De-seaming the rear valance
Turbo Mini Forums

hey guys,

I would like to de-seam the rear valance on my project car myself rather than have the added cost of paying the garage/bodyshop to do it. Firstly, does anyone have any good tips/advice for this job? and secondly, I have a Sealey 130AMP MIG welder, would this be sufficient for de-seaming the valance? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Ben
www.r1manx.com

"If i'm not in action...i'm in traction"

did you get the welder bro?

you can put that lip in to mount the c/f floor at the same time bud

heres a good thread
http://www.turbominis.co.uk/forums/index.php?p=vt&tid=4579

"Turbo's make torque, and torque makes fun"

"did you know you can toast potato waffles?"

What about not doing it as it looks rubbish?

Well I am aware that opinions are mixed on the whole de-seamed look but I am not running bumpers on the car and don't really want to run without a valance as I think that looks rubbish. In my opinion it looks good with a de-seamed valance that's why I was asking for genuine help/advice. But the forum is for expressing personal opinions and you're entitled to yours so fair play.

"If i'm not in action...i'm in traction"

I think a de-seamed rear looks best, toit, but like the seams everywhere else!! Mmmm seams.

Hi,
I did this many years ago, when I was 16, so there may be a better way than this...
I got a new rear valance folded the lip back up to the same shape a the valance, making cuts where necessary to allow for the curves.
Cut the original off and the lip. Then weld the rear panel to the boot floor.
I then removed the boot lid and hinges, welded the valance on and re drilled the hinge bolt holes.
This only leaves you a small step the thickness of the panel to blend in and most of it is on the corner of the boot apeture so not really noticable :)
Cheers,
Gavin :)

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If it where me I'd chop 2 inch sections out of the valance, kind of cut 2, miss 2, cut 2 miss 2 etc then weld up the gaps. Then cut the other bits out and weld them up. That way ou won't loose the shape and you're car shouldn't drop to bits. Unless you weld like me

Yeah, like apbellamy says, cut sections out and weld, to avoid cutting the whole thing and welding it back on crooked.

Also I used a chisel or something to push the 'join' of the upper and lower panels back, so the weld doesnt stick out to far and can be ground flat and fillered smooth.

Edited by Ben. on 9th Dec, 2008.

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