How Panel Beaters Can Make Light Work of Damage
Posted on: 16 October 2020
If a distracted motorist ran into the side of your car, you might have a few choice words. However, once you'd collected the insurance details, your mind would quickly turn to repair, and you might wonder how long your vehicle would be off the road. Thankfully, experts are at hand, and they know how to stretch and reshape that bodywork so that it will once again look like new. What are some of the techniques used, and what is one of the key tools in the panel beater's arsenal?
Hammer Time
While the term "panel beating" may suggest the use of brute force, those days are long gone. Today, the technician will be able to use a variety of special tools and, primarily, a contraption known as a 'planishing hammer'.
Precision Tool
This particular tool takes a lot of the physical work away and allows the technician to be a lot more precise. It is typically pneumatically operated, and pressurised air will force a hammer to move back and forth to strike the metal in rapid succession. This hammer will sit inside an outer casing that's seamlessly attached through a circular arc to an anvil. This latter part is placed behind the metal in question so that the hammer pushes the metal against the anvil.
Down to Detail
This is where the skill of the panel beater comes in, however. While the hammer will do the hard work, the technician will need to move the tool very precisely to dictate the end result. They will, essentially, need to coax the metal back so that it is very similar to its previous shape, and this may take quite a lot of detailed work.
More Precision
The expert may also adjust the air pressure as they go. They can turn it down if they want to smooth out some smaller undulations but crank it up if they want to stretch the metal out. In any case, so long as they can access the front and the back of the damaged metal, they can use this particular machine to great effect.
Finishing Things off
Once they have finished with this part of the procedure, they can then use smaller and very precise manual hammers to tap out individual peaks. They will then be able to smooth out the undulations with putty before they can apply primer and, eventually, paint.
Experience Counts
Although you may be worried about the damage to your vehicle, this should be simply a walk in the park for an experienced panel beater. Make sure that you entrust your vehicle to just such an individual.
To learn more, contact panel beaters near you.
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