dave i would repair it dont patch. take your time pound and then dolly it out. 455bird, replacing a rear tail is not hard just a lot of spot welds and finding them is a pain. i would go slowly cutting it out in small parts grinding and drilling the welds. once its gone, its easy to replace it with a new one. you can do it yourself and save $$$$$. but its your coin and confidence. you'll have to make the choice. good luck mark