I've done this repair both ways, through the cowl and by removing the cowl. In the end, through the cowl was't the best way for me. I also used stove pipe to build an new hat. I used cardboard to make templates to rebuild the area around the hats because it's not flat. It's all about patience. I'd suggest buying a decent welder- If you have a Maverick, you need one, because you'll find many uses on this one and more on the next one you're guaranteed to buy. When you begin to reweld, take a piece of copper- I used water pipe flattened- as a backer to the holes where necessary. The weld won't attach to the copper. There's approximately 125 welds, if I remember. I also used seam sealer to be sure there were no leaks. One more tip. When you get to the brackets that go between the apron and the cowl, remember the cowl material is thin- try to avoid cutting the cowl-bracket welds if possible. I had a heck of a time rewelding the thin material. Goodl luck and don't forget to use oil to cool the cutter
Thank you. You've been very helpful. I just got back from Harbor Freight. Picked up quite a few things I'll be needing. On the down side, weather forecast here is giving bad weather all weekend. May not get to work on it until next weekend. Any recommendations on a welder I should look into?
you could always fabricate one, i made a circle out of sheet metal from an old fender, i can proudly say the maverick has all original (ford maverick) metal on it lol
