The good news is that the thickness of metal you'll be using is easily formed with handtools and other commonly available stuff. You can probably scrounge a lot of it. A couple of smallish hammers(in good condition), marker pen and a steel rule, a chunk of metal(dolly is the correct term, and is a good idea to buy one), some snips, some clamps(cheap G clamps from the bargain tool stands in the market) and two lengths of 2" angle iron about a foot long is enough to start with.
Starting with floors and other panels that aren't in sight is a good idea.
Going back to your pic, you would make the floor panel by clamping the metal between your angle iron, and gently tapping it over a few inches at a time. Work your way along the edge 2 or 3 times, and you'll have a nice tight 90degree flange. You could make the sill in a similar way, but could put the curve in by wrapping it around something of roughly the right diameter - a length of pipe, full coke bottle, lamp post whatever you find. Always make a perfectly fitting template from light cardboard. Always. It's a real timesaver, let alone reducing your scrap rate.
Once you've made a few panels, it gets much easier. You'll find yourself looking at things and thinking I could use that to form a thingy. Beads in floors can be done with a ball pein hammer and the jaws of a vice. Or you screw clamp a length of hardboard to some MDF, and chase the metal along it with a blunt cold chisel for a much neater result.
Don't worry about gas welding or heat for this sort of job, it isn't necessary. Mig welding is easily enough, but you will also need an angle grinder both to remove the old panels and to ensure that the metal is clean enough to weld to.
Dave Gardiners DVD from metalshapingzone.com is highly recommended, as it shows how to do both simple and complicated stuff without the expensive tools. English wheels are often mentioned, but unless you're making lots of highly curved panels they aren't necessary, and even then make the job easier. About the only 'big' tool that is worth buying as soon as you can is a shrinker/stretcher for curved flanges.
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Topic: Welding.... how on Earth do you shape chassis metal? (Read 3640 times)