Vannin' Home Forums General Discussion Paint and Bodywork Yikes - Rust forming in gutter above windshield

I think I better nip this in the bud before it gets worse. I do not have the resources to fix this myself so I'm going to have to find a local body shop that will do this kind of work. Most shops just want to fix accident damage. Unfortunately the guy the redid Wookee's early Chevy closed up his shop in Bel Air, MD. I may know of another place near Annapolis that can do it. I'm going to have the windshield pulled as well and have it all redone.

Yep...
Lazy shops that just want to work off of insurance estimates so they can cut corners.

My truck got rear ended when it was 3 weeks old.
The body shop sent the bumper out to get refurbished.
The refurbishing shop replaced the chrome panels with reworked used ones, and put on a new plastic cap that doesn't fit right.
$1,300 was the insurance payout.
???
I could have gotten a new, welded, one piece, diamond plate bumper for that kind of money.

I know a guy that could fix that up like new, but he's way down here in Texas.

Same here, I know of a shop here in VA, possibly two shops, but I know that don't help ya much. Hope you get it sorted.

Found a place in Harwood, MD (near Annapolis) called Rehab Customs. They are currently working up an estimate for the work. I kinda sorta know the owner in a roundabout way.
They are a very busy shop which I find to be a good sign. Lots of hot rods and muscle cars.

https://www.rehabcustoms.com/

That place looks great.....and is close to me

Cool man! Yep...I got the estimate and gave them a deposit. They can start on it in a couple of weeks. I'm stoked about getting that rust taken car of!

Nate that's NOTHING....I can show you the cancer on my '73, which has gotten worse sitting near the beach here in So Cal. I have been searching for a donor to replace the entire upper forward LH section with no success. I fully expect that I will be paying through the nose for someone with good English Wheel skills as well as sheet metal welding to get the whole thing along with the drip rail re-done.

Holy shrit!

Yeah tell me about it.....I don't even wanna THINK about the coin it's gonna take to make all that good again.

Get my van back hopefully this Friday! I'll post pics.

Wow Leakbox! I was sweatin' over a couple of little spots of surface stuff. I feel for ya!

i am scared to even KNOW whats under the sealant on mine!

My windshield is leaking at the top and I think this may be the issue. Where are you located at in Texas?

I'd try to fix mine myself if I was sure what used. I think its panel bonder

If your windshield is leaking, it's probably a bad seal or rust in the windshield channel itself. Very common on these vans as well.

Kursed. I bet you buddy in Orange County ( Old Anvil ?? ) could tackle it.

I know he could, but not sure if he would. His clientele are mostly super high end hot rods. Would probably cost a fortune.

Reviving this thread a bit.

I'm now looking for a donor van to get a new top of the windshield frame, and a few inches down on the A pillars. Every body work man I talk to says it's the only way to put in a new windshield. It's just too rusted on the inside. From reading this post, it looks like the roof is a separate piece completely. My plan is to go look at part out vans until I find one that seems to be rust free in that area (Good luck me). I'm near Atlanta, I should be able to find something, if not on Craigslist, at a junkyard, or somewhere.

Anyone local, or in the southeast, have any suggestions? I know frscke1 replaced the whole side of big red, and worked with some type of junkyard to get that over to the body shop. I'd love to find someone near Atlanta, or in the southeast willing to do the same. Luckily the piece of frame I need I can fit inside the van.

Lastly, I assume any G20 or G30 from 71'-86' will work as a donor, someone correct me if I'm wrong on that.

Good luck.

G10 too. All the same. Frscke1 found a donor van, showed the yard what he wanted, marked it, had the yard cut it. Rented a Box truck and brought it all to the Body shop. I generously received and got the 40 door, and rocker sheet metal from it for my G30. Thanks Prezz!

Good luck.

Looks like mine. The more paint we remove, the more fiberglass we find. The roof has some holes along the drip rails. Largest one so far is the size of a quarter. Gonna use my old rust doors for sheet metal and just patch, patch, patch...

Just pour Flex Seal on it....lol

Take a good sawzall to a wrecking yard, cut just at the B Pillar, straight across the roof. If the doors and engine have been removed from the donor van- cut across at the fuse box, saving the wiper/cowl section and all. That way you can take your part home and start drilling out the spot welds- carefully. You'll probably need some if not all of the windshield frame. Take the roof apart from the drip rail down with a spotweld drill bit. When you peel your rusted roof back, you will find more rust. Thats why you need to cut as much of the donor vehicle roof as possible.
Hope that helps.

The Moral of The Story is, never pay up front for body work and paint. If they need money up front for paint materials, speed away. If they need money for parts- buy them yourself and have them shipped to the shop.

My new shorty has rust up along the rails, too. I plan to bring it in the garage soonish to clean them out and address the rust, thenn use some self leveler to reseal it all up. If I am driving in the pouring rain and stop at a light, water just comes steadily dripping in at the visor mount holes and the center top of the Glass. I am sure there is some cgood rust in the windshield channel as well.. I will fix all that as time goes on, but want to get the roof sealed firsrt! Cant wait to see how your turns out.

Reseal the visor mount holes ...mine did that and this fixed the inside water fall ...Mine dumped a bucket full right in my Gson lap ...funniest thing Ive seen in a while

if you do that, where does the water go?

The water doesnt get in to collect ..

If your not a DIY type of guy your best bet to get it done the right way would be a any local classic vehicle restoration shop. prepare for a wait…..a lot of those shops have a back log as far as 5-6 years in some states. Stop by any local classic car/truck cruise night and ask around…..