Panel Removal (above)
Firstly do forgive me for the small pictures, but I done them that way to make it quicker for the slower computers to download. The picture shows what lies behind the front panel once it's removed. I was lucky here, as the inner windscreen lip that the outer one is spot welded to is often rotted away to, but mine wasn't to bad. you can get complete inner sections from schofields now, but they are pricey going at over a hundred quid!. But you can with a bit of welding practice patch the inner section quite easily if it's not to bad. I only had to do a small piece of welding to the inner lip on my bus. To remove the front panel you will first have to remove the cab doors, windscreen & rubber. Then drill out all the spot welds where the outer windscreen lip is spot welded to the inner screen lip. (you don't have to remove the dash assembly). Then around the appeture where the air vents are. And at the base of the panel where it's fixed to the bulge that the bumper bolts onto. Then drill out or chiesel the spots where it wraps around the A post. (thats the bit where the cab door hinges are bolted to). You will then have to get the angle grinder, and with a cutting disc, cut through the door pillars just above the bulge at the top of the front panel. But be carefull not to cut it to high up, otherwise you will have a gap. It's best to measure the new panel from the top of the bulge to where the pressing ends. If anything make your cut slightly shorter, you can always trim it when it is tack welded into place.

The new panel (above)
The picture shows the new panel welded on. You will notice if you look carefully the white paint runs coming down from the various cut outs where they slot over the inner panel. This is because before I welded the new panel on, I enameled the inside of it, waited for it to dry, then waxoiled it. It is impossible to get to most of the panel once it it welded on, so you will have to do this before it goes on. Also if you want to put on a spare wheel mounting bracket, you will also have to do this before the panel goes on. It's not impossible to do it after, providing you have the correct fixings, but if you don't, it will be very tricky. Also I would advise you to put on some nice big spacer washers behind the panel where the bracket bolts go to help spread the load of the spare wheel, as it is very heavy!.

You will find that when you come to offer the panel in position, if it's the brazillian panels like most are, then the are a few mm shorter than the german originals, so they have to be 'streached' to fit over both A post lips again. To do this, I found it best to put one lip into position first, you will find the second one doesn't quite want to go over. To get around this I got myself a long heavy duty rope (a car tow rope). I put it around the inside of the cab, brought it back out, and tied a knot in it where the two ends met in the middle of the outside of the front panel. Then got myself a thick piece of wood, slid it in the middle of the knot, then very slowly turned it until the leverage gradually pulled the new panel into place. Then re-welded all the spot welds to fix it into place. Please note, I wouldn't recommend you use a hammer to knock the second panel lip into place. You can do it this way, but the pressure you will need to use will almost certainly damage your new panel!.

Side window bottom repairs (above)
Sorry about the quality of the picture, but you can still see the rust at the base of this side window once the cover plate was removed.
Most people tend to bog this up with filler, as they are under the miss conception that you cannot get the repair panels for them. Not true!, Alan Scofields can make them up for you. I got both sides made up, plus repair sections for the corners of the other windows for £170. And because they are accurate they were a dream to weld on!.

Side window repairs (above)
Although the picture is a lousy one, you can rest assured that once those repair panels were welded on, they were a great fit. All I had to do was weld on a new vee channel (from JK) onto the new panel. (the vee channel is the strip of metal that the cover plate slots onto). When you cut the old surround out on the sliding door side, you cut it just above the sliding door runner.

I chose to detail the inside of the cab to match the base colour. To do this I took out the dash, and sprayed it seperately. Looks quite effective don't you think? The graphic on the back says 'stuck in the seventies' that was made up for me by 'mucky duck' on kamperchat. Very apt for me I think!.

Here she is in all her glory