Cheap Fender Fix - Improvised Spot Welds

I'm an old hot rodder but relatively new to jeep rebuilds. Prior to finding this forum I bought a couple of cheap (thin metal, poor fitting) front fenders on the internet only to find they're almost worthless. One of the problems is the overlaid section on the rear outside of the fenders. They had only a couple of spot welds holding them in place and would bow outward as much as 1/2" when bolted to the tub. I drilled several 1/4 holes from the backside, clamped the two sheets together and filled the holes with the MIG welder, making a "spot" weld. Will require a little body filler and sanding but won't bow out anymore. Also did quite a bit of welding to reinforce other areas. There's a lesson here: do a little research before you buy fenders and other parts. Cheap doesn't necessarily mean less expensive.

 

btdt myself, looks like you got it right now though

 

We'll see how they do when I bolt them up. I'm sure it'll be a chore to get them to fit up right. And then comes the filler and sanding.
If I'd had any idea how thin, and poorly made they were I would have went with used OEM. I'm too cheap and hard headed to just throw them away and buy used OEM now. Bought a hood from the same place (at the same time) and have had to do similar bracing/welding on it. But they were cheap!

 

"Cheap", is a relative term, yes?

 

where did you get them from? Might save someone else a headache. If not a business, any idea who made them?

 

yes...

 

My boy has a saying that he uses for tools, but it would apply here as well.

"Buy a good quality tool and cry only once." BTDT

tommy b

 

I'll have to check my records and see where I got them. I should be able to find it. They were made in Taiwan.

Got them at http://www.carpartswholesale.com/. Paid $62.00 for the fenders and $112.00 for the hood, plus shipping. Should have known better. I'm guessing the sheet metal is 22 ga. or thinner. Should probably mic them just to make certain.

 

other than thin how's the hood? Shipping a killer to Texas?

 

The hood actually fit pretty well (much better than the fenders), other than being thin. I reinforced the area where the hinges attach (I'm sure it would have bent there if I hadn't) and around the bottom edge that mates up to the top of the fenders. Also welded two pieces of 1/2" square tubing from the hinge area to the front interior cross brace to give it a little more rigidity, particularly when closing it. When I get through with it it'll be okay. Shipping for the two fenders and hood was $176.00.

 

I was wrong....shipping was $126.00. Looked at the wrong item on the invoice.

 

Those look just like the ones I just got from 4WD hardware. The ones I got were $149.99 each shiped via UPS, they were marked on the box made in China and had Ridge Runner on the box. I GOOGLED Ridge Runner and It is an Omix Ada brand. Hope these are better than what you got.

 

I got a set of Ridge Runner from Krage's and the cut-out on the inner fender for the shock mount was in the wrong spot; looks like they cut it in the location for an intermediate. I had to cut them just to get them to fit. Been meaning to call up and complain a little.

 

Clint, I forgot to mention mine had the same problem. Had to cut out the inner fender for the shock mounts when I was test fitting them. Probably will have to do more cutting for the fender well headers too, but that's not the fender's fault.
The problem with the fenders was not only that the "overlaid" section was only spot welded in a couple of places but that the flanges of the overlay and the inner sheet metal didn't match up very well (there was maybe 1/8" of space between them), causing the overlay to bow outward when I tightened the bolts to the tub. I may yet have to do a little more work in that area.

 

I considered ordering new ones when I ordered the ws frame. Glad I didn't now. Chances are, even if you found some originals, you would face similar problems with that overlay piece. Those panels on Pete were pushed out 1/2" at the bottom because of rust between the panel and fender. I considered drilling the spotwelds and replacing it, and may still at some point, but for now I just beat the crap out of it to chip off the rust and reset the panel and sprayed some ospho underneath. I'll be doing some bondo work there as well.:v6:
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