Need help. How would you fix this?

GoneMad

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Still working on stripping my pac cab. Just have the front left. But I come across this problem. There was a very thin piece of MDF covering this up. I think this would be too big to just hit with a bunch of bondo. Anyone more "wood inclined" than I have any suggestions?

IMG281.jpg
 
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> cut a new piece.

+1

I cut a new lower front for an original yellow Pac cab last year. Had to pound the old piece off with a mallet, but it came off in one piece and I was able to trace it onto a new piece of MDF (chose that rather than plywood...personal choice). Patching something that big would take more time than cutting a new piece and priming/painting it.
 
The faster way is to just to cut a new piece of plywood.
The hard way is to get a thin sheet of wood and patchn glue it in before using bondo.
Will the hard way look better? No.
Will it make it look nicer? No.

Why do it than? just to preserve more of the original cab.
 
> cut a new piece.

+1

I cut a new lower front for an original yellow Pac cab last year. Had to pound the old piece off with a mallet, but it came off in one piece and I was able to trace it onto a new piece of MDF (chose that rather than plywood...personal choice). Patching something that big would take more time than cutting a new piece and priming/painting it.

I disagree. Patching that would be faster then ripping the piece out, cutting a new one and then putting it back in place.

Unless the wood is rotting or or has something else wrong with it, I would patch it.

Bondo it up and be done with it.
 
Sure, patching is easy if you can sand it perfectly.. Which I've had trouble with in the past.. As in, sanding to much or to little .. I'd have a piece cut or pull from a donor cab :)
 
Gotta replace it. No two ways about it. I'd contact Brett (DPtwiz) he makes Pac cabs and could probably sell you the front piece if you aren't so woodworking inclined
 
This doesn't look to bad. I squared up the hole. Found a piece of 1/4 inch floor underlay and sized it up. Tacked and glued it in. Sanded my ass off and hit it with the bondo. Smooth as a baby's ass and according to the level, only out about .5MM.

IMG282.jpg
 
I was just going to suggest if the wood was strong and not rotting away just grab some 1/4 cut it to the front of the and glue it in place. But only works if the wood is strong enough. But looks like your way worked out for you. My only fear with how you did it is that after moving the cab a few times that does not start to crack or even pop out.
 
i either woulda bondoed it up and lived with it or bondoed it then glud a thin piece of veneer on top then routered the coindoor hole back out

Your fix also works great, good job man.
 
The post-paint picture does look good. I hope it doesn't crack, but it shouldn't, as long as the expansion / contraction coefficient between the two materials is pretty close.
 
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