Yes, they have been around. I couldn't beleve all the rust under the bondo on the one I have bead blasted. Metal prep should help. It's going to take some metal work to fix them up so as not to have to use as much filler as was on them. There were 3 coats of paint, one black and two green.
As for fit, it's going to take some welding. I'll post some pics when I get to that point. It should give me the look I'm after.
I was going to make a pair also, but when these came up for sale for what the metal would have cost, I went for it. This way I don't feel bad about having to cut them up. If I would have bough a new pair, I'm sure they wouldn't have fit like I wanted them too and would had to modify them.