Jeenkies! Warpage!

[astroracer]

Hey Josh,
One thing you never do on sheet metal is "pull" a weld... You have seen the results of that. The correct way to do this is to tack weld it, cooling every weld as you go. Tacking until the panel is completely welded. Some guys use air nozzles to cool the tacks, others use damp rags. I have done it both ways with mostly equal results. Skip around as you are tacking to keep from comcentrating to much heat in one area. Don't get carried away with tacking. Do ONE then cool it. It will take longer to do but it saves a ton of time trying to fix the ravaged steel when you are done.
The bulge you have created now needs to be shrunk. If you don't have a set of torches you can use a propane torch with decent results. Heat a quarter sized spot in the middle of the bulge to a dull cherry red then cool it quickly with a wet rag. You may have to do this a couple of times to shrink it back but this is the best way to do it. Cutting and welding will just make it worse.
Also, when you start grinding or dressing the welds, same thing, skip around, keep the metal as cool as possible. DON'T grind to long or to much in one area. It will stretch the metal and you will be back to shrinking again...
Mark