The fenders are the roughest parts of this project. I made some patch pieces from a junk fender to have butt welded in place. I took the fender to a friend to weld them with an oxy-acetylene welding torch. He didn't get very far before deciding that some of the metal was too thin to weld without burning holes.
So I decided that the only way to make the repairs is to put a backing plate on the underside of the fender to have something to weld to.
The first repair is a dime-sized hole where one of the decorative rivets had somehow broken through.
This is the plate on the underside. I used my spot welder to weld it in.
This shows the round plug welded to the backer.
Due to my old eyes, I covered it with a piece of white tape to mark the center and center punch it. Much easier to see!
Lastly I broke out the Roper Whitney punch, selected the size die needed, and pressed a hole. If you have a need for making clean holes in sheet metal, this tool is a must!
![IMG_7757.JPG IMG_7757.JPG](https://cdn.imagearchive.com/ratrodbikes/data/attachments/273/273606-e0dbb1508937562f66e51e664ab4c644.jpg)
![IMG_7758.JPG IMG_7758.JPG](https://cdn.imagearchive.com/ratrodbikes/data/attachments/273/273607-0de6f9d352ad237c0f855ed568eef25d.jpg)
This is all that I'll need to do other than add some paint because the replacement rivet will hide the repair.
More repairs tomorrow.