Wheel well removal

Wondering if anyone has done a removal on a wheel well for 1951 Special? I am planning to do some patching on the quarters around the wheel well opening and need to hammer and dolly the welds so access to behind the panel is necessary. Are the wells welded to the quarters? Is the inner section welded to the outer section of the innner well itself? Anybody got a suggestion on how to approach this to minimize damage to the well itself and quarter? Mine are pretty crusty and I am worried of doing damage while separating them. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

It's not much, but here's some views of the body sections from the parts book. Data on early 50's bodies is hard to come by. GM published it piecemeal in Fisher Body Service News flyers issued several times a year.

Earlier Fisher body manuals from 1946-49 have many nice pictures of bodies in white which show numerous spot welds where flanges come together. Those bodies had separate removable rear fenders however. Don't know if there was any way to get a spot welder in place to weld in the wheelhouse/quarter panel construction.

Also attached is a field service bulletin on '54 Specials regarding dust leaks around the rear wheelhouse area. That document indicates some of the seams were sealed with rubber sealant at the factory.

Todd the pictures you posted are very helpful for understanding how the wells mate up inner to outer. Hope they are not tack welded as it will be harder to separate them. I am hoping they are just pressed in and sealed. May have to bite the bullet and just go for it.

I had an ugly crease on a '52 which ran from the front fender to the rear wheel opening. The inner fender needed a bunch of hammering to allow the outer fender to come out to position and take out the crease. I don't remember the two ever showing a sign of separating.

The car was solid, and had no interior. I used hammer, dolly, 3.5 lbs. hammer and a porta-power.