The ali panels on the back of my car are now rather dented following Cadwell, and will need some serious work with a hammer etc. Are there any "do"s and "don't"s to doing this that I should be aware of - eg to try and prevent the ali from ripping when I try and bend it back. Any particular tools etc of use to me?
Thanks
Dickie



[Edited on 6/6/05 by DickieB]

quote:

---

Any particular tools etc of use to me?

---

Oooh the bu88er.... I seem to remember heat and quench renders aluminium annealled. Opposite to carbon steel! Not too much heat though eh?

Are you sure it's the panels you want to be beating? The guy who did that to you nearly put me off at the Gooseneck and then Kev Lucas off at Mansfield immediately after. Grrr!

just blame me, everyone else does.

So who was guilty then? I was running at the back so well away from the action.

To anneal rub with ordinary soap, imperial leather or whatever and heat from the other side of the the panel till it turns brown. Then let it cool naturaly. Should then be soft enough to panel beat easily. Remember it will work harden again as you wack it so may need to repeat at intervals. Work slowly and try to remove the last part of the dent first. You can often work out the order it crumpled. also can often almost push some out with a dolly. Hard hits, hammer onto dolly, will stretch the ally and it won't go flat without shrinking it.

I'm not going to name names. He said that he's been doing karting for 10 years and is used to driving an inch off the guy in front (direct quote). To my mind that implies that racing is quite different, as you need to be able to look 50-100 metres ahead to avoid incidents (as well as racing closely - eg Saturday's race, the top 8 finished within 5secs of each other). It seems to me that he did not look ahead in my case since he hit me so hard. He also said that someone had hit him in the rear into me. But there was very little damage to the rear of his car and I know how hard he hit me, so the circumstances don't seem to add up.
Enough said. I will add more and include my version of the whole thing when I update my website tomorrow (Tue).
Thanks for the tips - not sure I can get it hot enough with my heat gun, but I'll try. I may have to remove the whole rear panel to straighten the corner out before then bending it around again.
Dickie

Not much bodywork on them though. Your last idea sounds best, or use the panel as a template and make another.

Looks to me as if the best corse of action would be to buy some new alloy and makea new rear pannel mate will be less work than trying to fix the old one .

best wishes
Iain

Hi Dickie

I got hit in both sides in the first heat.
I then got hit from behind driving flat out, in a straight line, down the long back straight in the final.
I then got hit twice from behind in the second final.

In these collisions I was racing for the honours of 18th position!!!

I can't be bothered to repair the car other than banging out the bent panel, every time I repair a panel it gets hit!!

I also maganed a spin in the second final and Tom Ballantyne bravely threw his car into the barrier to avoid me, damaging his hand in the process.

Mike
You had it even worse than me! There's no excuse for hitting someone in the rear on a straight! Almost took that 18th place off you as well..... Not bad from last place on lap 2.
See you at Pembrey
Dickie

see all at pembrey. Got to look after car as much as poss, since now for sale at last round.

Jamie
What are you moving onto?
Dickie

Hi Rich

testing a ginetta this friday at castle coombe. Hoping to run one next season as part of the F3/GT package, however it could be that Ginetta is dropped from package and thus wouldnt be worth while-in which case if i can afford it run as part of a two man outfit in the radical championship which is to be part of TOCA for 2006. Watching this space at the moment.

[Edited on 21/6/05 by I.S.M]