Another problem and seeking advice

[hawaiian808]

how's it going?
so i drop my truck off at "the body shop"
guy says give me two weeks to start on it etc etc
well he calls me today and says he wont be able to get to it for at LEAST 3 months.... ok *** lol
so i say ok and come get my truck and go around town to diffrent body shops and every single one says the same thing one even said 5-6 months.


so now that I'm out on waiting to get my cab corner rockers and floor pan ( to include brace , and that one section that goes up to the fire wall LMC has all the panels for a decent price)
i ponder if it is possible to do it my self?
I'm no master welder in fact last time i did it i was in high school but i was pretty good at it lol. Is it possible to for someone to do this them selfs in a garage? with a sawzall grinder some magnets and a welder?
of course i would practice for a couple days but i imagine i could do it my self.
also what kind of welder should i get mig/tig? i know nothing about types of welders outside of acetylene but i understand the concept very well ha ha.

any advice?
good or bad?

 

[Goofyexponent]

Whynot do it yourself? I did my cab corners myself and they turned out flawless.

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All I had was a flux core welder, a case of beer and a grinder with some cut off wheels, a grinding wheel and a flapper wheel. And I am by NO MEANS a professional body man...well, at least that's not what SHE said lol.

Just take your time, measure twice and cut multiple times..no, I didn't type that wrong. Cut your panels too big, and just keep trimming a LITTLE at a time to make them fit. Space your welds out and only tack weld. move away about 4 inches and make another tack weld. Move another 4 inches and make ANOTHER tack weld. Do this until the whole panel has tack welds all the way around and it looks like one solid weld.

if you have a gap (1/8") or so, start your weld where there is no gap. The heat from the welds will draw the panel up and close that gap up some when you get to it.

Use a little bondo as possible and again, take your time!!

 

[Goofyexponent]

OH, as for a welder get yourself a little gas MIG jobby. Unless you are REALLY good and are used to a flux core unit, you will just make a mess with the spatter.

 

[hawaiian808]

thanks sweet then i guess i will tackle it my self lol since i have ALOT of work to do im going to start with my cab corner and work my way to my fire wall lol one piece at a time and i should be able to keep it straight and looking nice, i am gonna have to go cheap with a HF mig welder. i might also go flux because then i dont have to get any argon to fill up. ill practice with the flux a couple times and nail it. if not ill go mig all the way haha

 

[GOOSE]

I would consider looking for a better quality used mig rather than a HF, LOwes or Depot special. I use a fluxcore setup at work,120V, about 15yr old Lincoln. It has the infinitey variable control for the amperage and works like a dream. My brother bought a Depot special and the amp control has A B C D options and is set up with gas. I was not impressed with this welder at all. I wound up setting it aside and using 6013 in my arc welder because the Depot welder just did not work for me.