floorboard install tools?

[clay69camaro]

I'm planning on buying the full floorboard replacement from classic industries. I've got a welder and some hand tools, what else do I need? I don't really care if it is done to original specs. Can I just weld fat beads every inch and be done with it? or do I need to buy something to do the spot welds?

[KPC67]

I would not weld it solid along the sides if that's what you mean.
You will need a good drill and drill bit. Then you just plug weld the holes you drilled.

[GregWeld]

Okay - I hope you understand the "spot weld" idea...

You're going to want to drill holes in the NEW floor if you're going to lay it over the edge of the old... and then you'd do a "rosette" weld thru the hole you drilled -- filling it -- and it will "look like" a spot weld...

You could "reverse" this if the overlap would be the other way around... then you'd want to lay your new stuff up there and mark where you're going to weld - and clean that little area down to bare metal.

OR -- you can butt weld the new floor in -- and this will take a lot more prep work - but gives the final product a "never been worked on" finish if that's what you're going for. If this is the case - FIT UP is paramount to good welding to follow.. you want really tight gaps that are consistent (1/16") and to do that you're going to need some extra tools - lots of clamps - cut off wheels and grinders and tin snips etc in order to SCRIBE the old onto the new and then be able to sneak up on the fit (to get the gaps right). Then you'd have that all clamped in and fitting right - and you'd tack it in - and then go back and finish weld it - by skipping around - weld an inch here - move to the other side weld an inch etc... until you had welded it all the way around. THEN you'd use seam sealer and you could metal finish the underside so you'd never know it was done.

None of this is rocket science --- but does take some time - and lots of patience to make it look and fit right. CLAMPING either way is critical -- you've got to use lots of clamps when you're welding. Metal expands and contracts when you're welding on it - and you don't want to be warping stuff. And CLEAN metal is important to making a good weld. Welding on rusted or painted areas is a total no no. Be careful to not grind the metal -- just get it clean - it's thin enough already! :lol: Don't make it more work than it already is... but grinding what little is there down to nothin'. When you're tacking -- cut your stick out at an angle EACH tack... that will help you with burn through. The tiny "tip" of the fill wire will start the weld quicker with less heat and get you a nice tach. Wire is cheap and you're not "wasting it" by doing this - try it and you'll see what I'm talking about. CLEAN metal - and sharp "stick out" with good fit up and you'll make nice tacks.

Welding this stuff is like painting -- good PREP is key to good paint. It goes for welding too. The welding is EASY if you've done your prep right. It's hard and a lot of work when you're burning through and have a nasty ass looking job when you're done.

So if it was me -- I'd prep all my "old" edges first - using a wire wheel - or some 3M Roloc discs... etc. cleaning them top and bottom to bare metal... back at least an inch. Then I'd see where the new has to go and what I have to do to prep it.

[GregWeld]

BTW -- Don't use a twist drill when putting holes in sheet metal. Get yourself a couple of step drills... they're for sheet metal work.

Do you have a spot weld cutter? There are some real crappy versions out there -- and some good ones. Trust me -- the good ones are worth their weight in gold. Drilling out spot welds sucks. I use the Hougens roto broaches - they make a killer spot weld cutter. I center punch each weld real well - and then use my cutter... a good center punch keeps it from crawling offcenter.

http://www.hougen.com/cutters/sheetmetal/images/Wol-Spotweld_lg.jpg

[ItDoRun]

You probably won't be able to get a spot weld drill to all of the welds, especially the area behind the front seats. The pan drops down for the rear passenger's feet and that hump makes it difficult to get a bit between it and the rocker. A right angle drill may work, but I didn't have one when I did my floor.

IMO, forget the spot weld bit. Just get you a grinder and grind through the existing spot welds under the car...it's much quicker! Plus, if your doing the full floor replacement, you're probably not worried about salvaging the existing floor anyway.

You can check out my cardomain site starting on about page 20. It shows the floor install for my car.

[redfire69]

I used a grinder as well to free the floor from the rockers and toe pans. But I also replaced the inner and outer rockers in addition to the one piece floor. Grinding and cutoff wheels are your friend! :thumbsup:

[clay69camaro]

BTW -- Don't use a twist drill when putting holes in sheet metal. Get yourself a couple of step drills... they're for sheet metal work.

Do you have a spot weld cutter? There are some real crappy versions out there -- and some good ones. Trust me -- the good ones are worth their weight in gold. Drilling out spot welds sucks. I use the Hougens roto broaches - they make a killer spot weld cutter. I center punch each weld real well - and then use my cutter... a good center punch keeps it from crawling offcenter.

http://www.hougen.com/cutters/sheetmetal/images/Wol-Spotweld_lg.jpg

My old floorboards are already out. I used my airhammer, plasma cutter, drill with lots of the wrong bits as you described above haha, grinder, cutoff wheel, but I got them out without destroying what I was going to be working with in the future.

just wanted to know what to use to "spot weld" them back in.

thanks everyone. I got the floorboard from classic industries yesterday, I'm going to try and find some time to fit them in later this week.

[redfire69]

One of the easier ways is to use a panel flanger to overlap the new to the old. Then drill 3/8 hole every couple of inches along the flange to fill with roset/plug welds. Fun stuff!

[ItDoRun]

Let us know how many times you get burned while welding. I've got battle scars all over my neck and arms from laying under the car welding the floor in. I'm glad that part of the build is done! Fun stuff.

[redfire69]

Also invest in some throw away ear plugs. Ask me how I know, LOL! Slag inside your ear canal is no fun....makes a loud sizzle noise though! :burnout:

[clay69camaro]

Ouch!

[clay69camaro]

I slid the new floorboard in today just to see the fitment.

On the drivers side there is about a 1/4 inch gap the whole way down. I'm pretty sure my car shifter while I was removing all the old floor.

Am I in serious trouble? Or will I be fine when I start clamping everything together and the gap just goes away?

[redfire69]

You're talking the one piece floor, did you brace the inside of the car? If so I would just try clamping it in place to the inner rockers starting front to back working down both sides. Post some pics!

[clay69camaro]

I think it'll be fine, but if someone else out there did a new floor install and had this as a gap and they were fine, it would give me some peace of mind.

http://i920.photobucket.com/albums/ad47/claykinsey/my%20brake%20stuff%20for%20sale/100_1434.jpg

http://i920.photobucket.com/albums/ad47/claykinsey/my%20brake%20stuff%20for%20sale/100_1436.jpg

It is a solid 3/8" the entire drivers side. The passenger side is SUPER tight.

Would painting the bottom be a good idea before I weld it in? Not to sure on how tough the edp coating is. The interior will be primed and painted. Some spots that have just a little surface rust will be hit with some por 15.

[GregWeld]

I'm confused.... are you saying that the GAP is 3/8" on one side?? If so -- that is going to be difficult to weld.

I assume that you know you have to grind the EDP off the new piece before welding... I take it off BOTH SIDES... back an inch from the edge.

CLEAN metal welds better and easier. End of story.

There are weld thru primers - but when you're butt welding - you don't use them... that would be for welding an area that you can't get back to.. and even then I scrape the area clean where I intend to weld.

Clean metal can be primed with SELF ETCHING primer after you weld.. and from there - it depends on what you want for a finished product....

[redfire69]

I'd start clamping from one end to the other to see if that gap will close. Invest in a pile of welding clamps. I drilled holes every couple of inches in the lip of the floor and plug welded to the inner rocker from underneath. Greg speaks the truth. Bare metal the entire length of the floor lip (both sides) and the inner rocker. Good luck! Ron

[ItDoRun]

What's your dimension from pinch weld to pinch weld between the rockers. If I remember correctly, mine was 47" before removal and it stayed the same the entire length of the rocker. 3/8" is a lot to pull.

[redfire69]

Looking at those pics I think the gap will be less than 3/8s if you measure from the bottom where the pinch welds will be located.

[DRJDVM's '69]

Dont be suprised if the new panels dont just drop in and fit like a glove...they never do. They usually take some tweaking, pulling, bending etc.

Are you butt welding them in or lap welding?? I dont see a nice fresh cut edge to butt weld.... Im not familair with the detail of the edges of the full floors....is there a flange or just a sharp edge?

Like Greg said.....before you weld anything, make sure all the surfaces are CLEAN....of any EDP, paint, rust, oil...whatever

Get some clamps on there.....some people use clecos,,, other use self tapping screws.... things need to fit tight before you weld anything. If one side is super tight and the other has a gap, you probably need to pull it to one side, get the gaps alittle more even and then clamp both sides

You will likely have these pieces in and out several times before everything fits and you are ready to actually weld them in.

[clay69camaro]

I only slid this piece in to check fitment. Yesterday I epoxy primed what will be the interior and I sprayed down undercoat on the bottom outside of the panel.
The driveshaft bump stop "bracket" was also holding up the rear of the floor board so I removed that for the time being and, I'm about to go and see how tight the pinch welds are going to be once clamped.
I bought 8 spring clamps from home depot, hope they can do the trick. If not, my buddy works there and I'll just return them. More pics to come later tonight when I get done.

Working alone, and doing something for the first time kind of sucks lol.

[clay69camaro]

Here are a few more shots. I've had the floors in and out, all day :willy: Making some trims here and there, drilling out some spot welds to fill in later, and sanding down to bare metal all around the hole so it will weld in well.

Here are the floor boards primed and set in, not clamped yet.
http://i920.photobucket.com/albums/ad47/claykinsey/100_1440.jpg

http://i920.photobucket.com/albums/ad47/claykinsey/100_1441.jpg

The floors are sagging in the middle, The spring clamps I bought aren't doing the job, so I've got to pick up some better stronger ones.
http://i920.photobucket.com/albums/ad47/claykinsey/100_1444.jpg
Here is what they look like when you're not under the car.
http://i920.photobucket.com/albums/ad47/claykinsey/100_1445.jpg

Does this all look pretty standard till I hook some clamps up? The side to side gaps have evened out and look like the pinch welds will weld up nicely once clamped.

Thanks again everyone. I just want to be sure it all looks good before I start to weld. Measure twice cut once kind of deal.

[redfire69]

Looks good (and familiar)! Lots and lots of clamps! :thumbsup:

[DRJDVM's '69]

Self tapping sheetmetal screws work great too........ after you get the piece "mostly" welded in, then you pull the screws and then just weld up the holes. You need ALOT of clamps or clecos, so thats why alot of DIY guys use the sheetmetal screws for a piece this big.

[clay69camaro]

cool, I'm gonna go get myself some sheetmetal screws, The clamps are too expensive for me right now. I'm looking forward to getting some welding done today.

[Cris@JCG]

Looking good!

[tyoneal]

BTW -- Don't use a twist drill when putting holes in sheet metal. Get yourself a couple of step drills... they're for sheet metal work.

Do you have a spot weld cutter? There are some real crappy versions out there -- and some good ones. Trust me -- the good ones are worth their weight in gold. Drilling out spot welds sucks. I use the Hougens roto broaches - they make a killer spot weld cutter. I center punch each weld real well - and then use my cutter... a good center punch keeps it from crawling offcenter.

http://www.hougen.com/cutters/sheetmetal/images/Wol-Spotweld_lg.jpg
=============================
Your description was amazing. I don't know about everyone else, but it reads like a instruction book.

I appreciate the insight.

[GregWeld]

Ty --

Trust me.... nobody on here cares what I have to say!

And they're justified in their thoughts! :rofl: :rofl:

[clay69camaro]

Personally I like when you chimed in. Your descriptions were very helpful :cheers:

I like everyone who has encouraged me, or answered a question I've had. thanks everyone. The floor boards are in and I filled all the spot welds over the weekend. Then I removed my bracing and the car didn't fall apart :willy:

More to come in my build updates, but expenses will be at a minimum for a while, I'm gonna be movin out soon with the girlfriend, and I'm still living off of the GI Bill and some part time work.:cheers:

[GregWeld]

Looks good!

None of this stuff is that 'hard' -- it's just scary the first time you've done it... and of course - like most things - there's tips and tricks that help.