All nuts and bolts front body panel conversion. Thoughts?

[evvster]

Looking for any input on this being a wonderful or horrible idea.

Over the years I have swapped out hood, quarter panels and just about everything else due to bending, crinkling breaking etc... Each time I replace something I lose more sunk nuts, miss more holes, use less bolts and everything just gets generally more crooked.

While crooked doesn't bug me so much on the ole mudder, integrity does. Some of these panels are on pretty ill-threaded bolts right now and may just leave me one day.

My question is... has anyone eliminated all of the sunk nuts from a body panel install and gone with all nuts washers and bolts?

This way I could drill holes exactly where they needed to be to have straight body panels, and put as many as I needed without having to worry about lining up the preexisting mounts that are bend from where they should line up anyway.

Tell me why this is a good idea, tell me why this is a bad idea. am I missing a reason why this isn't normally done?

Thanks!

 

[xenomarine]

Subscribed because I want to see this, and I would think getting a nut behind some of that sheet metal would be your biggest challenge. It's been a while since I've pulled a fender or core support though.

 

[evvster]

I will definitely do extensive pics if I go through with it and will document a failure too.

 

[ryoken]

Looking for any input on this being a wonderful or horrible idea.

Over the years I have swapped out hood, quarter panels and just about everything else due to bending, crinkling breaking etc... Each time I replace something I lose more sunk nuts, miss more holes, use less bolts and everything just gets generally more crooked.

While crooked doesn't bug me so much on the ole mudder, integrity does. Some of these panels are on pretty ill-threaded bolts right now and may just leave me one day.

My question is... has anyone eliminated all of the sunk nuts from a body panel install and gone with all nuts washers and bolts?

This way I could drill holes exactly where they needed to be to have straight body panels, and put as many as I needed without having to worry about lining up the preexisting mounts that are bend from where they should line up anyway.

Tell me why this is a good idea, tell me why this is a bad idea. am I missing a reason why this isn't normally done?

Thanks!

I think it's a horrible idea, no offense..

 

[y5mgisi]

I think you would loose more integrity that way. Not to mention that some spots would be impossible to get to the back side of. Right now with the welded in nuts and stuff, its making the nut a part of the fender (or whatever) which i feel is as integral as possible.

 

[evvster]

So do you think I should be trying to weld new nuts or bend the originals back to a location that would allow them to thread? I have tried junkyarding new fenders, but it is really the radiator support that is bent and I'm not sure I have the skill / know how to do a swap of that whole front piece....

 

[y5mgisi]

If you can swap a fender you can swap the core support! Its just like the fenders. A bunch of bolts. But yes, i would be re welding them. Ones that are especially bad i would weld a nut onto the back side of a big washer and then weld the nutted washer in place. Cutting out the old nut area obviously. This would allow the stress to be dispersed more widely.