Airspace grade aluminum Bonneville
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I found out I have some rust in my rear wheel wells, and the rear-right one had rot that opened up a hole in the trunk. People sometimes fix this with welding or riveting, but I've chosen airspace-grade adhesive aluminum and paint. I bought some Herculiner, and I'm going to cover this tape with it.
Aluminum tape is used on aircrafts for when something like a window or a door blows out. The airplane lands, a mechanic uses this tape to cover up the hole, the cabin is pressurized again, and the plane takes off to arrive at its destination. This doesn't speak to durability in a wheel well on a car, but it'* good enough for me to try it out.
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4900-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-y4c8ah.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4899-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-aiymph.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
These first few pictures are of the aluminum tape covered by dryer duct tape covered by aerosol truck bed liner paint and soon to be painted with proper truck bed liner. There'* no method to this. I'm just using up materials.
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4901-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-svfqch.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4902-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-xjbxah.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4903-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-2c6j9h.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
Here'* my rear-left (driver'* side) wheel well after just a hand-powered wire brush:
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4904-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-q0eorh.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
Safety first! Also, always wear a glowing white t-shirt.
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4905-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-ypt1eh.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4906-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-sy5kzh.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4907-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-ztetkh.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
I filled a foam plate with laundry detergent, poured in water, and tried using this "brush" but went with a wheel/tire brush to clean the wheel well:
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4908-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-pa1cnh.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
Not all the materials are pictured, but primarily shown here are my other foam plate used to keep my brushes clean and my can of Herculiner.
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4909-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-rquoth.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
Trying out aerosol primer in pursuit of no method:
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4910-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-dko36h.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
I'll let you know how it goes. The passenger-side wheel well has had tape in it for about a week on a trial run, and with just aerosol tape, it feels sturdy when tapped from the inside or the outside. It really seems to me and to a randomly selected grown-up that the tape is a solid material much like any other metal area.
Aluminum tape is used on aircrafts for when something like a window or a door blows out. The airplane lands, a mechanic uses this tape to cover up the hole, the cabin is pressurized again, and the plane takes off to arrive at its destination. This doesn't speak to durability in a wheel well on a car, but it'* good enough for me to try it out.
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4900-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-y4c8ah.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4899-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-aiymph.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
These first few pictures are of the aluminum tape covered by dryer duct tape covered by aerosol truck bed liner paint and soon to be painted with proper truck bed liner. There'* no method to this. I'm just using up materials.
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4901-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-svfqch.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4902-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-xjbxah.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4903-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-2c6j9h.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
Here'* my rear-left (driver'* side) wheel well after just a hand-powered wire brush:
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4904-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-q0eorh.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
Safety first! Also, always wear a glowing white t-shirt.
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4905-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-ypt1eh.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4906-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-sy5kzh.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4907-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-ztetkh.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
I filled a foam plate with laundry detergent, poured in water, and tried using this "brush" but went with a wheel/tire brush to clean the wheel well:
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4908-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-pa1cnh.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
Not all the materials are pictured, but primarily shown here are my other foam plate used to keep my brushes clean and my can of Herculiner.
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4909-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-rquoth.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
Trying out aerosol primer in pursuit of no method:
![](https://www.gmforum.com/attachments/your-ride-gm-pictures-videos-89/4910-airspace-grade-aluminum-bonneville-dko36h.jpg?dateline=1312097743)
I'll let you know how it goes. The passenger-side wheel well has had tape in it for about a week on a trial run, and with just aerosol tape, it feels sturdy when tapped from the inside or the outside. It really seems to me and to a randomly selected grown-up that the tape is a solid material much like any other metal area.
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i didnt think of that tape, i did it the redneck way, i had a half dollar sized hole in my rear right wheel well grabbed some aluminum siding, cut a square out of it and jb welded it on the inside of the trunk, then sprayed canned bed liner in the wheel wells, no leaks since.
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I remember that thread and was strongly considering JB Weld based on your result. It'* very tempting since it'* just so easy. One thing that has me not trying out JB Weld or fiberglass on the sheet metal is that the body seems to flex where these rotting sections are.
That, and JB Weld has been done before.
That, and JB Weld has been done before.
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