Cutting Out Old Metal, In This Case Rover 100 Arches

[jacobs53 0]

How has everyone done it? Im considering chopping out the rust on the rear arch and welding a new arch in its place, but I have no idea what i'd use to cut it? Dremel?

 

lee

[sonofsam 5]

Air nibbler would be ideal i reckon.Failing that a jigsaw with a shortened fine blade.

Edited September 13, 2006 by sonofsam

[Rom 0]

Nibbler is fine providing the metal is thin enough. I normally just use either an Air cut off tool, or a grinder.

Anything that gets the job done really. Jigsaw would be tricky i think, though ive never tried.

Dremel would take ages, and probably just chew through blades.

[Beastie 1]

I'd recommend having a good ponder on how to weld in the new metal before cutting anything out - it could make life easier and decide for you how to do the cutting. Just cutting a piece of rot from the middle of a panel for example can be accomplished quickly with an angle grinder but it could make the welding harder - particularly if you can't get behind the area with a dolly when you need to do any panel beating. For this reason it's often easier to find the spot welds at the edge of the panel and to drill these out (preferably with a spot weld drill). Then use some means of cutting the top edge of the section to be removed. Sometimes a jigsaw works. Often a plasma cutter is a painless way of doing it if you can beg borrow or steal one. For my money an angle grinder with a cutting disk is often the way to go. I strongly recommend the 1mm thick cutting discs for 4.5 inch angle grinders because you get a nice narrow cut and they are flexible enough to cut awkward shapes. Bear in mind the mess that angle grinders make though: They can destroy trim and permanently pebble - dash glass with the sparks they send out!

[jacobs53 0]

I haven't got a access to an air compressor. So must be electric.

 

Maybe a grinder with a small cutting disc???

 

lee

 

edit - just seen your reply bestie, I have been looking at the replacement panels and they are quite big, so I was goign to cut just above the top lip of the arch. The panel though has a double skin sop no chance of panel beating!

 

lee

Edited September 13, 2006 by jacobs53

[sonofsam 5]

Yeh you can get electric ones Lee

Will go through 1.5mm with no mess or burr.

 

But angle grinder with hard disk cutting blade will be easier as said.

[pugrallye 0]

there are lots of rover questions coming out recently lol, yes quickest/ easiest way is to use a nibbler, as long as you have the metal there to nibble so to speak as they require a certain 'run off'

[Alastairh 47]

Buy car mechanics mag this month. They done a feature on replacing metro rear arches.

 

Alastair