Windshield frame rust

I have a bit of rust (About 8" bad area) on the passenger side of the windshield frame near the roof line, I used the wire wheel to clean it up a bit, Here are a few photos. The rest of the frame looks fine.
I know POR-15 will stop the rust; Will using the silver (It is recommended for rusty metel repairs because it contains metal) POR-15 with some fiberglass mesh pressed into the POR over the holes be a good enough repair? Or do I have to get someone to weld in some metel. I have a Mig Welder but never did any body work before.
The Jeep is mostly used as a beach & snow storm buggy, Not a daily driver.

closeup photo

POR 15 won't really treat the rust, it encapsulates it but it can break down over time and you will have problems again. I am restoring my old XJ and have been using a rust removal gel I bought at the local O'reilly's. This stuff works great and literally dissolves the rust really fast.

If it were me I would probably weld in a new piece. Without getting too fancy, I would pick up some 18 gauge sheet metal from the local home depot, bend it to fit and use the MIG tack it in a couple of places before filling in the gaps. I would then coat the whole area (inside and out) with a metal etching primer to make sure the rust doesn't come back.

Given your intended use, you could probably get away with the rust treatment gel (try to get all of it and scrape back paint if you have to) followed by the fibreglass treatment you describe or, a good high strength body filler like 3M's High Strength Reinforced Filler (HSRF).

The thing you are going to want to protect against is flexing in that area that could break the window seal. the HSRF stuff is really strong but fibreglass could work as well.

HTH
Todd

Given that you already have the glass out and don't care too much about appearance, I'd weld it. It's more important to keep the water out than it is to look good, after all.

I say this in part because the main reason I had to retire my sweet-running but rusty 95 at only 262 thousand miles was because windshield rust on one side made it unheatable, and on the other it dripped water directly on the driver's seat every time it rained. It became uninhabitable before it became undrivable.

Would using a pop riveted in patch backed by jb weld to seal it up work? If yes would the pop rivet head height interfere with setting the windshield?
I really s&%k at welding sheetmetal!
I would also coat everything with POR 15 IN & out to prevent rust.

I wouldn't use pop rivets, but if you don't want to
weld, you can glue a patch panel on the back to
fill the hole. JB Weld is similiar to panel adhesive,
so that will work. Clean all the rust off using
a wire wheel and/or Navel Jelly first.

After you have the rust cleaned and the patch
panel glued, use All-Metal filler to restore the
contour of the window channel.

When the XJ finally is reduced to a pile of rust,
this repaired area will be on top of the pile
and still recognizable...:rof: