Frame Dent
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 22
Likes: 0
From: oahu Hawaii
Frame Dent
The frame on my '63 has some dents in it just aft of the #1 body
mount. Dents are on bottom side and out side of the frame rail. A freind
of mine suggested I knock and or pull those dents out with various tools
and using heat from a welding torch. I am wondering if this is a good
Idea, especially using the heat to soften the steel. Any thoughts about this?
Thanks, Steve
mount. Dents are on bottom side and out side of the frame rail. A freind
of mine suggested I knock and or pull those dents out with various tools
and using heat from a welding torch. I am wondering if this is a good
Idea, especially using the heat to soften the steel. Any thoughts about this?
Thanks, Steve
Burning Brakes
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 800
Likes: 3
From: Idaho
63C
I had some dents in my frame and repaired them using blocks with eye bolts. I tacked the blocks to the dent and used a come-a-long to pull the dent. I got mine pretty close, ground down the high spots and used a little extra weld and bondo to make it look like new.
My frame was bare and I used a buddys frame machine, but I would have tried doing this at home anyway. You do have to have something solid as an anchor point and you need to support the frame on both sides of the dent.
If you don't feel comfortable trying this, any good collision shop can do it for you.
Good luck
Russ
I had some dents in my frame and repaired them using blocks with eye bolts. I tacked the blocks to the dent and used a come-a-long to pull the dent. I got mine pretty close, ground down the high spots and used a little extra weld and bondo to make it look like new.
My frame was bare and I used a buddys frame machine, but I would have tried doing this at home anyway. You do have to have something solid as an anchor point and you need to support the frame on both sides of the dent.
If you don't feel comfortable trying this, any good collision shop can do it for you.
Good luck
Russ
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,104
Likes: 12
From: Woonsocket Rhode Island
I have pulled dents both hot and cold with good results. The frame on a vette is not heat treated so there should be no problems from heating it if you need to, but....you should try Steve's technique first.
Check out some internet postings concerning the use of heat on metals before you use it. Depending on where the dents are will make a difference. The metal stretched to form the dent and needs to go somewhere, or compress, when you pull them out. Under stress, metal will seek relief and with shop tools in a slow, non abusive pressure may also allow the metal to return to its original state but heat will help.
If the dent is shallow, there should be no problems. Deeper dents and damage on a corner or edge could be a hassle. Another option I used is with very small dents. Instead of trying to knock them out, I ground the dented area to find where the dent actually started. A die grinder allowed me to form a groove around the rim then I filled the entire dent with weld. A bit of grinding brought it down to the surrounding surface then bondo hid the rest.
Practice, practice, etc. if you plan to use heat on another piece of metal and not your prize possessions. Actually heat a piece of steel about the same gauge as the frame, 12ga?, and see what it takes to melt it. Too much of a hot thing is not always good. Metal will soften at various heats and usually the redder the softer…until you melt it! Do not use any type of coolant other than an air nozzle on the metal because now you are playing with heat treating and making it harder and brittle. Also, adding carbon to the metal with improper adjustments of the flame will change things. At an extreme situation I used heat to pull a frame on a ’64 Chevelle that was pushed back nearly 2”.at the horn. Heat definitely helped. The same car less than one year in another accident bent the frame again. The frame folded like duct hose and was trash.
Good luck, Pat
Check out some internet postings concerning the use of heat on metals before you use it. Depending on where the dents are will make a difference. The metal stretched to form the dent and needs to go somewhere, or compress, when you pull them out. Under stress, metal will seek relief and with shop tools in a slow, non abusive pressure may also allow the metal to return to its original state but heat will help.
If the dent is shallow, there should be no problems. Deeper dents and damage on a corner or edge could be a hassle. Another option I used is with very small dents. Instead of trying to knock them out, I ground the dented area to find where the dent actually started. A die grinder allowed me to form a groove around the rim then I filled the entire dent with weld. A bit of grinding brought it down to the surrounding surface then bondo hid the rest.
Practice, practice, etc. if you plan to use heat on another piece of metal and not your prize possessions. Actually heat a piece of steel about the same gauge as the frame, 12ga?, and see what it takes to melt it. Too much of a hot thing is not always good. Metal will soften at various heats and usually the redder the softer…until you melt it! Do not use any type of coolant other than an air nozzle on the metal because now you are playing with heat treating and making it harder and brittle. Also, adding carbon to the metal with improper adjustments of the flame will change things. At an extreme situation I used heat to pull a frame on a ’64 Chevelle that was pushed back nearly 2”.at the horn. Heat definitely helped. The same car less than one year in another accident bent the frame again. The frame folded like duct hose and was trash.
Good luck, Pat
