Need a suggestion on some Bodywork Tools

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D3A6R0T

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I've decided to start the bodywork on my Dart and need a suggestion on some tools to get started. Mostly what i will be doing is pulling dents, probably won't have to replace any panels from what i can tell. There is only minor surface rust so that shouldn't be a problem. I found a couple of hammer and dolly kits that i'm thinking of getting:

http://autobodystore.net/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=DTCP07K&Category_Code=HT
or
http://autobodystore.net/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=AP5510&Category_Code=HT

The first one is quite a bit more, but that's okay if it's better quality and has more of the things i will need. I'm also considering a stud welding gun:

http://autobodystore.net/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=HS4550&Category_Code=2SW

Is this set worth the money or should i get a cheapy Harbor Freight one?

Also looking at getting a D/A sander and some durablocks. Anything major i'm missing that i'll need to get started?
 
I got an el-cheapo set of body hammers and dollies about 30 years ago. I am not a professional body man, so I do not use them every day, but they have held up well, wooden handles and all, through all these years. Keep the BFH far away when doing body work because you could potentially take out frustration on your sheetmetal...just kidding.
 
I would go with the harbor freight hammer/dolly set if your only going to work on the one car. A 4 1/2" angle grinder with a stripping wheel comes in handy for doing bodywork.
 
the cheaper set of hammers and dollies is what we had to start with at school and they suck lol. no pick hammer and really outta balance. i guess if you need to and only will use them a few times a year but i would try to get the wooden handel set
 
Thanks, i plan on maybe doing other cars in the future so i think it may be worth the investment for the better set. I have an angle grinder so i will look for a stripping wheel for it. Picked up a D/A today and tried my hand at filling some trim holes with lead (practiced on a door that i'm replacing anyway). I was surprised how easy it was, came out great.

So does anybody have experience with the Harbor Freight stud welder? It's about half the cost of the other one i looked at but i don't think it comes with a slide hammer.

The BFH will be kept far away trust me!
 
i havent used the harbor freight stud gun but if it has a warrantee it should be fine. when i use nails i like a t-handle instead of a slide hammer. the slide hammer is fast but its easy to over work the metal and then you get oil canning. with my experience with body work its more the person not the tools. as long as the tool is there and you know how to use it you can do great work. sometimes nicer tools make it easier but not 100% neccessary
 
D3A6R0T said:
So does anybody have experience with the Harbor Freight stud welder? It's about half the cost of the other one i looked at but i don't think it comes with a slide hammer.
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I have one of the HF stud welders. It comes with the slide hammer, studs. Pretty much what you need to get started. The welder works well but the slidehammer can be a challenge with the smaller studs, but considering the price difference...I got all my body tools @ HF and had no gripes.

Some advice about air tools. Unless you have a good sized compressor, don't bother. A 2 wheeled Craftsman 1/2 HP $199 special will melt down trying to feed a DA or flatboard. I had a 1.5 HP with a 30 gal. tank that was on the short side of marginal. You wait 5 minutes waiting for the compressor to get maybe 2 minutes of work done.
 
scoot439 said:
Some advice about air tools. Unless you have a good sized compressor, don't bother. A 2 wheeled Craftsman 1/2 HP $199 special will melt down trying to feed a DA or flatboard. I had a 1.5 HP with a 30 gal. tank that was on the short side of marginal. You wait 5 minutes waiting for the compressor to get maybe 2 minutes of work done.
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Yeah i was worried about that since i have a 20gal 1.8hp Husky Compressor. It's rated at 4.3 scfm @ 90 psi. i figured it may not work for the D/A but i found one that runs on 4.0 scfm @ 90 psi at Harbor Freight. I used it today to remove the paint around the trim holes i leaded, works great so far. I figure if i ever do any painting i can just rent a bigger one. Thanks for the help!
 
i just got the Harbor Junk stud welder. got their extended warranty for like 15 bucks. The slide hammer that comes with the kit is shite. i mean COMPLETE shite. Its got this joke wheel with teeth that is supposed to grip the studs, but it slips off the tiny ones. The wheel is made of butter and the teeth round off real quickly.

If anyone has a recommendation for a good slide-hammer with some decent grip action, im listening.

The stud welder itself is awesome. The trigger is not in the most ideal location, but its acceptable. dont forget to join Harbor Junk's "special buyer" program. that 99 dollar stud gun becomes 75 after you join. big discounts!
 
I'd go with the uni spot stud gun.Snap on hammers and dollies are the best. I've been doing body work for 30 years and have never had a problem with snap on.
 
As far as the syd gun,just get a good slide hammer. If you dont want to drill holes,weld small bolts to the sheetmeta and pull on them withe the slide hammer. no need to buy studs and a gun unless your a pro shop.
 
D3A6R0T said:
Where can i get these wheels at? Are these the same as the plastic stripping wheels that i've heard of?
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Im a cheap **** so I buy one of these- stripp.jpg and knock the arbor out and mount on my grinder, you get two wheels for the price of one. You can get these at sears, HDepot, Ace etc...

stripp.jpg
 
Ya I bought one but havent used it yet. I was going to compare it to a wire wheel and a flap wheel.
 
daliant said:
Im a cheap **** so I buy one of these-View attachment 151779 and knock the arbor out and mount on my grinder, you get two wheels for the price of one. You can get these at sears, HDepot, Ace etc...
Click to expand...

These things work great!

You could just save up and pay a professional to do it (the hard stuff that requires the specialty body tools)... I know - but wheres the fun in that.
 
may i ask a question has anybody tried to tie in two compressor together. i have one old craftsman not sure of hp or cfm and a newer HF 20 gal was thinking about building a 6" by about 4' header out of pipe and hook both compressors it turn both units on and come of the header with one air line. not sure it will work but i would like to try.
 
Martin Tool and Forge makes professional quality body hammers and the different types of dollys as well as various kinds of spoons. I got their catalog and price list and quickly figured out that I really couldn't afford them for the small amount of work I might do. So I looked at the Harbor Freight stuff. They have two sets. A cheap one for $30 and a better one for $40. The cheap one is absolute junk. The better one isn't all that bad. I bought it. They also have a pick they sell separately as well as a teardrop dolly and a football dolly that they sell separately. Some spoons are also included. They also have a door panel set that I bought that looks pretty good. I think that I can tackle my first job with this stuff. I watched a guy at a local body shop and he wasn't using anything any better than the HF tools I have mentioned. I bought the HF stud welder but have not used yet. I also use those stripping pads that fit on a drill that look like a mesh dipped in something that fit on a drill. Works very nicely. I got them at Walmart. I usually use these in conjunction with a wire brush on the drill. There are several videos on youtube showing how to use body hammers, etc., for body work that are worth watching. One said that the shrinking hammers should not ever be used. They say to use heat and then apply a wet cloth to shrink. Hope this helps.
 
I ended up ordering the set from the link i posted above. I did decide to go with the HF stud Welder though. I tried it out yesterday and it worked fine but the slide hammer is junk as someone said. It won't grip the studs and just slips off, good thing i ordered the uni-puller. I got the stripping pads as well, one for my angle grinder and a set for my die grinder. They work great. I'll look for those videos on YouTube, thanks for the suggestion.
 
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