The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop WOW, THOSE AD GRILLS ARE HARD TO STRAIGHTEN!!

Just had to say it....(SCREAM IT!)
Thank you.

Yeah,but they sure seem to get bent easy!!

I hope you didn't straighten the grillbars out too much. Ya know, they do have some bends and curves in 'em that are supposed to be there.

If it is not bent up real bad you can try this trick I use for stainless steel trim. Take a plastic bowl and cut it so you can set the grill bar it to it fill it wth cheap bondo and set a undamaged section of the trim into it with a very light coat of grease on it. when it hardens you can beat the dent out into the mold. You might need to reshape a hammer or two for this. The hammer shape should have a slightly smaller radius than the part or to say it another way the hammer should have very close to the same shape as what you want to form. You might be surprised how hard you can hit into this. Be advised bondo in a bowl WILL GET HOT !! Good luck Ray

Nice idea, modelman.

I would except Mental Man but Modelman? I like sheet metal and hammers BIG hammers I shape with a BIG motor driver Powerhammer. I own the Yomax Powerhammer company. Air hammers like the old body shop hammers look kinda like a C frame. I collect the old body shop type air hammers and pay good if you know of any. I have perhaps a 100 autobody hammers. But I no longer build models. I do however collect old toys (love tonkas) and restore some.

Another trick I have used is to take a piece of round bar stock (1/2" or 3/4") and grind a radius in the end that is slightly smaller than the radius of the curves in the grill. Clamp the bar in the vise and rest the grill bar on the radiused end of the bar and hammer it on the outside. Be careful not to beat on it too much or the metal stretches. This even works on things like dust caps for the front spindles or anything with a tight radius bend.

WOW...never expected to get any advice on 'how-to'...Might try these tips when I gather up my lost patience.
Thank you.

I haven't done this but have heard of a few that have. Basically you make some small dies out of hardwood like oak. And using the dies reshape or press out the deformation. I believe this is more or less for straigh sections. Anyone else ever heard of this?

Brian I think this is only a fair way to get out a dent. You also need to consider strech and spring back. You can make a edge on a part that is curved by sandwitching it and hammering the flange onto the dies. Hard wood will make a few parts. I use steel if it is a part I will make fairly often.

Oops sorry, Metal Man. There is a modelman floating around, didn't mean to confuse.