Back when we fixed quarter panels with lead instead of filler

I was cleaning out my toolbox last week and found my old lead paddle. Made me think about how we used to do this work. Back in the late 80s at the shop in Toledo, we'd torch on lead to smooth out those long quarter panel seams on the old Chevys and Fords. Took forever but man it held up. No shrinking, no cracking after a year. Now it's all plastic filler and I'm lucky if it doesn't start popping through the paint after two winters. The lead work was dangerous for sure but I wonder if we lost something when we switched. Are there any guys left who still use lead for certain jobs?

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1 Comment

cooper.nathan1mo ago

I've got to push back on this. I worked in a shop in Atlanta from 2005 to 2020 and we used lead on maybe two jobs the whole time. The stuff is a nightmare for a few reasons. First off, it warps the hell out of thin sheet metal because you have to get the panel hot enough to tin it, and on modern cars with high strength steel you just can't do that without ruining the panel. Second, the health risk is real. We had a guy in my shop who did lead work in the 70s and he died of lung cancer at 55, and his doctor said it was from breathing that stuff for years. You can't beat modern polyester filler for speed and cost. A good body man can skim a panel with filler, block it flat, and have it painted in a day. Lead takes twice as long and you're breathing toxic fumes the whole time. And let's be honest, filler only fails when guys pile it on a quarter inch thick instead of using it right. I've got cars in my shop from 2010 with filler work that looks perfect today. What makes you think the old way is better when the new way is faster, safer, and just as good if done right?