IQRaceworks
Junior Member
- Joined
- Apr 6, 2016
- Posts
- 20
- Reaction score
- 6
- Ram Year
- 2004
- Engine
- Hemi 5.7
Like lots of others with 3rd gen Rams.....I started getting rust on the top of the rear wheel well area on my fenders. I figured that if I just let it go, it was going to turn into a mess. I went ahead and ordered a set of wheel well arch repair panels off of ebay for around $80, and went to town. Just thought I would share what I did in case others are thinking about doing the same thing.
Here was the rust that started...it was about the same on both sides. There was also a dent that needed repaired by the bumper.
Here is the panel off of ebay that I laid up against my fender. The fit was perfect. I ended up trimming it down a little bit. Out of the box they were much wider...I didn't want to start cutting and welding right next to the fuel tank cap.
I traced the outline of the new panel on the fender, and then cut it out with a cutoff wheel on a die grinder.
Once I got the old panel cut out, it was easy to see where the rust was coming from.
I ground all of the rust off and cleaned everything up.
Then I put several coats of primer over the bare metal to keep the rust from coming back.
I welded a few tabs on the back of the new panel to help with alignment, and then put several coats of 3M Weld-Thru prime on the back of the panel.
Then I tack welded the new panel in place.
After the tack welds were all ground flat, I put some 3M epoxy seam sealer over the joint to seal out any moisture...and keep any rust from coming back.
Then it was time for the body work.....lots of bondo, and then sanding to smooth it all out.
After I had the body filler all smoothed out the way I wanted it, then I applied several coats of Primer Surfacer....and then blocked that down.
Then it was time to mask everything up, clean everything really well with Wax & Grease remover, sand the repair area with 400grit paper, and the rest of the panel with 1000 grit paper...then clean again with Wax & Grease remover a few more times. Once that was done...I put a few coats of silver base over the repair area, and then a few more coats blending the color a little farther out towards the edges of the panel.
After the base coat had dried 30min, it was time to spray on several coats of clear coat. It turned out great.....
After it dried a few days, it was time to wetsand with 1500 grit paper to knock down some of the orange peel in order to match the factory finish on the rest of the truck. Then buff back to a shine with 3M Perfect-It II compound.
After everything was cleaned up and polished, it was time to put the pin striping back on, lights back in, tailgate back on, bumper back on........and call it done!
When it was all said and done, it cost me around $300 in paint and supplies, $80 for the new panels, and around 30 hours of labor. It was a pain...but it turned out nice, and now I don't have to see that nasty rust growing on my truck every day.
If anyone has any questions, just let me know.
Here was the rust that started...it was about the same on both sides. There was also a dent that needed repaired by the bumper.
Here is the panel off of ebay that I laid up against my fender. The fit was perfect. I ended up trimming it down a little bit. Out of the box they were much wider...I didn't want to start cutting and welding right next to the fuel tank cap.
I traced the outline of the new panel on the fender, and then cut it out with a cutoff wheel on a die grinder.
Once I got the old panel cut out, it was easy to see where the rust was coming from.
I ground all of the rust off and cleaned everything up.
Then I put several coats of primer over the bare metal to keep the rust from coming back.
I welded a few tabs on the back of the new panel to help with alignment, and then put several coats of 3M Weld-Thru prime on the back of the panel.
Then I tack welded the new panel in place.
After the tack welds were all ground flat, I put some 3M epoxy seam sealer over the joint to seal out any moisture...and keep any rust from coming back.
Then it was time for the body work.....lots of bondo, and then sanding to smooth it all out.
After I had the body filler all smoothed out the way I wanted it, then I applied several coats of Primer Surfacer....and then blocked that down.
Then it was time to mask everything up, clean everything really well with Wax & Grease remover, sand the repair area with 400grit paper, and the rest of the panel with 1000 grit paper...then clean again with Wax & Grease remover a few more times. Once that was done...I put a few coats of silver base over the repair area, and then a few more coats blending the color a little farther out towards the edges of the panel.
After the base coat had dried 30min, it was time to spray on several coats of clear coat. It turned out great.....
After it dried a few days, it was time to wetsand with 1500 grit paper to knock down some of the orange peel in order to match the factory finish on the rest of the truck. Then buff back to a shine with 3M Perfect-It II compound.
After everything was cleaned up and polished, it was time to put the pin striping back on, lights back in, tailgate back on, bumper back on........and call it done!
When it was all said and done, it cost me around $300 in paint and supplies, $80 for the new panels, and around 30 hours of labor. It was a pain...but it turned out nice, and now I don't have to see that nasty rust growing on my truck every day.
If anyone has any questions, just let me know.