Are you planning a Series restoration and have a firewall that rotted out and has long since seen its best days? It's a common problem with vehicles of such vintage.
Replace that bulkhead with a quality, brand new galvanized option from Shielder Chassis; the first UK manufacturer to offer new steel galvanized bulkheads to the Land Rover restoration market.
Shielder bulkheads are fabricated from new 1.5mm mild steel and galvanized after manufacture. Great care has been taken to match every pressing curve and contour to leave the finished Bulkhead with minimal remedial work to be done prior to painting. Each bulkhead comes complete with seam sealer applied to joints.
Each bulkhead is hot dipped galvanized and finished with powder coat primer for superior corrosion resistance and making them ready for paint.
Q: ‘Why do your welds look so visible and protruding?’
Q: ‘Why do you not grind and polish them down?’
Q: ‘Why don’t you spot weld to help avoid this?’
A: We decided to eliminate double skinning (a process Land Rover used) on the bulkhead to prevent moisture and rust traps. As we don’t double skin instead we have increased the strength of the steel from 1.0mm (Land Rover OEM) to a heavier 1.5mm steel. Spot welding does not work on this heavier steel. The additional benefit of upgrading to 1.5mm steel is that the entire bulkhead is strengthened throughout. Read more on the benefits of a Shielder Bulkhead vs that of a Land Rover original.
We know that our customers take a lot of time and pride in their work, and want their completed vehicles to look their best.
As vintage Rover owners ourselves, we understand this desire for OEM perfection, and so we strive to produce high-quality products that make our customers happy.
Achieving a high-quality finish and appearance is just as important to us as it is to our customers.
Below is a short description on what causes raised welds:
The raised welds are not a result of neglect during manufacturing, or that we couldn’t be bothered to take the time to grind & polish the welds down. In fact, all welds on Shielder Bulkheads and Chassis are ground and polished flat before galvanizing.
Here is the actual reason behind the raised welds:
Raised welds after galvanizing are a common occurrence in the fabrication industry.
Q: Why?
A: During the galvanizing process the metal is submerged in molten zinc at approximately 450 Celcius. This rapid change in temperature causes differing chemistry between the steel and the weld material — namely the silicon level.
Some concentrations of silicon can speed up the metallurgic reaction between the zinc and steel, causing rapid large crystal growth. This in turn, causes the welds to become raised in comparison with the surrounding steel. So after the galvanizing process, the human eye is easily drawn to the welds and as a result, opinions form.
So the preparation before priming and painting is equally as important as to the painting itself.
Truck Ship Item
This large item requires special truck freight shipping. To get a shipping quote click button or call 800-533-2210.
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