Body Building Technique

[7uptruckracer]

I don't have a whole lot of skill in this area. What tools are most of yall using. I see some spectacular work on some of these cars smooth lines at edges that I can't replicate with electric or hand shears. Are you using Nibblers? What are you cutting your wheel openings with? Do you roll and flare them a little or what the technique these days. I can't afford to put 2k in a body like some of these guys. What tools of the trade seem to be the most used these days?

[A ron]

I was about to make the same post. I'm new to the late model world, and am getting ready to replace the body on the one I bought.

[RW57]

If you do not have a brake you are fighting a losing battle I have a brake and still buy my sides .There is a local shop that will do sides for 185.00 that is laser cut w wheel openings cut and body broke. The metal alone cost me 65.00 a sheet so that's a 130.00 right there I will gladly pay 55.00 to not cut and bend them . A lot of times local racers will do bodies for race money ask around maybe they will let you help to learn about what is involved then you can decide if it's worth the expense for all the stuff you need to do them

[hucktyson]

All straight lines are double folded on a brake , curves are cut with red aviation snips and double folded with a pair of electrical " linesman " pliers and finished with a body hammer on a piece of Ipe wood or smooth composite decking. There is no magic just patience and being accurate. I have hem rollers for my miter brothers power roller an honestly I prefer to just do it by hand.

[Punisher88]

I use a set of making electric shears, some 14 inch Malco hand shears that you can find at most any Johnstone hvac supply store, Malco brand are the only brand of those I use, also have a set of red handle Matco tin snips I use for the small tight corners, a ten foot by 4 foot table to use to cut the sheet metal on, I have a 6 foot boyd built break but really need a 6 1/2 foot to do the door bottoms, also a Irvan smith electric bead roller with step rolder dies and dies to hem the wheel wells or any other edges, am Irvan smith brand shrunken and stretcher, and I also just bought a roper Whitney lever action hole punch to do the spring steel more easily than drilling it, but all star performance sells a more economical punch that works ok for someone not doing bodies for a side job or alot of other people. You can get away without the bend roller amd shrink and stretchers easily it just give everything a cleaner more professional finish. And if you use aluminum strapping and not spring steel you won't need a spring steel punch.

[Punisher88]

Makita electric shears* and I don't know where you are located but I am from Phenix City, AL and don't mind letting anyone come help on their car and learn a few things and the tools required. I normally drop the price of the labor by a good bit for someone that helps amd keeps me from having to get in all the awkward places to rivet and drill the holes for the decking lol. Below is a car I finished last week.

[7uptruckracer]

I would be in Virginia. Just had some friends go out to the Wild West Shootout. I appreciate the offer! What do you use the shrinker stretcher on like rolling fender tops? So most any edge you don't break and crimp over like wheel wells or like say interior edge you hem over on the roller so you get a clean edge that the snips won't make? I have a old military 12ft break, some old electric shears but thats about it

[Punisher88]

Yes the is exactly it. I don't like usin the crimper that sort of crinkle the metal to shrink it because they weaken it so bad. The only edges I don't hem are the window opening because the radius of the corners are too tight. I just file them down really well.

[Bcollins82]

On fender tops you can just use a set of hand crimpers from the hardware store. It does weaken up the area, but once you put the gusset on the inner lip they are fine. And for things like wheelwells and lips on the interior you just do like hucktyson said, start by using lineman pliers and bend the edge up (about 3/8") then repeat about 3 times bending the edge up at more of an angle every time until you are close to 90*, then use a body hammer and finish hemming it over flat. No roller needed. I don't leave any single edges anywhere on the car, everything is doubled over. And when you do a 90* bend, like on decking where it butts together, instead of bending just a 90 over that is 1" tall, I will hem over 1.5" then bend my 1" 90 down so you are doubled up, plus a 1/2" "L" at the top. It adds a ton of strength. I've built tons of bodies with a set of good snips, electric shears, a brake, lineman pliers, hand crimpers, and a hammer laid out on a piece of plywood. Kite string does wonders for helping you lay out decking too. You've already got the expensive tools you'll need, now it's time to get to work. Lol

[7uptruckracer]

So yall don't get marks doing it without a roller? Thanks for the info and ideas I might already have all the tools we will see.

[Punisher88]

I've done it with pliers before but I always seem to get small marks and it's just faster wit a roller once you get the hang of it.

[jrkracing54]

Yep it's just about experience and trial and error. If you have old body panels to copy it helps a lot of course. a good break is worth it's weight in gold. John 1*

[robbie35]

For the fender well lips I welded a stop half way down the jaw of vise grips and ground the teeth off. This gives you the same distance every time. And like everyone said practice makes it easier. we have 4 to practice on now. It can be real fun.

[Bcollins82]

So yall don't get marks doing it without a roller? Thanks for the info and ideas I might already have all the tools we will see.

It's pretty smooth if you take your time and bend it a little at a time. If you get in a rush it can look a little uneven along the edge, but I've never had issues with it looking dented or wavy. Obviously a roller will be smoother, but not everyone wants to make that investment. Especially if you only do one or 2 a year.

[Kwoods25]

I just Started building my bodies last year, the first one was pretty good but i wasn't happy with it. I'm on my 4th one now got the hang of it pretty good. I do have a home made break to do tops of doors and quarters, but other than that i do all mine by hand. I double all my edges and around wheels, i used my buddies 4ft brake for my fenders. also made my pliers to roll fenders, in the process of getting shrinker/stretcher. I just finished the body on my car, heres a few pics of it.where in VA are you located, I'm in NC close to VA line?*edit* you can see my home made brake in the back ground of the 3rd pic

[RW57]

I have had good luck w harbor freight electric shears had them for 4 years used and abused them if they quit tomorrow I have got my money out of them you can catch them on sale for under 50 bucks. Since you have a brake you are good to go it is really a big advantage if you have old panels to go by. If you lay it out right you can get 1 side per sheet hood and filler will take 1 sheet fender tops sail panels roof post will require 1 more . If you are gonna do your own spoiler you might can get them out of scraps 5 sheets total with no major foul ups I ain't that good though one thing I always screw up is if I use color on white I always make something with the color the wrong way my advice pay the little extra and get color on color that makes it dummy proof for people like me.

[Kwoods25]

even if it is color/color you can still screw up, was making a LR quarter a couple weeks ago turned into a RR real fast lol. i started writing front or back to keep me in check. you can deff. mess up any min. if your not paying attention. also harbor freight shears do work great. got mine on clearance $30

[zeroracing]

Tip I have found is on cut lines I need straight use a scribe to mark the cut line. You only cut as accurate as your line. Since I started doing the scribe over the marker on cut lines I have noticed much straighter cuts. Make dang sure your line is correct though once she is marked she is marked.

[tin man]

I use a pair of Bluepoint 9a snips. Snap on duckbill pliers to do the hems on the wheelwells and a homemade shrinker made from a pair of visegrips and some dowl rod.

[cumminsman08]

Alot of great ideas listed, I'll just add to it, once you get yourself a good body that fits how you like it take the extra time and make some templates..local supplier gave me a few sheets of aluminum that got dinged up which made great material for my templates. You might have a little extra time in making them but will save you time,money,and aluminum later on down the road..

[7uptruckracer]

Last question how are they cutting such perfect sail panel openings. some of these new ones are almost all the way open I don't see any hems, and such perfect radius's. Are they using a hole saw to start or nibblers? Are they still hemming them and I just missed it?

[RW57]

Use a hole saw on the corners then cut to corners

[Kwoods25]

They ones you see on the big teams are waterjetted. I got a set they are awesome. They are a 2 piece deal. Were the window it self is like.080 and then a thicker piece of metal rivets to the back for strength. Very nice work

[dirty white boy]

Kwoods25 give me the K-fork special price on a set of fenders and a hood,..dont matter on color!

[Kwoods25]

I probably got enough red to do it. I have been trying to except your request all day but it won't let me. You got you a crate car now?

[TLM4t4]

Simplest thing to use on your wheel openings is get you a piece of ½" or ⅝" square stock, use a saw and cut into it a ½". Once you do that, grind a radius on either side if it. That way when you start working the material over it still has a nice crisp edge as breaking it and once you get it over so far the radius will roll with the material. Just be sure you do a little at a time because if not you wish risk tearing or breaking your hymn which will weaken it and it will have a jagged look. I do bodies for lots of people and found this the best way, it takes two people to bead roll the hymn for me.

[dirty white boy]

got bout half of one...nuttun fancy tho!

[Punisher88]

It is a pain to do the first pass on the bead roller for a door but I figured out if you start at the back of the door where the top of the wheel well is and finish at the bottom it is alot easier to do.

[keeks]

TLM, are you trying to duplicate that piece Allstar sells?

[A ron]

I have another newbie question (not meaning to hijack but seems like a good thread to ask): when you guys are mounting the sides, what is the best way of attaching the sides to the deck? I've seen rivets and what looked like bolts and special washers. If you guys use rivets do you have a technique for putting back up washers on? The sides on the car I bought were riveted to the sides instead of having the lip that sits on top of the deck, so I'm building it blind. I'm guessing they didn't have a brake.

[Punisher88]

I bolt the right side and rivet the left side. I take the right side off during cleaning and the bolts I use come from fastenal. The ones around here normally keep a few boxes for us racers. They are 1/4 20 bolts with a washer buit on. Then the nuts have a flange built onto them with the side that contacts the sheet metal between it and the bolt having serrated grooves around it to keep the nut from loosening. With thone style nuts and bolts you don't need a wrench on the back to take the bolt off. Just hold the nut with your hand and use an impact to run the bolt out. And also I use the all star multi grip rivets on the left side and use alot of rivets so I don't really need washers.

[rakracing]

if your racing on the woo tour rivet them on left and bolt the right ,if racing on small tracks local we always dzused the doors and quarters on for removal and straightening, i've even bolted the body with the 1/4 fender bolts and nutserts. if riveting use the exploder rivets there worth the money

[zeroracing]

I use a harbor freight threaded insert tool and inserts from Grainger, 1/4"-20 to hold the right side on. Clean, easy and cheap.

[A ron]

Has anyone tried the prefab side panels from Circle Track Supply? For 419.99 you get both doors, both quarters, and a full rocker panel kit. With sheet metal being $65 a sheet your at 260 then another 120 for rocker panels and you get em cut out for $40. Only thing I didn't see was what shipping would cost.

[phenom08]

We get a door , quarter , fender side and fender top out of each sheet. So your only at $130 for the sides

[17m fan]

Built several complete bodies with a Boyd 7' brake, harbor freight electric shears & bead roller with a tipping die for rolling inside fenders and leading edge of the filler panel, Harbor freight snips, round file, flat body hammer, tape measure, straight edge and cheapo dollar store markers (they erase easily when you have to mark on the non-plastic side.
One thing I do is if you have the car there, put the used panel on the car (decking especially) hammer flat any cuts that are made around things and see how it fits. This is your guide so you want something good to start from. If you don't like how it looks, now is the time to change it. Look around the bars for even gaps.. If they are too large or cut poorly, cut thin cardboard to shape around the bar and tape it on... if its too tight, draw around the bar and trim it out. If a deck piece is a little to short or not square (front to back) write the length needed on the panel at the ends and add that to your new flat piece as you are tracing your pattern out.
Always be sure you are looking at the backside of your pattern piece when you are tracing it out or you will end up with an opposite panel.
Mentioned above was a double bend with "L" shape..this is a good thing for decking and interior pieces because, it ads a lot of strength.
For the roll on the fenders, I've used stove pipe crimps but, if you have an old pair of vice grips, weld 2 pieces of 1/8' roll steel to both sides of the bottom jaw and one in the center on the top. Will fold doubled fender edges really easily. Once you make your hood, an acetylene tank works real nice in putting a roll in the hood and it wont try and buckle up on the tops of your fenders when its pinned down.
Cant stress enough... do not leave any sharp edges any where! Don't take but a second to trim off an corner and use the hammer to tap it round.
Just go slow and use patience. Keep checking your fit. You have to think about what your doing sometimes because if you bend it the wrong direction, your door will end up being a spoiler side or a sail panel. Because 9 times out of 10, when you try and bend it back it will break.

[Lizardracing]

Maybe not everyone has the same problem but when I make parts new and shiny and perfect it seems to attract other cars wheels and bumpers like a moth to a flame so spending mega amounts of time detailing nets 0 reward when it gets knocked off the first turn of the 1 lap of the first race anyway. I like nice looking bodies like any one else but all I'm saying is too there isn't any sense seeking perfection in a contact sport.

[Racer96m]

One tool I use alot is an English Wheel. I have a cheep Harbor Freight one. Now I'm not trying to make motorcycle gas tanks with it, lol. I just use it for two things. First its great for a super flat hem. If your working your openings by hand to hem them, all you have to do is get the hem slightly past 90 deg then roll that edge through the English wheel, with the flat rollers and it finishes the hem nice and tight. The second reason I use it is to flatten crunched up panels. Get the big dents out of your door, then roll it through the flat wheels and you can make the door look almost new in seconds.

Dave

[17m fan]

Make them look sharp, take lots of pictures then go ahead and kick a door and both quarters in and get it over with.