Body bolts
 

When I removed the body from my 65 several were missing, I assume the cage is messed up, and the rear fender bolt had to have the head drilled off. I have a plasma cutter and was planning on using a 3" pipe cutoff as a guide to cut roun holes over the bolts and then cutting plugs to weld in place after repairs. this guy must have not had anything but a drill, that is how he got access to every thing, lots of 1/4" holes[tunnel too!].
My questions are, how necessary is it for the bolts to "float" in the holes?

Can nots be welded perminently without the cages?

Can the rear front fender bolts be replaced through the vents, I can feel them but have no idea how to hold them. Could studs be welded in the piller instead of the bolts and the fender hole enlarged for adjustment? A body guy I was thinking of using told me they just tack the fender, think I'll just keep looking for a new body guy.

Any enlightenment will be appreciated, my first GTO restoration, need your collective wisdom!

Thanks, Larry

bump

Larry
If the nuts are welded to the floor, you may have problems with aligning the bolts.
What I did was just put the new bushings in place, run the bolt up thru from below, and have someone work the nut down on the bolt from above, then just tighten it down. make a sheetmetal patch and put small sheetmetal screws in to hold the patch down, with some silicone sealer around the edge.
That way, if you ever need access again, you won't have to cut again.
If it's in an exposed area, and don't want to see the patch, put some bondo on it to hide it.
Hope this helps.
Jeff

i cut a flap 3cuts, pulled the flap up, welded a nut to a big washer then welded the washer/nut to the brace, folded the flap down and welded it up,. used por15 seam sealer to fill what little dents i had. now you cant even tell i was in there

Thanks guys. Its the ones in the forward door pillar that really have me stumped.

Larry