A stud welder would be the right thing here to use to pull the rest of that huge dent out when there is no access from behind, but a patch panel might be more reasonable, if I can find something that doesn't cost a fortune. Eastwood has a stud welder for 250$, but the only thing I could find in germany was more like 390?, and I don't plan on doing too much body repair in my future.
I'll post a something in the for sale /wanted and see if I can get an original panel. No way I am going to ship an entire fender to germany, but a panel that goes below the trim strip and down might be reasonable.
DAF, I may take you up on the shipping, but I hope a somewhat flat fender 1/4 won't be too costly to ship

Just spent the last 5 hours or so with the hammer and dollys on the fender, and well, you can't tell too much by the picture, but it is better. The surface of the fender looks like it got shot with a shotgun, or that is what the PO used to do body work, idk. There are still lots of little pock marks in the sheet metal in this one area, but the basic shape is pretty good. The only problem area I still have is in the yellow circle which has the inner fender in the way so I can't hammer it from the back.
Any suggestions on how to get that straightened out? The lip that runs down the wheel well edge is also not so great, but more in the right neighborhood.
I may also try some old fashioned tinning in this area. Leading, or whatever you want to call it. I guess more metal will mean less bondo.
It might have been easier/better to get a section of fender and weld that in as a patch panel. Here's a pic of the progess so far.

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I've started my adventure in hammering out dents on the front fenders. Bought myself a ~good hobby quality hammer and dolly set and also a big wooden hammer. The smaller and obvious dents I feel like I can get them about 80% smoothed out. I am not even trying to get them perfect, just so there will be less bondo. The drivers side fender has turned out to be a big challenge. There was about 3/4 inch deep bondo in the whole area behind the wheel. You can see how bad it was. There was a tear in the sheet metal, and that was welded by a previous body work guy, and then very crudely hammered into shape. I spent about an hour on this area already, and can see some improvement.
I am trying to start on the outsides of the damage and work my way in towards the center, but it is slow and hard going.

pic

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"The small modern cars give most drivers a feel of confidence simply because the car is small."

Are you kidding me? Like a whole industry of engineers and developers really haven't made any progress over the last 1/2 century? American, european and asian companies included? I think things like independent suspension, much better tire/power/weight ratio of a VW GTI to a Packard, all the computer controls of engine, suspension and brakes and airbags also contribute to the feel of confidence that one has in a modern car big or small. I mean an old 33 1/3 vinyl record is nice to listen to at home, but not practical in an everyday commute on the road. Just like a packard is nice to enjoy for a cruise to a car show or for fun, but most (if not all) packards are not as practical for daily use as a modern car.

The best thing about baked on grease and oil is that it keeps rust away! Pump Looks good. One part at a time...

Carib

Just Sold at RM auction a few days ago. Nice car.

pics of where the oil lines attach to tranny.

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Of course everything takes time. We got the trans almost all sealed up.
Can somebody help us with figuring out what lines to order for the tranny cooler? Is it 1/2 or 7/16 perhaps?
We're also missing the pipe fittings that attach the lines to the transmission. I guess if I knew the line diameter it would be easier to identify the size of the fittings. Gregor and I could really use a hint if anybody knows these sizes.
Also, the bearing from the tailshaft of the tranny got lost in the chaos. It is part 3.6741. Anybody have one of these that they are willing to part with, or help us with the bearing dimensions?

Thanks for the links. Maik (german writing of Mike) my freind with the Olds found out what it is. "Front clutch bypass valve" and he had a new one made locally.
I think we have found a tranny that has a shorter production run, and a worse reputation than the ultramatic!