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Could someone kindly tell me where I'm supposed to be heating this fender up and start chiseling? I thought after taking the doors off it would be self-explanatory. I see several places that look like seams but obviously I want to make sure I'm whacking away at the right one.
I have the bottom 'lip' detached but again, not sure how I'm supposed to proceed up the side to the top.
Thanks!
Last edited by Coldburn; Jun 22, 2007 at 12:12 PM.
Reason: added new image
Forget the heat if this is the original bonding adhesive. Just use the chisel carefully. There are some areas that are tough to get at. Remove the fender skirt splash shields and take a look from the bottom.
Wooah....better be real careful before moving forward. I don't know exactly what you long term plan is, but be careful with the splash apron. Placement of the splash apron can affect hood alignment as the hood hinge is related to the outer support and that is related to the splash apron. You want to seperate the fender along the outer edge where you see bonding adhesive. Heating that adhesive softens it and makes seperation easier. Once you start it, it becomes easier as you go. If you need to seperate the splash apron it will come off the same way. You do not want to seperate the fender where I see a hole at the bottom in your picture. Look everything over carefully and only seperate areas that have been glued together. You may also want to take reference measurments for reassembly, photos will also be helpful. Act in haste and you will repent in your leisure. I assume you do not have an AIM for reference?
Here's a picture of what it looks like off...it might help.
Start by pulling the bottom of the fender and running a small chisel into the bonding adhesive. The pressure you pull with should pull the bottom loose. There's two verticle pieces on the firewall that need to be broken loose. The hard part is the upperpiece. Good luck.
Ok everyone, hows this look? I just want to make sure I'm pulling away the right stuff here!
BB72: Thanks for the pictures. I needed pics on the inside. With some sort of primer that had been sprayed, I couldn't tell where or what the adhesive looked like.
Artsvette73: I don't know if it's the original stuff or not. I'm using some putty knives but I have chisels on standby.
Red 69: I'm not planning to remove the splash shields. I just need to get to the windshield frame and firewall. ( ... and I'm removing the rest of the body entirely to get to the chassis )
Ok everyone, hows this look? I just want to make sure I'm pulling away the right stuff here!
BB72: Thanks for the pictures. I needed pics on the inside. With some sort of primer that had been sprayed, I couldn't tell where or what the adhesive looked like.
Artsvette73: I don't know if it's the original stuff or not. I'm using some putty knives but I have chisels on standby.
Red 69: I'm not planning to remove the splash shields. I just need to get to the windshield frame and firewall. ( ... and I'm removing the rest of the body entirely to get to the chassis )
You got it, just remember...you can clean it all up nicely with a heat gun when your done.
Yup....it looks like you are on track; BB72's photos tell the story. A putty knife or scraper will work, but a thin wood chizel might be better with no flex and more wedge for seperation. You might consider drilling holes that go through the fender and into the bonding strip, top and bottom. This will help realign the parts when you replace them. Just run a screw into the hole to hold the pieces while the bonding adhesive cures. The screws will need a release agent applied so they don't stick to the adhesive.
Maybe my post got misunderstood. Removing the bolted in splash shields. Not the inner fender skirt. But It looks like you are making some good progress
.Look at the last pic from BB72 The lower rear part of the fender. You see the three holes. The shield is triangular shaped steel with a rubber seal stapled to it. The shied also gets bolted to the back of the inner fender skirt. If you have the rocker moulding off you will see the three bolts then look at the rear of the fender skirt from the bottom you will see two more bolts. I will try and get a pic tommorrow. It appears in the pics the section where they bolt on to the fenderskirt is broken off.
Last edited by Artsvette73; Jun 25, 2007 at 02:24 PM.
Ok, I've got the first seam from the bottom all the way to the corner pulled apart! It was easy!
Now what?!?
What's the strategy for getting the seam toward the front? Do I need to remove the heater box and get to it from the inside?
How about the side vent, where the egg crate goes? I saw someone had cut their's down the middle. Is this where it *should* come apart, or was that where the owner choose to pull it apart?
I did it like this : I put a chisel at the easiest seam I could get at, then just put enough pressure on it to break the seam and move up. When enough length of seam is broken, then I would use small wooden wedges put in between the parts where the seam is broken and move up. Each time I would hit the small wedges on the lower part a little deeper. Eventually the tension makes the entire part break loose without damage.
If you put the chissel in too deep, you could damage some part.