Hi, quick question! I am patching speaker holes that were cut into the crinkle finish in the inner door of my ’66. does anybody know how to recreate the crinkle finish on the patch and welding?

I was thinking of marking out the pattern with a sharpie and then tapping it out with a fine metal punch of other sharp object?

Has anybody done this repair and how did it come out?

 

Difficult, not impossible, but the best way is to get a better door.
Jim

 

thank you. I was going to get a better door, but even used ones are like $300.I am still going to try to fix mine forst, but if that doesn't work,does anybody know of good places to get used mustang sheet metal in or around the SF bay area, CA?

 

I sent you an e-mail telling you about a place in San Jose with a phone number.
Jim

 

I have patched similar flaws with good esthetic success. Buy some silicone impression material. It is available at various craft stores. Your local dentist would also have access to such materials, but they're probably a lot more expensive. Find an area the same size and shape as the hole, (slightly larger). If it's flat this may be easy, if it has shape, you may have to find an in-tact door. Make a jig by getting some plywood and tap a grid of small nails into the surface leaving the heads sticking up enough to retain this impression putty. Mix the material, pat it into a pancake and sandwich the impression material between the plywood and the surface you want to capture. Press and hold firmly, but not so firmly that the nail heads touch the metal. If they do that's not the end of the world, but ideally they should be buried and remain unseen. When this sets, separate your mold from the donor surface and you'll have a "negative" of the surface you wish to duplicate. Patch your hole using smooth sheet stock and weld it to your satisfaction. Eliminate high spots. So with the hole repaired, all you have to do is replicate the texture. Take a material like the epoxy gel you'ld use for fiberglass repair, mix it, and spread a very thin coat over you impression, then mash it against your door and secure it while it sets. Clean the edges up as it is setting if you can. Then refine and blend the edges of your new texture. Keep the clean edges rather random so you're eyes aren't attracted to a line. Spraying the whole part a unified color further blends the surface texture and you can generally hide about anything. While I was in school, at least half my car was composed of cast-off acrylics, epoxys and whatever I could get my hands on. When I got rid of the car, these repairs were still well hidden; If I weren't so honest, I probably could have passed it off as unscathed. This works for ornate wood furniture, vinyl upholstry and all kinds of things. Being creative with the materials is the key. Maybe the body guys have a better solution. Good luck...