Doing some body work

[RAMnCali]

So when my truck was just a year old, my wife drove it for a few weeks while I was in SoCal working for CDF, and this happened:




You can see the dented front quarter, headlight scratches and bumper cover scratches and gouges. I followed the bumper cover how-to on the forum and now it looks like this:





After I get back from vacation this next week, I'm painting the bumper flat black and painting the grill shell to match after I peel off the Plasti-Dip.
Then on to the fender and first try at hammer and dolly work. Any advice would be great, and of course more pics to come......

 

[WhiteExpress]

Start from the outside edge of the dent and work in.
It's tempting to try and 'pop' it, but DON'T!

Small well planned strikes. Don't try to fix it with as few blows as possible.
It's a slow process to work the metal back to it's proper shape.

This is what I've gathered from hanging around my friends body shop.

 

[mrfyram1500]

What happens if you pop the dent out?

 

[SmokedRam]

You could try the old heat gun and compressed air trick....heat it up with the heat gun, then spray the dent with cold compressed air...the metal will contract and expand, pushing out the dent.

 

[ercmesser]

I've done the torch and cold wet rag but you will need to repaint. If you do use the hammer and dolly make sure the paint is an little warm or you will crack it and it will start peeling. Do it in small steps. start on the outside and work in small movements to the inside.

 

[RAMnCali]

Cool, thanks for the tips. The hot/cold method is intriguing, like the trick for seating a tire. With the 2 methods discussed, which makes for easier finishing work and use of body filler? I don't want a huge bondo crap job, but I'm thinking it will be easier if I'm left with low spots on the metal rather than trying to shrink to the proper shape because my metal working experience is Welding 101 10 years ago. Also wondering what to do with the paint- my plan was to get a re-spray of the single panel after doing the rough body work so should I just sand/grind to bare metal before I start playing?

 

[SmokedRam]

Have you considered getting a quote for paintless dent repair?

 

[jbmobbs]

no offense but this is why women DO NOT drive my dodge lmao!

 

[ercmesser]

Hold on a second. You are going get it respray? If so don't waste you time repairing the fender go to LMC trucks, junk yard, or even craigslist and get one cheap, you dont know you mite even find the right color and call it a day. Saving you time and money. New ones at LMC are 130+-. One other way you can do it, deflate a football and stick it between the fender and the fender brace then inflate it slowly. It will work the dent out with out pushing it out to far.

 

[SmokedRam]

Shoot, IMO it's an excellent candidate for PDR...I'd say you can have that dent pulled for less than $300...

 

[RAMnCali]

I've been thinking about this for awhile and have thought about paintless and the LMC fender. The paint is already cracking below the fender lip and has some deep scratches that didn't show up in the picture, so I think it needs paint repair to prevent rust from forming. I think mainly though I'd like to try my hand at some body work for experience, knowing it's relatively inexpensive to get a replacement after I screw it up beyond repair!

 

[RAMnCali]

no offense but this is why women DO NOT drive my dodge lmao!

I'm sorry, do I know you? I do take offense to disrespectful comments that aren't helpful. I know you have a lot of life experience at 19, but wait a few years and then think about that again. lmao

 

[SmokedRam]

I've been thinking about this for awhile and have thought about paintless and the LMC fender. The paint is already cracking below the fender lip and has some deep scratches that didn't show up in the picture, so I think it needs paint repair to prevent rust from forming. I think mainly though I'd like to try my hand at some body work for experience, knowing it's relatively inexpensive to get a replacement after I screw it up beyond repair!

Ahhh, the silver is good at hiding things like that in pics. That being said, I think you're on the right track then. Keep us informed of how it all works out...some progress pics would be cool too!