Tips on filling indicator hole in a late front wing

[rolesyboy]

Would anybody mind giving me some suggestions as to the 'correct' way to weld up the hole for the side repeater on a later Mini. My van has been fitted with later wings which are perfectly good and show no signs of rot. Therefore I would like to patch them but I am not sure if I am better to step the repair, butt weld or what. I can weld panels in place but have never tried patching as such. Cheers. Mark

[IAIN]

If you havn't got any experience of welding I would recommend getting or borrowing a spot welder to cover the hole.
If you spotweld it, weld a square of metal in the recess, to level out the metal surface on the outside of the wing..
Seam seal the rear of the patch to stop water getting through.

If you did manage to mig in a patch you would require a lot more filler to straighten it all out doing it this way.

[rolesyboy]

Thanks Iain. I am reasonably competent at welding and I suppose what I am after is welding using my MIG. Ideally I would like the reverse side to be flush as opposed to a visible patch. Some of the boys on here must have let in metal which they linish flush on the non-visible side. Any more tips appreciated. Thanks. Mark

[Andrew1967]

I'd butt weld (leaving a small gap) by carefully MIG welding a small weld in one place, then opposite corner and then gradually weld all around in small sections, jumping from one place to another to avoid building up too much heat.

If you take it slowly and do not get too much heat in any one place, you shouldn't have too much problem with distortion, if any. That way you can linish smooth on both sides.

[IAIN]

Andrew has just said what I was going to say. But....

If you want the back flush, I doubt you will manage it with a mig weld join.
By the time you dress it flat, grind off the weld inside and out, the wing will be so thin, you will probably have tiny pin holes you wont see, then your filler will lift later on.

A spot welded patch would be easier to hide !

[Andrew1967]

You wouldn't have to weld on the inside edge though if the penetration was right, and there'd be little linishing on the inside to do.

Would you spot weld the piece in by fusing the wing and infill sections together with the spot welder butt style as opposed to the usual lap spot weld method?

[IAIN]

You wouldn't have to weld on the inside edge though if the penetration was right, and there'd be little linishing on the inside to do.

Would you spot weld the piece in by fusing the wing and infill sections together with the spot welder butt style as opposed to the usual lap spot weld method?

Andrew, as I said above. You wouldn't spot weld "fusing " ? I meant a normal lap spot weld.

Remember I think we are trying to advise some one with little welding history. To do this " small " job could end up requiring a fair bit of fixing if it's not done well.

[mk1]

I would bent a bit of steel of the correct gauge to the correct radius then offer it up to the hole, mark it up, cut out the repair patch & butt weld it all round making sure the whole thing didn't get too hot in the process to avoid distortion. Then the while thing will just linnish off & get a scrape of filler to finish.

I would estimate maybe an hour and a half per side.

[Andrew1967]

You wouldn't have to weld on the inside edge though if the penetration was right, and there'd be little linishing on the inside to do.

Would you spot weld the piece in by fusing the wing and infill sections together with the spot welder butt style as opposed to the usual lap spot weld method?

Andrew, as I said above. You wouldn't spot weld "fusing " ? I meant a normal lap spot weld.

Remember I think we are trying to advise some one with little welding history. To do this " small " job could end up requiring a fair bit of fixing if it's not done well.

I mentioned the word fusing as I was not sure how a normal spotweld patch would result in a flusher finish on the back than a MIG butt weld. Having looked back , I see that a flush finish was not an initial requirement in the OP.

I'd recommend practising on some sheet steel before going onto the wing.

[Smiffy]

If you spot weld and then fill, you will end up redoing it ever couple of years as the will filler crack. Your only chance of a good job is to seam weld it, tack it in place in the four corners and let it cool. Then tack it in the middle of each side and let cool. Carry on like that until it's seamed all the way around.

Lead would be better than filler, frost do a very good kit.