realized that the skin in through here is just short and too tight. It forces the bucket to lay back more in order to reach the trough and mounting surface of the closing walls. Once I cut it free again the bucket opening moved up to the angle where it should be and the panel shapes fell into line with one another.
This shaped area is not only short but very ridged too it will not lay against the fender. Its going to require a bit of reshaping.
That can wait. What's most important is that I have symmetry between the two bucket openings at the correct angle and a consistent body contour over these two panels. I can build on that and move forward from here.

Thanks for looking!

Justin

[JTR70]

Begin left fender refitment
Trim line finalizing. Cutting just past the heavy pitting and saving as much original metal as possible.
Approximate trim line and as you can see most of it won't be needed.
Rotted leading edge trimmed off. I stopped short of the upper corner for now as its a good sight marker as refitting progresses. I may or may not use it, just keeping my options open.
Time to start working it in with the new nose. Earlier photos showed the right side was a natural fit right out of the box. This side however shows some bigger alignment and contour issues. Since nose fitting began this side's headlight opening has always wanted to lean back about 5 degrees further than the right side which matches BTW my original references angle. This side really needed to stand up more and this bad overlap with this fender just laying over top highlights the problem.
As fitting and experimentation went on I unscrewed and loosened this side of the nose from the trough. Once I tucked the fender under rather than laying over top these two almost magically came together. It now stood this headlight opening up and even with the other side eliminating that 5 degree discrepancy. Along with that the top profile shapes of these two sections are now blending together beautifully. To retain the fitment, the inner trough run will need some rework which I'll describe next. Anyway the body fitment continues in the right direction.

Thanks for looking.

Justin

[JTR70]

Continue tightening up the lines:
Hammering over the pinch seam about as far as I could take it while still leaving the ability to slip it on and off during fitment. A thicker piece of 18 gauge kept it open enough while I hammer it tighter. Scraper wedged in afterward to allow the 18 gauge to escape.
Remounted for another test with a closer leading edge final shape.
Then another test with the door. A consistent baseline gap coming into focus and improving with each round. That's all I can ask for.
Working out the lumps as the vertical run levels out closer and closer but this upper turn needs more improvement. Its a pretty complex shape so it is of course going to take more effort to get it there.
A look inside and I'm loving that super tight fit against the splash pan. Hopefully I can preserve most of that once its all buttoned up.
Thanks for looking!

Justin

[JTR70]

Initial rounds of healing over the flange run for door clearance.
I can go a touch more as I want to define the leading edge as much as possible but not so much where its crimped down onto the mating flange. Not even close to that yet.
First test fit against the door. Promising start but lots of refining yet. A good starter gap shape against the door but runs a little tight at the upper corner.
Skin profile is a bit lumpy down this run and the upper corner crimp compels the skin to project outward too much. Like I said, lots of refining yet to go but I'm just shooting for a basic gap at this point.

Thanks for looking!

Justin