Smoothing out the Firewall

[street3285]

What is the best way to smooth out a firewall? Is fiberglassing a good idea? Will it hold up? I am working on a '70 Nova... Thanks.

[race-rodz]

fiberglass is a bad idea. fiberglass' bond to steel is in no way a permanent deal.... may last for years before it starts to lift...may last for weeks....but regardless it will eventually lift.

there are several ways to go about "smoothing" the firewall....

filling the holes and doing typical bodywork would be an option. so would reskinning the entire firewall... there seem to be a few companies that make panels to either weld in or "bond" on like steve did on penny(i think there are some pics in the first penny build thread)

[70TWO NOVA]

my brother actually smoothed the firewall on his 72 Nova using a sheet of thin gauge sheet metal. We just made a template out of thin plastic and transfered it over to the metal. He welded it in and then smoothed the edge with bondo, heres some pics before and after.
http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/11/web/371000-371999/371580_121_full.jpg
http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/11/web/371000-371999/371580_120_full.jpg

[class67]

weld up the holes and seams, grind and skim coat (as little as possible)

[Steve1968LS2]

We cut all the bumps from the firewall then made a cardboard template. That was then turned into a single sheet of steel to cover the entire firewall.

That steel was bonded to the old firewall using FUSOR then welded around the edges and ground down.

Fiberglass would be a bad idea.

Pics:
http://www.bestofshowcoachworks.com/pages/complete_pages/camaro02/camaro02_12.html

[street3285]

Thanks for the great tips and the galleries are really helpful.
Where do you get the FUSOR product?

[TravisB]

Thanks for the great tips and the galleries are really helpful.
Where do you get the FUSOR product?


any decent paint supply store will carry fusor products

[j68bird]

One other thing. If you use a piece that is perfectly flat it will look "dished" when it's on the car. If you can, try to put a slight crown in the panel. It will look better and the panel will be more stable, less likely to "oil can".

J.

[Steve1968LS2]

One other thing. If you use a piece that is perfectly flat it will look "dished" when it's on the car. If you can, try to put a slight crown in the panel. It will look better and the panel will be more stable, less likely to "oil can".

J.

Actually with the FUSOR stuff applied to the whole panel it won't do that and the FUSOR stuff is stronger than welding.

[bigtyme1]

Contact Mike riggs, he's got the sheet metal ready to go. check out his sight.
http://www.mikescustomcars.com/projects/projects.asp?proj=CatalogProTour&album=1&pic=1

[street3285]

That looks like a nice kit for smoothing the firewall. How much does that usually go for? Does it fit well?

Would you still want to use FUSOR?

[rocketrod]

I am currently smoothing my firewall, click the link for details http://www.camaros.net/forums/showthread.php?t=98442

[street3285]

Cars look great. Once I start the smoothing I will post some pictures.
Thanks for the great info guys.

[jaronson]

We cut all the bumps from the firewall then made a cardboard template. That was then turned into a single sheet of steel to cover the entire firewall.


When you cut all the bumps off the firewall did you cut out the raised portion around the master cylinder and steering column hole or did you just sheet right over it and cut new holes?

It is slightly raised, but I wasn't sure if it would be enough to notice once covered.

Thanks for the help.

[bigtyme1]

The templates I got go around the steering plate. I think that is what most people are doing.

[av8or32]

Is it possible to smooth out the passanger side section of the firewall with the motor in the car?