Bama10

I have some rust holes in my fender as you can tell by the pics and I was wondering should I buy new fenders or go with the fender patches? I want to do a resto but it is more expensive than I can afford now . And I really like driving my car so for me to let it sit for 5+ yrs w/o driving it would drive me bananas. Right now I just want to repair the body so I can paint it an when my kids are a bit older and I make a little more money I will try to take on the complete restoration. Just got it so I want to enjoy it a little

gbodyfan

if your good with body work i would save some money and go with patches but you might need to build inner pieces

gearheads78

look at the end of page 10 of my build tread

Bama10

I have no experience doing any kind of body work, motor work, etc. I probably should have asked which would be more sensible cost wise: buying new fenders or patching the damaged area. I mean will me patching the fenders last as long as just buying new fenders?

joe_padavano

If you are talking about the front fenders, it's much cheaper in the long run to buy repros than to try to weld in patch panels. Note that I am only considering metal patch panels. Fiberglass will NOT be a long-term solution and I wouldn't recommend wasting your time.

If you're talking about the rear fenders (and if the fronts have rust, the backs do too) either way there will be significant hand labor required to make the repair look good. You can get full repro fenders for the convertibles which are pricey but will look better when installed. The patch panels require a lot of hand labor after being welded in place.

Bama10

Thanks joe. I see you are in Northern VA,any people you recommend to do the body work?

joe_padavano

Unfortunately, no, since I do my own work.