Repairing garden tractor hood

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PostPosted: Sat Nov 04, 2017 4:25 am
Wasn't sure if this is the correct forum or should it have been the Body and Paint forum?

I have a 1970 ish Cub Cadet garden tractor that I am trying to repair/ improve its appearance, the hood edge front to back has been pulled out, I guess from years of opening. It also has various dents/damage that I would like to try and hammer out, I am a complete beginner at this, but can anyone offer any advice or links on how to reshape the hood edge back to straight. Any pointers on lessening dents is appreciated, are dents hammered out starting around the edge working in a circular motion inwards? Or the other way around? Just hoping to lessen any damage before using bodyfiller.

I am not sure the thickness of the steel, but it is thicker than auto body panels
WP_20171104_09_21_50_Pro.jpg

WP_20171104_09_22_35_Pro.jpg


The photos show the hood edge/side that has been pulled out, originally it was completely straight.

Many thanks.



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PostPosted: Sun Nov 05, 2017 8:29 pm
Did you check out this thread? viewtopic.php?f=6&t=18781
Dennis B.
A&P Mechanic, FCC General radio Telephone Operator
Line Maintenance A&P Mechanic and MOC Tech specialist.



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PostPosted: Mon Nov 06, 2017 1:15 am
Yes, I read that through, which is why I hoped I had understood correctly about the last in, first out for the dents, so I figured the last part of a dent to be created would be the outer most part, but wanted to make sure I had understood it correctly.

I am still unsure on how to tackle the long side that is stretched outwards and now curved?

Thanks



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PostPosted: Mon Nov 06, 2017 9:29 pm
"Generally speaking" Every dent is different! BUT how to go about repairing ANY dent is the same!
You have too look at it and analyze it OR try to figure out how and in what order the metal dented or crumpled by doing so you can kinda work backwards on it (generally)
I work from the outside in on a dent BUT the outer damage is secondary to the main hit that keeps the dent locked .
Creases and folds are the hardest to unlock the dent knowing which one to work first to unlock the dent is the trick. All damaged metal panels want to go back to its original Stamped state you just have to figure out what to hit where AND when while pushing on your dolly. Its hard to explain and you can read that book "The Key to Metal bumping" a couple of times and its still not gonna make much sense till you start trying to straiten a few dents out. Don't look for instant perfection its a skill and a hard one to learn and master.


MY Tips
Get a good large faced LOW crown hammer a Toe dolly and a Heal dolly forget the other stuff for now use light blows from the hammer while pushing up/out firmly with dolly you'll be amazed how much the metal will move with very light blows.

Another tip your not gonna wanna hear but get a hood and or a fender from a Junk yard to practice on it FIRST This is a skill and like any skill it requires practice.
You need to practice to see how the metal reacts to each technique hitting on dolly and off dolly and how the metal reacts to each differently.
A guy telling you what to do and whats gonna happen and actually doing it seeing it first hand is very different!
That way you can get a good idea what to do where.

When working a large complex dents don't be surprised when the metal stops moving the metal is talking to you, its telling you that the dent is locked by another place in the panel that must be worked first before its willing to move more.

A Point that cant be stressed enough is Don't hit the panel as hard as you can Its called metal Bumping for a reason It doesn't take hard hits to get the metal to move a lot Your not Tapping either It takes many careful repetitive hits on and off dolly to work a dent.

I know I haven't helped you much in telling you how to fix your dents the point is Panel repair is a skill that must be learned by doing it.
Last edited by Doright on Tue Nov 07, 2017 6:51 am, edited 1 time in total.
Dennis B.
A&P Mechanic, FCC General radio Telephone Operator
Line Maintenance A&P Mechanic and MOC Tech specialist.



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PostPosted: Tue Nov 07, 2017 1:42 am
Thankyou for the reply, I realize what you guys make look so easy takes years of practice, I am not after perfection, at the end of the day its a garden tractor and was probably not perfect the day ot rolled off the production line. I am just after a few pointers on where to start to try and make it look presentable.

Thankyou for your help, I think I just need to watch a few more videos and have a go and see what happens.

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