i decided to do a little post on how to fix body panels and your own car by your self. i am going to just start with the basics then i hope to add some fiberglass repair, plastic repair, PDR (paintless dent repair) and some airbushing to this post. i will also add some lead work for charlie and some rust repair but i think charlie almost covered iut all in his post. if i can i will add some custom body work like molding a cowl on to a hood so everything flows smooth. you can see a little of that in my sig. here it all goes i'm sorry to have to make so many post in this thread but its the only way to show people how to do it step by step. the first thing is to get a panel simple enough i choose to do a cutlass door so i can have extras doors for my car... the cutlass dors have two hloes on each edge that need to be welded up as well as some tabs to be cut off. i am not going to be covering that because i think most people can do this themselves. as you can see in the picture the corner is bent down i start with a hammer and dolly to get it close... the next step is to get the panel down to bare metal this panel as you will see was way simpler to just take it all the way down because of all the work it needed.
What about removing swirl marks left from machine buffing? it's bc/cc. I was told I might have to wet sand with p2000. Paint looks real good but in evening lighting it looks like poop! anyone want to trade there silver T for my GN? lol JK.
i use a IR dual action sander i like it because you can also make it a orbital sander with the push of the button. this sander cut the paint off in a hurry if you just use a regular DA not in orbital mode it takes alot longer. the next step is to find all the high and lows in the panel. a high is a raised spot as a low is a diped down spot. easy way to think of it is a high is a hill an low is a valley. i mark the spots that are high with a H and the low with a L. always keep in mind if a dent looks like the size of a dime. the size you have to fix should be a quarter size.
the circles is just that area. the half circles is all the way across. the high spot are simple to fix all you have to do is tap on them with a body hammer so they are level with the panel. the lows are a little more work...
the next step is the low spots. i use a unispot puller to fix lows. i usally start with one or two studs then add more as i go. other people just start with a bunch. there really is no right way it just how you want to do it. the idea is to pull the metal up to the right level with out creating a high spot. just to let you know you will have to use filler. if some one tells you they can fix a low with out filler they are lieing. even PDR guy cant get them a hundred percent flat. after you get the metal up to some what flat then filler comes. always keep in mind what i said. a dent the size of a dime has to be fixed the size of a quarter. work with a big area. if you have a lot of dents close together group them together and put filler across all of them. trust me it is way simpler to fix a big area rather than a little area.
the idea here is to keep the air file flat. i added a picture of a air file so you know. you want to use the air file just to rough the area in. then when its close, you want to change over to a long block or a block and do it by hand. if it is your first time the best thing to do is get guide coat.. with guide coat you would spray a paint spot like pattern over the filler then when you sand with a block anywhere you see black spots thats a low. if you see bare metal pop through then its a high. this is what frightens people with body work. all i can say is practice make you better. after a while working you will pick it up. just dont get all nuts if you cant get it in a few hours it may take time. thats why its called body work..
once you have the filler flat or you think it is all flat. the next step is to put some self etching primer on the bare metal left. to know if the panel is flat or the filler is flat a hand rubbing across the panel should tell you. i suggest closing your eyes and running you hand over the filler very slow this should tell you. because this is just a spare panel i am using duplicolor self etching primer.. after the self etching primer dries the next step is to put regular primer over the panel. this will show you everything that is wrong right away. as you can see i put a light coat of primer over the panel so you can see exactly where i have the filler. another coat will be put on as well as sealer. i just want everyone to see how big of an area i fixed.. i didnt take the lock and the handle out, because i would not be using them. In most peoples case the best thing to do is to remove them... this will evently be painted but i'm hopeing i can find some one to film the painting so i can show people how to paint.
just to let everyone know i have spent over twelve houres on that panel and i still have not finished it. as you can see by the top edge of the door. this is a very labor intensive skill. it takes alot of time but it saves you big $$ if you commit the time you will evently finish. if anyone has any questions PM me or post it in the thread(i may have left something out that need more detail on accident).. if anyone want to add there bodyworking stuff to this thread it is ok. i think jase (flintbuickforlife) might add some things too. BTW i am looking for broken or cracked up header panels that can be donated. so i can use it to show people how to fix fiberglass. as long as you have all the parts that broke off i can fix it. even if its split in half.i am also looking for donated broken, cracked, or split front or back bumper fillers, so i can show you guys how to fix plastic parts. the same as above as long as most of the broken parts are there i can fix it. i live in IL if that helps everyone. i am going to add more over time but this is what i have so far. as i work on more and more cars this thread should grow.
Thank you Matt and Jase. I'm a newby when it comes to body work and need all the help and advise I can get. This helps a great deal and I'm sure some the other guys and gals will need the help as well.
i decided to have some fun today. so what i did was i airbrushed some bullet holes in a propane tank that i need to turn in for a new one. here is how to do it first thing is you need to make or buy a stencil i just printed mine and cut it out. Im cheap you know. the next step is you need to get silver, black, and white paint. what you do is lay the first bang stencil on the gas tank or what ever you want then spray the silver. mark the center of that spot with a marker once it dries. it will help out later on.
the next step is to shade the bottom of that mark with white. like in the picture. then shade the top of the mark with black. the step after this is to lay down the dot on your stencil and put it right on top of the mark and paint it in. soon it looks like a bullet hole. the last step is to shade the top with black so it doesnt look like a stencil any more. its that simple people i hope to add more airbrush soon.
thanks i have painted it on car before but no one i didnt like. jase was the pearl cheaper at your place?
lets add some more wild and easy stuff to do. carbon fiber is a cool thing but cost alot so lets fake it. :tongue:all you need is black and sliver. you also need some shelfing liner too. first thing is to make the panel black. then when its dry lay down the shelfing liner and spray silver through it. i did this with spray paint to show you guys but it looks better with the real spray gun. its that simple..
one more picture. this usally turns out better, but i guess spray paint doesnt do the job right. i will have to do it again i guess.
