Some guy in a brand new F-150 was complaining to his buddy that body shops are just price gouging now, while I was literally fixing a dent on his tailgate for a flat $400. I mean, he didn't even ask why it costs that much or how much materials are. Has anyone else had to deal with customers who think we're just ripping them off without knowing the actual work?
I picked up one of those $90 stud welders online thinking it'd save me time on this rusty 2002 F-150 quarter panel I'm fixing up in my garage in Toledo. The first three welds just popped right off and took a chunk of paint with them, leaving the actual dent untouched. Has anyone else had luck with the cheaper kits or do I really need to drop $300 on a better one?
Guy in Phoenix last year told me to drill a tiny hole and use a slide hammer from inside the panel, then weld it shut. Has anyone else tried this method on thinner sheet metal?
Saw a guy at the shop yesterday trying to build up a quarter panel gap with filler instead of just adjusting the striker or the hinges. I get that it's faster but that stuff cracks out in a year tops. Had a customer come back with a car I fixed 3 years ago and the filler I used on a tiny dent is still solid. How do you guys talk customers into waiting for proper metal work?
He said spray it on a rag and rub the chip area before touching up and I laughed. Tried it on a 2017 Civic last week and that stuff actually softened the edges so the touch-up blended way better than normal. Anybody else got a weird tip from an older guy that actually worked?
Bought a no-name HVLP gun for a quick fender job and the first pass left more orange peel than a citrus factory. Anyone else just stick with name brands after getting burned on bargain tools?
Had to spend another Saturday afternoon taking the whole thing apart with a toothbrush and thinner to get it working again, so has anyone else had better luck with a different brand or am I just doing something wrong?
I was at a shop in Portland doing a 68 Mustang restoration and the owner swore by waterborne. I figured it would be a pain with curing times and coverage. But after seeing how much LESS overspray there was and how it laid down on the metallic flake, I'm FULLY converted now. Has anyone else had a similar experience switching from solvent?
Got a cloudy finish on a red 2018 F-150 hood last Tuesday. Spent 4 hours sanding and repolishing. Finally went to the booth manual and saw the filter replacement sticker was from last March. I been running that thing since August. Never thought about it before. How often do you guys swap yours out?
I was watching some old YouTube video from a guy in Ohio who does restorations, and he mentioned using a slower reducer to give the metallic particles more time to lay flat. Tried it last week on a silver Ford F-150 door I was repairing, and the blend line practically disappeared compared to my usual method. Anyone else have a go-to tip for making metallics blend smoother without having to repaint the whole panel?
I spent 5 years using a cheap HVLP gun from Harbor Freight for everything. Thought I was getting good results until last month when I borrowed a friend's Sata at his shop and sprayed a fender. The difference in finish was huge. But now I wonder, is the gun really the issue or is it just practice and prep? Has anyone else found their old gear was fine once they learned better technique?
I was at a shop in Phoenix last week helping a buddy paint a '72 Charger. He spent $400 on a full waterborne system and I told him to save his money. We did a fender with his waterborne and another with my solvent base. The solvent laid out flat with no tiger stripes on the first coat. His waterborne needed three coats and still looked splotchy. I get that waterborne is better for the environment and the health stuff matters, but for a classic car restoration it just doesn't beat solvent. Is everyone else seeing the same thing, or am I missing a trick with the waterborne?
I was always using my old Porter Cable random orbital for blocking down primer on collision jobs. Last week I borrowed a buddy's Dynabrade DA sander on a 94 Mustang I was painting... night and day difference. The DA just cuts so much flatter with way less swirl marks. Has anyone else made the switch and found it worth the extra upfront cost?
Seems like every third person in line had a box of aluminum-specific welding rods and panel patches, wonder if steel work is starting to fade out or if it's just a regional thing.
They said 'you just want my money' after I quoted $1,200 for the repair but the rust had eaten through to the headliner rail, has anyone else had a customer make you second-guess your own judgment like that?
I spent years using a cheap Harbor Freight DA sander for my paint jobs. Last month I finally upgraded to a nicer brand, a Rupes LHR15. The difference in cut and finish is night and day, I finished a full truck hood in half the time with way less swirl marks. Has anyone else noticed a big jump when they switched to a higher end sander?
Was picking up some filler at the NAPA on Broadway near my shop when this guy walks in and starts telling the counter guy he pulled a dent out of his door with a toilet plunger. I thought he was joking but he was dead serious, said it worked perfect and saved him $300. I wanted to say something but I just let it go, maybe he got lucky on some old soft metal. But it got me thinking about all the crazy stuff customers try before coming to us. Had a lady last month who tried to fix a cracked bumper cover with super glue and duct tape, made it way worse. Has anyone else heard some wild repair methods from the general public?
I was reading a thread on a paint forum and someone posted data from a thickness gauge they used on a 2019 Honda Accord. The hood read 120 microns but the driver door was only 85 microns. That's a huge difference from the factory. Has anyone else checked panel thickness on newer cars and seen this kind of variation?
I picked up one of those cheap spot welders off Amazon for about $80 thinking it would save me on small patch panels. First job with it on a Ford fender, the tips started glowing red and the plastic housing started smoking. Had to stop mid weld and let it cool down for 20 minutes. Anyone else had bad luck with budget welders for thin gauge stuff?
Was laying down a final coat of clear on a 2018 Outback bumper when the compressor just seized up. Sounded like rocks in a blender for about 2 seconds then nothing. Had to borrow my neighbor's backup unit to finish the job and lost 3 hours. Anyone else had a compressor fail at the worst possible moment?
Had a nasty hail dent on a hood in Kalamazoo last Tuesday and none of my slide hammers would grab it right. I saw a guy on YouTube use dry ice to pop it from the back and figured it was snake oil but it worked in under 5 minutes. Has anyone else had luck with the ice method or am I just getting lucky with shallow dents?
I was watching this old timer at a shop in Denver last month work on a Honda Accord with a nasty crease on the rear door. He spent like 20 minutes just tapping it out with a body hammer and a dolly from the back side, barely touched any filler. It got me thinking about how I usually just glob on bondo for small dents like that. So I tried his method on a Chevy Malibu this week, took my time with the hammer and heat gun, and got it 90% smooth with just a thin skim coat. Saved me about an hour of sanding and probably $20 in filler. Has anyone else gone back to more hammer work instead of piling on the bondo?
Had a guy bring in his 2015 F-150 with a dented driver side rear door. I figured no big deal, but that aluminum skin fought me every step. Took three tries with the stud welder to get a clean pull without burning through the metal. Anybody got a go-to technique for aluminum body panels that doesn't involve replacing the whole door?
Everyone says to grab the DA and feather the edges when you're doing a small dent repair. But I started noticing I was burning through too much filler on the smaller stuff. About 4 months ago I tried using a long board hand file for a door ding on a 2015 Civic in my shop here in St. Louis. The control was way better and I actually saved myself a round of glazing putty because I didn't overshoot the metal. Now I only use the DA for big panels or heavy rust areas. Has anyone else ditched power tools for hand finishing on quarter panels or is that just me being old school?