Don’t Let Dull Drill Bits Leave Your Project Less Hole Just like every other cutting tool in the shop, drill bits get dull and do not cut like they used to. The worst thing to do is go out and buy a new set because you think the ones […]
Tools & Equipment
Create Factory-Like Spot Welds with Your MIG Welder
Spot Welds with a MIG Welder? Factory Quality and Super Easy! If you’re going for that factory original look but need to replace panels with stamped new ones you’ll need to recreate the spot welds. Simple enough if you have a resistance spot welder but most guys don’t have […]
Step up your Hammer Game! Using Intermediate Body hammers and Dollies
Back when cars were made of heavy metal and had lots of beautiful curves guys took the time to repair a fender rather than just replace it. Any good metal worker will tell you that you need to match the hammer and dolly as close as possible with the shape of your panel you’re working on. When you’re working on a curvy car like something from the late 1930’s through the 1950’s you will be hard pressed to find a flat panel on the vehicle. This means that you will need to use tools to match. Back in those days the selection of specialty hammers were vast, some being specifically used for one type of car or type of repair!
How to Fit Seat Sliders to Your Hot Rod Seat
The older the car you’re working on, the harder it can be to find usable parts you need. This becomes increasingly difficult when you get into cars that were short production or year runs. The iconic 1932 Ford is the most covenanted cars to build a hot rod out of. Being that they are a one year only body style, parts get expensive quick (especially original parts!). The seat slider mechanisms for an original ’32 Ford seat are as rare as hens teeth and command a pretty penny when you do come across one complete! Recently my friend Ace asked me to help with the task of getting his reupholstered original seat to bolt into the car AND slide easily. I decided to take some photos along the way and show our low-budget (and fairly low tech) fix.
How to Tune in Your HVLP Spray Gun- With Kevin Tetz
If you have never painted with a spray gun before, or if you have only recently converted over to spraying with modern high volume low pressure equipment, there are new things to learn. Here is a little primer Kevin Tetz did recently for us explaining which knob controls what function, and how to set your gun up before painting.
How to Strip Automotive Paint- The Tools and Procedures
One of the big, time consuming jobs on any project vehicle (unless you are building one from scratch with raw sheet metal ) is stripping off years of old paint, primer and anything else on the body panels. There are as many different ways to strip paint as there are […]
How to Build Motorcycle Gas Tank Sides with Ron Covell
This year he showed how to make a motorcycle gas tank side with a voluptuous compound curved shape using some of the most basic metal shaping tools. In this demonstration he shows how to make the left side of the tank.
Beginners Metal Shaping Project- Making a panel blister.
Metal shaping is one of those things that seems like black magic to beginners. There really is a science behind the process that takes quite some time to learn and understand. The quickest and easiest way to understand how metal shaping works on the granular level is by comparing it to pizza dough. The more you stretch it out, the thinner it gets and the excess material has to go somewhere (in the pizza’s case its the rolled up crust) and the more you shrink the metal the thicker it gets and again it has to “go somewhere”. I decided to demonstrate a great beginner project for gaining experience in metal shaping by making a panel blister out of a 12″x12″x12″ piece of 5053 .035 aluminum. This process is great to help you understand the process and is pretty straight forward.
How to Build a Custom Pneumatic Workbench using Eastwood tools
If you’re a motorhead it’s in your blood to always be building, tinkering, and improving upon mechanical things. Eastwood product manager Mark R. is no different, but he likes to take things to the extreme sometimes. Recently Mark built a new garage and was building the shop with new work benches that allowed him to maximize the usable space he had in shop….