New to 'real' metal working

[dethomson]

Hi All. Dan Thomson here from the Eastern Shore of Maryland, USA. I have a couple projects upcoming that require replacement of rusted metal. I want to use as little body filler as possible and will be reviewing techniques on this site (and elsewhere) to learn the proper way to get stuff done.

The first project is a freshening up of my '78 F250 4x4 that needs rusted rear wheel wells replaced (very typical for trucks), rust repair on the door bottoms, and replace rusted rocker panels. An overall sand blasting of the frame and application of a proper rust inhibitor. Some other customizations and paint some time in the future.

My other project is a '73 Volvo 1800 ES. This car was sitting in a field for ten years. I'd drive by and say 'what an ugly car' until it dawned on me what potential that platform offers. I'm not sure the one I have is repairable due to sheer incompetance of rust 'repairs' done by the last shop to work on it 10 years ago. I'm thinking it's a real basket case, but won't know until I get it on a rotisary and everything is stripped off. If this body isn't 'the one', I'll find one from the western side of the USA for rehab. The car will get new suspension, nice interior, and a v8 tucked under the hood.

I found a couple other interesting cars over the last couple weeks. One is a Plymouth Sport Fury III. The other is an old Buick Skylark.

My goal is to use the truck as my platform for learning and then move on to rebuilding a car that is distinctive and isn't one that you see very often.

I've been a tickerer since childhood with my dad and brothers and feel right at home wrenching on something. Even though I am now in software sales, I used to be a pretty good machinist for a long time and have a good sense of what it takes to build stuff.