S13 Seam-Weld Pics

[GreekRPS13]

Hey i searched around for seam welding pics and all i could find were S14's and what not but i couldnt really seem to find any S13 Fastbacks Seam Welded soo if anyone knows of any sites or has any pics of a stripped interior with Seam-Welding that would be greatly appreciated thanks:confused:

[s13silvia123]

actually its about the same as a s14 its easy to figure it out enough just try harder ta search. seam weld your trunk area and your enine bay area frist the rest is up to you.

[GreekRPS13]

i know i just kinda wanted a visual outline thts all

[MadScientist]

Here.... This is one of only a few pics I still have of our Project 180sx.
I used paint to show where to spot weld.

Trust when I say that your in for about a week of gringing and removing tar like material before you even think of getting started.

Second and for most... dont make the same mistake I made... I trusted the owner I got the 180 from that the chassis was sound and true... It wasn't... causing us to loose alot of money spent on the project. Make damn sure your chassis is perfectly straight, and before welding be 1000% sure the car is level on all points.

Pointers... you dont need level ground to work with because you should be leveling the car off the ground (remove the wheels)... you should be dealing with a bare chassis also... no engine, tranny, hell go to the extent of removing the sub-frames. Measure the frame and sqaure off a section of ground where you will be working... you can use blocks of concrete and metal... only use wood where the frame is sitting and be sure all pieces of wood are the same size... wood does loose shape under load so only use thin pieces like 1/4 ply wood. To get a level square... rent a Transit and Height Pole... same concept when leveling a house.... yes, you will need a friend to help.

Oh yeah, the material is sometime a bitch to get completly out of the seams... torch the seams till it melts out... yes its messy and stinks.

After you have the frame level and the material removed... weld away... DO NOT Stand In or On the car after you have leveled or while you are welding. After your done for the day be sure to protect your welds so they dont rust... this will be a problem later if not treated. Start you welds on the Chassis and frame rails first then move to the engine bay, trunk, and lastly the inside of the car.

Most of all... have fun.

Peace
Drew

[GreekRPS13]

Here.... This is one of only a few pics I still have of our Project 180sx.
I used paint to show where to spot weld.

Trust when I say that your in for about a week of gringing and removing tar like material before you even think of getting started.

Second and for most... dont make the same mistake I made... I trusted the owner I got the 180 from that the chassis was sound and true... It wasn't... causing us to loose alot of money spent on the project. Make damn sure your chassis is perfectly straight, and before welding be 1000% sure the car is level on all points.

Pointers... you dont need level ground to work with because you should be leveling the car off the ground (remove the wheels)... you should be dealing with a bare chassis also... no engine, tranny, hell go to the extent of removing the sub-frames. Measure the frame and sqaure off a section of ground where you will be working... you can use blocks of concrete and metal... only use wood where the frame is sitting and be sure all pieces of wood are the same size... wood does loose shape under load so only use thin pieces like 1/4 ply wood. To get a level square... rent a Transit and Height Pole... same concept when leveling a house.... yes, you will need a friend to help.

Oh yeah, the material is sometime a bitch to get completly out of the seams... torch the seams till it melts out... yes its messy and stinks.

After you have the frame level and the material removed... weld away... DO NOT Stand In or On the car after you have leveled or while you are welding. After your done for the day be sure to protect your welds so they dont rust... this will be a problem later if not treated. Start you welds on the Chassis and frame rails first then move to the engine bay, trunk, and lastly the inside of the car.

Most of all... have fun.

Peace
Drew

Mad Scientist thank you ill deffiinatley take those pointerst into consideration but how do you know if it truley is a straight chasis? can you just tell when you get rid of all the sound deadaner and what not? Plus whats the simplest way to get rid of all the crap in the car besides using dry ice? sander?

[smelly240]

heat gun and a scraper - after u dry iced it - and whacked at it -

[GreekRPS13]

heat gun and a scraper - after u dry iced it - and whacked at it -

how well does that really work? or does that messs up frame cause i think ive heard that it damages it or does something to the frame idk?

[MadScientist]

If you plan on doing every seam on the car you have to be carefull because you basicly un-glueing the car!

Like I said... start with the Frame and Chassis... remove the seam sealer on those parts from both sides and then spot weld so its sound again.

You can remove the Insulation on the interior of the car before you get into the seam seals and you dont have to have the on blocks yet... Dry Ice is honestly the best way... Think you can get a 50lb. block for about $20... they should cut it into 5 sheets for you... store it in Igloo Cooler and wrap it in Brown paper bag.... should last about 2-3 days. This was honestly the most fun... the verticle sections were trouble some, but possable. Take a sheet of the DI and place it on the insulation (start with the floor)... cover the DI with a Brown Paper Bag over the top so the cold stays local and doesn't evaporate to fast... if it touches metal the DI will vibrate and sound like its humming. You will hear the Insulation cracking... after about 10min. in that one stop you can move the DI to a new spot and break away the insulation where the DI was. Hammer, 2" paint scraper, screwdriver... you dont need to beat the insulation as it should have completely seperated from the metal. when the DI gets thin and Fragile you can break it into small pieces about 1" and localize them in the curves... still cover with Brown paper bag and leave for about 10min.+

You can take the car to a frame shop and have them check for damage... other self checking methods are more complicated. You can basically have a perfect rectangle the same size as your lover frame between your wheels... use it like a template and check for deviations. Use those niftly little laser levels and shoot a laser down the chassis. Basically... if your not good at Geometry... take it to a shop that has a machine do it. However you will need to know how to level and sqare off when you go to level the chassis before welding.

Peace
Drew

[HalveBlue]

There's a section in the FSM that covers how to check your frame alignment. It's located at the end of the BF section.

Seems pretty tedious though, so you may opt to just have a shop do it.

But the info is out there if you wan to use it.

[MURPHY]

any idea how much a shop would charge to check a frame? like a rough estimate/guess?

[GreekRPS13]

any idea how much a shop would charge to check a frame? like a rough estimate/guess?


Ditto cause ill probably do that...cause not that im not good at geometry im not sure if id even be looking at it the correct way but yea thanks for all the 411 on how to break it down and what not

[HalveBlue]

No, no idea. Sorry.

Unless it was dirt cheap for a shop to do it, I would just do it myself.

I've got enough time and equipment available to me that it'd be easier and cheaper for me to do it.

[GreekRPS13]

dang anybody else have any thoughts on estimates?:aw:

[Team Rootbeer]

most shops wont even bother turning the frame rack on for less than 300 bucks.

just get a tape measure and start cross-measuring. from two like points on the frame. in numerous places.

[Edgar]

this takes sooooooo long!

[GreekRPS13]

this takes sooooooo long!

agreed but hes got a point kinda?

[GreekRPS13]

Could other people who have some info on the main point of the thread maybe contriubte a picture or two of their seam welded S13 maybe?

[HalveBlue]

Here are some pictures from previous threads. Hopefully they'll provide a bit of reference.

http://www.zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=78275&highlight=seam+weld

http://www.zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=98772&highlight=seam+weld

http://www.shockdrifting.com/articles/view.php?id=49
http://www.zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=107370&highlight=seam+weld

[GreekRPS13]

Here are some pictures from previous threads. Hopefully they'll provide a bit of reference.

http://www.zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=78275&highlight=seam+weld

http://www.zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=98772&highlight=seam+weld

http://www.shockdrifting.com/articles/view.php?id=49
http://www.zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=107370&highlight=seam+weld

awesome thanks for that my search bars been screwy:rawk:

[Slidin240Wayz]

Luke's car build was amazing to see on the site. This makes me want to stitch weld my car even more. I have to talk to my friend who just picked up a welder.

Carlos

[vrooompssssht]

i really wouldnt seam weld the roof supports, you may warp the roof metal, and theres not much point to weld up there

just clean out all the seam sealer (READ: sealer, it does not hold the car together) .. and weld.. be aware of whats on the other side of the material.

wire wheels on a drill work well for seam sealer, use dry ice and heatgun/scraper for tar

leave gaps between the welds, and cool the metal between welds...

these welds are probably a litle long, but its a thicker area so its fine.

my gti

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a242/bluefcs3/723063.jpg

back side

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a242/bluefcs3/723061.jpg

[tre]

This is a cool thing to do and everything But...

I'm going to point out a few things that MAY discourage you but would be good to consider.

You notice his GTI is cleane don BOTH sides right? (I assume) He is going to repaint both sides to make sure both sides are sealed from rust.

But anyways This is a very tideous job todo.
-Strip Sound dampning
-Strip Seam sealer
-Clean surfaces
-weld
-clean surfaces againt
-seal

And i also look at it this way. Is taking 40+hours of my time to do this going to equate to at least 40hrs of track time? No. So i'm not even going to bother. Hell I think my first car MAY have hit 20hrs of track time total this season. And I totaled it.