Front Valance Pt3

Well back to the job of repairing the front valance again. I’ve been going back and forth to this job for too long now and I decided to post the work once compleated..... ish. With the joining brackets fabricated I set up my new 160 amp welder to fit these on. Wow how much easier it is to weld with decent kit (although I’m still not perfect), the small old hobby welder I’ve been suffering with will defiantly get the boot. The bracket was tacked on with ease and the lower flange I decided to bend to the profile of the closure panel when its trial fitted.

I drilled and tacked some nuts inside the valance for attaching the cab floor belly panel because unfortunately this panel didn’t have the forming for these, I then trialled the valance front closure panel using the lines drawn on tape Id marked as a datum long; long ago. With a bit of forming at the ends and re-measuring, the panel went on with no problem. I tacked the lower part from the inside the valance and discovered the joys of welding upside down. The welding burns are a lesson learnt, and it could get hot and sweaty stuck in a garage with all that protective gear now the summers coming.

I received the new lower front panel (which I specially requested without the cut out for the nose and longer at the ends so I can fold it over like the original.) Rather than butt weld this panel I joggled a small lip on the repair panel to sit inside the original one. I ground a ton of filler off the front panel so I could ensure the repair panel was straight, although a bit tricky around the nose; using some fabricating magnets and clamps the panel fitted OK.

Eager to get the panel on I started tacking it together, then double checking the fit before I went welding crazy I noticed that the joggle at the left corner end of the panel was overlapping to much, and causing the curve of the panels not to sit flush. Access to the back of this panel is very awkward because of the front light bowl and inner kick panel, this ruled out any fabrication from the back. So I painstakingly cut the joggle off from the front with a cut down junior hacksaw clamped in a pair of pliers. This did the job of letting the pannels sit flush, and then with the magnets in place I continued to tack it all together.

Learning from my cock up with warping the dog leg panel I spaced out the weld points and spot welded the a seam between the two panels with only a second spent on each weld, but still the original part of the panel had a slight ripple along its curve. Not sure if I’m being to particular about my work or still have a lot to learn but I'm determined to get it right. So I guess Ill rely on the paint prep to get rid of any imperfections (filler).

I cleaned up the welds and with a few tacks along the lower lip and tidying up the wrap around part of the edges this job is finally finished.

Front Valance Pt2

Getting back to finishing the front valance with a hope to get it wrapped up in a weekend was a bit hopeful. I should have learnt by now how long things take .

The left hand lower portion of the A pillar was as rotten as the right hand side so this was removed, keeping the original radius just below the hinge bolts to help blend the seam of the weld . Again most of my time was spent cutting and filing the two repair pieces and trying not to rush ahead and grab the welder out.

The inner valance was then trial fitted up with only a little trimming required. Using the bumper mounts as a guide I was able to line up the bumper mount holes, and then clamp the valance into position. With almost no gap between the panel and the forward chassis faces, this allowed me to drill spot welding holes at the original positions that I had grinded off keeping a good gaping and shape for the cover panel.

I secuired the clamps close to each hole trying not to weld the clamp to my van, this was to ensure a tight fit onto the front chassis supports. A few more spot welds to attach the top of the inner panel to the cab floor and this panel will not be going any where fast.

To finish the ends I kept the panels I originally cut off to use as a template, this turned into more of a guide. These panels I hope will be a little stronger that just welding a piece of angle in the corner, they also help with the profile of the outer skin, because the new valance curves in to steeply to match and support the front skin profile ill use these to weld the skin onto at the ends.

I was then able to trial fit all the other closure panels and found that the cut out for the nose, on the lower front skin does not match the correct profile! When the panel is at the correct height (by my calculations and measurments) it does not reach up to the lower portion of the nose either. Frustrated and just wanting to get this done I was tempted to just patch up the gap, but a short break from the cramped garage and a quick sugar rush I deciede to return the panel and get one made with out the cut out, Replacing this panel would also help as the original panel was too short to wrap over seam at the ends as origenally manufactured.

Where to start (front valance)

Seeing that access within my garage is limited to the front or back of the van. I've decided to start at the front valance working towards the rear. The valance was originally patched up when I first got the van to keep it on the road. To get rid of all the rot the whole lots coming off.

Grinding away the filler revealed the rust hadn't spread up the front panel too high.

Instead of drilling off each spot weld, with help from a chisel I cut and peeled away the rusty panels, without any drill holes this keeping the good material , all it needs is cleaning and beating straight before the new panels goes on.

Cutting the old metal is the easy bit, fitting the panels is going to take a bit more skill. But before the inner valance goes on, the right hand chassis front closure plate needed replacing, and the lower door pillars are too bad to weld, so need to be replaced.


The joining plates that fix between these also need to be fabricated, a piece of angled plate would do the job but I'm not sure what strength is in this join. So, I will fabricate this as close to the original as I can get using the bits I've pulled off as a guide.