Imperial Home Page -> Repair -> Body -> Seams
When it comes time for restoration, the factory sheet metal body seams on older cars always seem to be swollen or distorted. This is usuallydue to age of the seam, corrosion, or acid contamination of the lead over time. This is especially true around the LeBaron rear window glass, where a piece of rope is sometimes used in the seam.
The usual repair for these poor lead seams is to melt them out, and re-lead the seam. The problem is this; Unless you are an expert metalman, re-leading seams may be not only difficult, but the repair may be flawed. If you merely block sand the swollen lead seam and paint the car, you will find a paint surface deformity as the old lead seam continues to shrink after your car is painted.
An excellent fix is to melt out all of the lead from leaded seams in the body, then using a water-proof two part polyester filler, (containing 100% ground aluminum powder) fill the void, block sand, and prime. This is replacing metal with metal, and results in a more stable repair with no fear of poor adhesion to the metal, and no fear of possible acid leaching into the paint. As a bonus, this system is very easy do and the results permanent. I use ALL METAL polyester filler, but there are several 100% aluminum fillers on the market. Unlike "BONDO", all metal fillers are waterproof, since they contain no talc. (which absorbs water readily)
There are many modern products we can use in the restoration of our cars that result in a better restoration rather than using the old original methods.
This page last updated on October 2017. Send us your feedback, and come join the Imperial Mailing List - Online Car Club
