1973 Pontiac Ventura Rusty Floorboards

Freiburger figured he'd won the lottery when he scored a nearly mint, rust-free '73 Ventura parts car for 300 skins. Other than a heavy shunt in the rear that totaled this once-fine ride, the original V-8 Pontiac represented the mother lode of parts and pieces to make his '72 daily driver Ventura "nice." A parts car offers a world of possibilities, from a chance to scavenge all those hard-to-find little parts that keep you eternally running around, to the potential for a full-on V-8 drivetrain swap in this particular example. This time around the object was a little more mundane, but direly necessary-perfect source material to fix the rusted-through floor of its twin.

Like many old-car fanatics, Freiburger revels in the fact that his base-model, six-cylinder daily driver Ventura was factory-fitted with the bottom-of-the-line rubber floor covering, rather than carpet. The problem is that rubber floor covering is the perfect trap for moisture, a life-sized one-way check valve that pins water to the sheetmetal, never allowing normal evaporation to take its course. The result is nearly always rust-through as the water gnaws through the floor looking for a way out. The leaky trunk seal and rear window area of the affected Pontiac didn't help, but in the parts car, we had the answer.

So, in theory, the problem was solved. The only remaining detail was actually performing the surgery. While there are plenty of different techniques that can be employed in making such a repair, the most basic decision to be made is whether to overlap the repair section or attempt a butt-weld. Of course, in an exhibition of pure craftsmanship we butt-welded it, but overlapping would be way easier if a seamless repair isn't high on your list of priorities. Here's how to do it.