I have a buncha questions, im planning to shave my door handles myself, im planning to pop-rivit sheet metal to the hole then smooth is out with bondo, is this harder then it looks? i also need to know of a way to fill in all the body panel seems to make it look like one peice. i also heard of using fiberglass instead of bondo? is this possible? and no matter what im prolly gona have to use some bondo, i know how everyone hates it but im 17 and i cant afford anything else, someone help me out plz.

 

What does the car look like? Why do you want shaved door handles? Personally I don't care for them and there are other things you can do to make the car look better that don't require Bondo.

Have you seen:
https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sho...d+door+handles
?

 

you need to weld the sheet metal on, and then sand it down.

don't use pop rivets.

and don't be afraid to use bondo, just remember less is more. use thin layers and sand to your hearts content.

as for filling in the body panels.

A. it won't look good.

B.don't do it

C. the fiberglass, or bondo will crack over time at the joints and look REALLY bad.

 

so if i gota fill in something to deep, i can just put a small layer, sand it and put another layer ect till its filled in opposed to just gloping it on and sanding it and it wont fall out? cuz i got hit right behind the dirvers door and i gota use it there and i gota make sure its good or itll fall out when i slam the door.

 

It's a good idea because using a little at a time allows it to dry and harden properly.

 

so true personally i'd go to a boneyard and pick up a new rear quater panel

 

me to, cept you gota cut it out and weld it in, im 17 and i live in an apartment complex without a garadge, just a parking spot, its gay but hey its not my fault, so thats outa the question, and i body shop wants 1,800 to fix it, and theres no way in hell im paying that much when i can do it decently with a slide hammer and some bondo, i just wanted to know if layering bondo and building it out slowly will keep it from falling out cuz its right by where the door slamms closed

 

well your best bet is do it about a half inch at a time leaving a day or so to cure

 

buy a body hammer and a dolley(about $15) and try to hammer as much of the dent out as you can. the less bondo you have to use the better.

but yes, bondo is just fine if you use it in thin layers and give it time to cure. usually about 12 hours.

you don't need a garage to work, you'll get dust from sanding the bondo everywhere, but other than that, you could do it at your apartments.

 

thx for all the help guys, but whats a dolley? i already have access to a slide hammer.

 

Dont even go there, if you dont know what a dolley is, dont even try and **** with it, its not somehting a person of your expertise can do, you dotn have the knowledge or the tools.


I work at a body shop, so i see thigs like this every day, dont do it, and if you wanna try, grab a door from the junyard and practice, soon after that you will realize that its not somehitng you can do.

 

well the way i figure it, the whole rear corner panel needs to be cut away and welded in for a professional fix, so i cant realy **** it up by trying, so why not, i just wana learn as much as i can from this place so i have a better chance, any suggestions?

 

Just try to get as much as the dent out with the slide hammer as possible....They recommend no less than a 1/4" should be applied with plastic filler a.k.a "Bondo". Granted you can get away with a little bit thicker, but I would't get carried away. What kind of slide hammer is it? If you're drilling holes and sticking the hammer end in it, you'll need to weld up the holes first....otherwise you'll always see every hole you drilled no matter how good you think your bodywork is. One of the most important things when learning bodywork is take your time. Don't get in a rush and mess things up worse....allow the proper curing time. Go out and buy you some 34-40 grit sandpaper and the proper size sanding block for your repair area. Then buy some 80gt, 180, 240, 360 ( don't have to be exact numbers ) Make sure you sand in the direction you would paint the car, don't just go all over the place. Bodywork is a skill, not everyone is cut out for it...but if you take your time, and keep practicing ( you gotta start somewhere ) I'm sure you can do it.

Good luck and be sure to post before/after pics

 

thx for all the help, the dents located alil below the rear 6x9 speaker on the outside, i was wondering if i chould use a peice of wood or somin from insdie the speaker hole the knock the dent out? that way i dont have to drill a hole.

 

why?

body work isn't rocket science. And what is so hard to use about a hammer and dolley that he could do.

you don't need to cut people down. everyone else here is trying to help convince this person that he really CAN do his own body work, its not that tough, it just takes patience.

 

i wouldn't follow that advise, give it a try its your car and like you said you have noting to loose. a dolly and body hamer is used with an inside outside technique. the doly is used between the sheet metal and the hammer so if your hammering on the outside you put the dolly on the inside of the sheet metal to help smooth things out and give you something to tap against.

if no one tries anything how do you learn? read up and go for it it will come out good. and if not try again.

Maybe charged 350 could share some of his vast body work knowledge and help us all out some with the ins and outs of dent repair...

 

ok ive read botu all this and i dunno might owrk for them im in same shape u are i did go to autobody shop school for one yr and learned fomr my dad as well.

1st off bondos fine
2nd sslidehammer n drilling holes fine 2 ive done it alot at shop and we never ever seen any holes after doin it and filling them in.
u drill it pull dent out then grind it down and fill.

always grind the area u goin to fill or scuff the **** out of it w/ 40 grit or 36 grit.

that will make bondo stick.

my 1/4 had dents i used a piece wood from inside beat em out.
gotta watch can beat out to far then only thgin u can do is beat em back in then that defeats the purpose.
because itll go back in way it was and when u beat em out again theyll do same thgin be out 2 far.

so go slow w/ wood and hammer beatin on wood to pop em out or use the best way ive found drill holes n use slide hammer i call it dent puller.

grind it down once got em pulled or sand the hell out of em w/ some ruff assed paper liek 40 and smear on bondo.

then sand it down be aware when u sand bondo w/ 40 grit itll leave alot of scratches and is alot of work to sand them out w/ finer paper i recomend a da w/ 220 paper or even some glazin putty over it .

which means bondo then sand down w/ 40 apply the glazin putty
let dry for while at least a day maybe. ill explain more in a sec.
then sand it down w/ either 220 400 or 1000 grit paper wet or dry either works fine.

i knwo ppl say glazin putty in the totthpaste style tube and orange sucks *** but ive used it works fine. its cheap and easy. they say it srinks ive never had that prob. it will dry in an hr or so depends on temp n humidity.
and can be sanded then but longer u wait on it to dry nad longer u wait on bondo to dry the better.

some of my dents i couldnt push out n i didnt use slide hammer so i filled em w/ bondo and i mean got a lil thick. i used my air file /straight line sander to work em down smooth and flat.

hard to explain how to use it.
other then this u got one u use it u watch to see good non bent metal appear all way around the spot u done that shows its flat n level not lumpy. may have low spots which need have more filler.

i knwo ppl may not like it or criticize u for it but hey i understand i use backyard cheap ways but if it works it works.

when u dont got money to do it right n perfect u gotta do it best u can .
remember logn as it suits u who cares u liek it doesnt matter if anyoen else does.

as for filling in seems i liek it! i thought of it myself n still may.
it gives cleaner look and looks clean basically i liek it.
dont use bondo on it directly! it will crack.
my rear 1/4 by bumper had some go in that crack and it cracked out.

try this....

my front bumper was busted had spilt n tear in it i pushed it otu and used seal all glue on it.

glued down were the seems was were it cracked.

then applyied bondo over it which will be fine long as it dont get bumped hard n break bondo off

try that glue seems up w/ it or some plastic glue or 2 part epoxy

then try fiberglass over it then bondo or just bondo not sure how it do but if u fill the seem itll work better if filled w/ glue.

but if it gets bumper id say it come out.

glue it then try ruff it up w/ 40 grit but dont take off the glue then fill it w/ filler bondo and or fiberglass.

it might work might not

as for pop riveting the handle i thought of same it will work but be hard to get em smoothed in so they arent seen or noticed.

also one last note the lighter color paint the better itll hide bondo spots and bad body work like scratches or dips low high spots that sorta thgin less noticable.

white is the best.

if u ahev any more ?s just email me be glad to help

im bondoin dents n rusted spots on mine right now

hope thats helps,
chris

 

forgot this fiberglass will hold longer and last longer then bondo but its harder to apply smooth and harder to sand.


my shop teacher would tell use if no water can get in behind the bondo liek say a rust holle u fill water can get in behind it but a dent it cant.

hed say if water cant get to back of it itll last forever.


were as if water can get to the backside hed say bondo last 6 months fiberglass last a year

 

As said, body work isnt rocket science, ive done my own body work on 3 cars now and im almost 17. You dont have to weld the holes shut, atleast i didnt and mine turned out fine. Also if u dont have the right tools, liek a slide hammer, u can improvise by drilling a sheet metal screw in the dent and pulling it out with pliars.

 

Damn people, im jus tryin to keep him from messin up a third gen, but you can blame me for being a little harsh, i just get really fummed when i get a car in and the person tried to do their own body work to cut down on the cost, 99% of the time i end up having to grind down their bondo and **** and have to repull the dent and fix it the way its suppose to be done, deffinatelly not with a sheet metal screw and pliers...thats for sure.

But hay go for it, what can happen, you can get charged double what it would be if you just got the car in with a fresh dent, but go for it, post sum pics and let me see what ya did...

 

tell me whats differant from using a sheet metal screw and pliars and using a slide hammer, my work came out the same both times

 

have a little faith in him.....seriously.

 

really alot of us young guys or older guys cant afford to get a million dollars or least hundreds n tools and air compressors ns tuff to do it but we want to fix our cars up.

everyone has to start somewere n u gotta project to learn new stuff cant learn and know everythgin by readin it gotta get hands on.

and practice makes perfect like they said if u dont do it right do it again if it suits u then fine.

dont be afraid to w/ practice u can do fine.


i admit tho some dumbasses lol just slap on bondo thick and leave it lumpy and ridges fomr were they smear it on esp round here just to get stickers n junk but thats just aweful.

but least he dont want run round w/ huge dents or rusty holes in his car gotta give anyone props for trying.

i wouldnt cut any man down over impravising i do it alot

yalld **** n critisize me if u knew how i made my own grill and what out of to make a tube grill that cost me nothin

and how i done my wheels to look decent n good for now.

and how im attaching my louvers to my car since they didnt set right but hey looks great and dont nobody know what went on or nothin less i tell em it all lokks great and not like duct taped together or junk.


body work aint hard n more u do easier it is

 

thx for all the help ben, im gona take befor and after pics to proove everyone wronge, its a personal challenge now =) and no im not dumb im not goin more then a half inch deep with bondo and in 1/8" layers.

 

i also know the last coat should be a skim coat extending to the surrounding sheet metal, im doin pletnly of reading and most importain asking questions, thats how iv learned all the other stuff i know, and ud be surprised.

 

there ya go gotta ask ? or wont learn nothin.

glad i can help

names chris btw lol benoit is nick name. givein to me by and old friend

alot of ppl dont know how to say that word lol if u watch wrestling yud know tho lmao thats what i say

its said like benwa

but spelled benoit lol
so im thinkin of makin mine benwa so ppl no lol i no its a lil on hard side i think its kinda odd myself anyways lol

but yea it be a goal for me to i done my car same as u doin i had rusty door bottoms and rusted rear lower 1/4s i ground em down and filled em w/ bondo worked down and then used glazin putty n primered it.

i been sayin i was goin post pics but i never have.

i need to i done have most of the body work done, i have to reprime my glazin puttty all down drivers side and my front fender.

my front fender was aweful it was dented in a cris cros x patern w/ long creased dents.

and dummy me kinda rushin to get thgins done n not usin tools i had tried pushin it out w/ board n hammer and came out 2 far.
so had push back in n that just takes ya back to step one same as ya started lol.

but in the end w/ alot of filler and my airfile somewhat lol

and hand rest of way it turned out a lil better then expected.

the fender kinda rolls in then out towarads bottom n i figured mine just end up flat since the dents n filler but time i got done by hand i had the crease back in like factory.

so i was very peased w/ it.

even if it aint great its good enough to me.

so good luck man i know u do just fine.

definately post some pics.

and keep an eye out if u interested in seein my befores n after im goin to post a lower.cardoamin site sometime

w/ just the car on it and befores n afters.

 

one more trick to pullin dents try this one some it works...

take a toilet plunger and use it to pull dents out

center it over dent push in and pull lik hell just watch when it lets go itll let go hard and make ya fall more then likely but itll work

on some

others maybe not

same junk as ding king on tv and auto parts stores sale special suction cup tool for same reason