Expert: Gary - 5/10/2011

Question
Part of a panel on my honda was badly rusted so I covered it with sheet metal using rivets? Should I grind down the rivet heads or just leave them alone. or is there another way to make them less apparent?

                                                   Thanks

Answer
Hi Jim,

If you grind the heads off then the panel will fall off. The only way to make them invisible would be to use a filler and build up around them and then the filler sanded smooth. However, this is not a recommendation because the filler will crack eventually and most likely will fall off the panel.

A recommended procedure would be to cut out the rusted metal, shape a patch panel to fit the repair area and use a punch/flanging tool to flange the edges and punch holes in the metal for the spot weld area.