Saw a really clean repair on a classic Ford at the Puyallup fairgrounds car show

I was at the Puyallup fairgrounds car show last weekend and spent a solid 20 minutes looking at a '65 Mustang's quarter panel. The owner said he used a stud welder and a slide hammer to pull the dent, then finished with a thin layer of filler. The line where the new paint met the old was so smooth you couldn't feel it with your fingernail. Has anyone else had good luck with that method on older sheet metal?

3 comments

3 Comments

scott.blake2mo ago

That "thin layer of filler" is the part that worries me. On old steel, even a perfect pull can hide a low spot that filler will shrink into over time. I've seen it crack after a few seasons, especially with temperature changes. For a show car it's fine, but I'd always plan on replacing the full panel for a real driver.

harper2541mo agoMost Upvoted

Has Scott ever worked with modern two part fillers? The good stuff now is way more stable than the old single part paste.

skyler_baker2mo ago

Scott's overthinking it, modern fillers don't shrink like the old stuff. A skilled tech can make a repair that lasts for years, even on a daily driver. Full panel replacement is overkill for a lot of these classic car dings.