plugging holesin firewall

Jakno

Jakno

Senior Member
Going to e installing a new firewall protector and some heat and noise barrier in my 35 pickup. Has had numerous holes drilled thru the firewall over the years and I'd like to plug them with something that will look decent from the engine compartment.

If you have any suggestions you might share, I'd appreciate that.

Thanks
 
MIG weld the ones up to 1/4" in diameter and cut patches of the same thickness sheet metal and weld them in. Grind down the welds and it'll look like new.
 
NAS-451 series plug buttons are still available but not as easy to get as they used to be from aircraft parts sources. Chief Aircraft still carries them in a lot of different sizes.
http://www.chiefaircraft.com/aircraft/hardware-fasteners/button-plugs.html

There are also rubber and plastic types available from some sources. McMaster Carr has a lot of stuff like this too.
https://www.mcmaster.com/#plug-buttons/=17liugu

We used to call them Willkie plug buttons (a plug at old Wendell Willkie) but most folks just call them plug buttons now days.
 
Janko... I had quite a few holes in my 34 firewall, I got some Brass Shim stock; reasonable thickness and made a round patch larger than the hole then Soldered it ; to the inside of the firewall , sanded it down to a smooth surface (on the motor side ) and primed and painted all, you can't tell where I patched !:)
 
That's a lot of slugs. An old friend likely used near half that many welding up rust holes on an old model A Tudor Sedan he drug out of a ditch up in Kansas. By the time he got all the holes patched the damn thing had a pretty solid body. It's a lot dryer climate up in KS than it is down here in TX. I'd need a lot bigger slugs than those.
 
i had many extra holes in my 39 firewall that i plugged with electric box plugs. they come in many sizes but 1/2' seems to be the smallest. they fit almost flush and after painting look good.
 
Find a bolt and nut the size of the hole, screw the bolt into the nut to allow just the right amount of the bolt end to fill the hole. Mig weld the bolt end into the hole, then back off the nut and cut off the bolt with a grinder. You have plugged the hole with minimum distortion and a bit of grinding and filler will make it good as new. For small holes you can also weld the head of a nail into the hole.
Viv W
 
Jakno............I plugged several holes in my '50 engine compartment. I used plugs from NAPA. They have plastic, rubber and chrome plugs. I just needed the dia. Hope this helps!!
 
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