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Post by Deleted on Nov 24, 2017 18:00:42 GMT -8
I am currently reconstructing a door for my trailer:[/p]
I used a brake to form a piece of .023" sheet metal and glued it to the base door material as shown:
The top side has a camo print on it, so disregard that. The underside gluing surface was clean and bright. When using this 3M stuff, it is very important that the base surface is sanded to the bare metal, and then treated with a metal prep product for improved adhesion. POR 15 makes a good product as prep for its POR 15 coating. See below for that treatment system:
Best of luck!
Brian
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Post by Deleted on Nov 26, 2017 0:04:25 GMT -8
As mentioned in an earlier post, I have a steel door that I'm trying to salvage. The skin facing the interior of the trailer was rotted away at the bottom, so I attempted to repair by patching in a new piece of material.
See the camo patterned steel piece formed to fit over the lower portion of the door (I happen to have a bunch of .023" camo steel that is the exact thickness of this door skin):
The bottom of the door was cut off a couple of inches and the repair piece clamped into place using 3M panel bonding adhesive:
Clamps removed:
Notice step between surface of repair piece and base material:
I used a makeshift anvil to form a valley for the body filler. There is a piece of soft cedar wood placed under the seam area as backing to allow the anvil to be hammered down, creating the valley, while not deflecting the adjacent areas:
Resultant valley to allow for better body filler feathering on surface areas when sanded:
The valley filled with trusty Bondo:
Bondo sanded smooth...notice the nice feathering out:
Primer applied to finish the repair - looks good as new:
The (2) skin halves will be assembled back together to complete the door and get ready to reinstall in the frame.
But first, I need to replace the rotted weather-strip material that is sandwiched within the bent over flange around the perimeter of the door. This was removed in preparation for the work above. The exposed edge of the gasket shown below is what seals the edge of the door to the door frame when closed.
Does anyone know where I can get this stuff? Is it fairly standard and available at the local building supply house, or will I need to order from a place like Vintage Trailer Supply??
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aragan
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Post by aragan on Dec 2, 2017 11:07:55 GMT -8
Nice work!
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Post by Deleted on Dec 7, 2017 18:59:38 GMT -8
Back to the door....
I patched in a new piece of formed steel by using 3M panel adhesive and Bondo. Then primed as shown:
The entire repair process is shown at this link:
vintagetrailertalk.freeforums.net/thread/9271/rebuilding-steel-door
The (2) skin halves will be reassembled with new foam insulation to complete the door and get ready for installation into the door frame.
But first, I needed to replace the rotted weather-strip material that was sandwiched within the bent over flange around the perimeter of the door. This was removed in preparation for the work above. The exposed edge of the gasket shown below is what seals the edge of the door to the door frame when closed.
I was not able to find a direct replacement, but obtained a sample of Hehr backframe gasket that will be used instead:
This should provide a very good seal, and I like the idea of it being retained within the door edge flange rather than weather strip that is stuck with adhesive to the surface. I'll be getting the stuff ordered tonight and then hope to finish the door repair project soon...
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nccamper
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Post by nccamper on Dec 9, 2017 15:45:58 GMT -8
I wonder if adhesive and bondo will handle the flexing I've seen with most doors?
---
I shared photos of your shop with my wife and told her I wanted one for Christmas.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 9, 2017 21:19:47 GMT -8
Good luck with that Christmas gift!
Regarding the adhesive and bondo...
I was concerned a bit about the adhesive holding up to the hammering with the anvil to create the valley for the Bondo to sit in. If it held up to that, it would hold up to anything. And it worked perfectly - not a sign of a crack or separation. I definitely prefer it to a product like JB Weld. That stuff dries hard but is really brittle - not great for anything but static loads.
I have tons of experience with Bondo and have no doubt whatsoever to that holding up and flexing with the door as needed. Every automobile coming out of the factory has body filler just like Bondo, so it is actually a pretty good product and has stood the test of time for many years. Not sure why it gets a bad rap from some folks...
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nccamper
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Post by nccamper on Dec 10, 2017 6:00:29 GMT -8
I was told by a local body shop that Bondo on auto sheet metal holds up better than on thin aluminum. That the base metal (covered in Bondo) flexing in a 60mph wind will eventually crack. What does "eventually" mean? I'm not sure. He also said that aluminum reacts differently to extreme heat or cold.
With that said, many people here have used Bondo with good results. Using it on a door is a new experiment. Keep us posted.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 10, 2017 9:28:10 GMT -8
As you mentioned, in my case with the relatively thick steel door and the same thickness steel patch, there won't be any problem.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 12, 2018 1:00:45 GMT -8
I did receive the Hehr backframe gasket shortly after the post above. It will be installed after more work is completed to the door and the door frame.
I filled the cavity of one of the door skins with foam insulation:
Then created a sandwich with both skins placed together. I started to fold over the edge flange to hold the pieces in place. This flange will contain that Hehr back frame gasket as previously discussed:
With the door a little more "solid" it was time to finish all the exterior skin repairs.
A combination of body filler and glazing putty sanded smooth to fill in all the dings and dents:
Next was application of a high build primer to provide some room to sand out all the scratches from the above body work:
And then a coat of epoxy primer as prep for final paint later on in the build process:
I'll install the back frame gasket and finish closing the edge flange a bit later.
In the meantime, I needed to get the main door frame ready to go.
The frame had a lot of paint and rust that needed removal. I took care of the paint with a chemical stripper, and then went to work on the rust with a wire wheel:
The remaining rust was dissolved with phosphoric acid:
I used a DA and profile sander to create a super smooth finish:
Then finished the frame with a coat of epoxy primer. Now ready for door assembly and final paint later on. The continuous piano hinge will attach the steel door. The (3) individual hinges will attach the aluminum screen door.
The next step is completion of the door with the gasket inserted, and then assembly of the door to the frame above.
I'm splitting time with a car restoration project also in the works, but hope to get back to this later in the week.
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nccamper
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Post by nccamper on Feb 13, 2018 6:39:45 GMT -8
Is anything added to your phosphoric acid? Did you buy it at an auto part store?
It's amazing how pitted the metal can be cleaned up...with time.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 13, 2018 16:09:21 GMT -8
I purchase phosphoric acid online for around $13/gallon. According to the Safety Data Sheet, the stuff shown above comes packaged at around 40% concentration. I believe you can get it at any big box store as it is relatively safe and commonly used for etching concrete.
I use it on all ferrous (iron/steel) materials frequently. I may have misspoken a bit above. It doesn't really dissolve the rust, it actually converts iron oxide (rust) to iron phosphate. Iron phosphate actually prevents new rust from forming so I use phosphoric acid as both a rust remover and a metal treatment.
Depending on the application, I use it in different strengths and time durations. For the door frame above, I initially use a wire brush to remove most of the surface scale and debris. Then I spray a fairly light coating of full strength phosphoric acid onto the surface and let it dry. Any residue is then wire brushed off, and the process repeated multiple times until all the rust is converted and/or removed. I then DA sand the surface to create a smooth finish for my primer or top coat.
For fasteners and smaller hardware components I reduce it with water to around 20% concentration (half and half with the above full strength acid). Nuts, bolts, etc. are completely immersed in the solution for a couple of hours. I then rinse thoroughly with water to prevent a chalky residue from forming.
I picked up your note earlier today, so prepared a small experiment so you can see the real world result below.
The bolt on the right was identical to the bolt on the left and then placed in the solution for (2) hours. The result is complete removal/conversion of the rust to a surface finish that looks like nickel. These bolts are for a car that I am restoring and I'll leave them uncoated as I really like the look.
One thing to keep in mind is that if a part is immersed for too long a period of time, it can lead to what's called "hydrogen embrittlement". This can result in reduced strength of the steel component you are treating.
I also use phosphoric acid on aluminum components. It is the main component in acid wash that will "brighten" the surface.
Hope this helps - sorry for the long-winded explanation.
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nccamper
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Post by nccamper on Feb 13, 2018 16:39:04 GMT -8
Thanks for the bolt experiment. I like side by side comparisons.
I use a combo cleaner/acid on my windows. I think it's about the same 40% acid strength.
For newbies a word of advice, gloves and eye protection are a must.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 13, 2018 16:58:35 GMT -8
Thanks nccamper for the comment on safety. I use eye protection, a respirator, and disposable nitrile gloves when handling this stuff. Especially important when spraying and getting it airborne.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2018 22:03:44 GMT -8
Back to the door...made some more progress this weekend.
Here's the door being fit with the Hehr back frame gasket material. A little soapy water helped slide it in place. I then used a hand seamer to close up the flange retaining the gasket.
I then attached the completed door to the frame using the piano hinge.
Now time to complete refurbishment of the screen door.
Here's the door broken down into piece parts:
I test polished one of the pieces and really like the look. Here's the thread for that process:
vintagetrailertalk.freeforums.net/thread/9342/screen-door-surface-finish
I'll spend the next week or so polishing the remaining components and post progress on that a bit later....
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