Car body and fender equipment

Not finished yet:

Usa cars 1955
Brakes
Carburetors
Clutch Fluid Drive
Cooling System
Disc Brakes
Electrical
Engine
Engine 8 Cyl
Fuel Pumps
Generating System
Hy Drive
Ignition
Overdrive
Power Brakes
Power Steering
Powerflite
Propeller Shaft
Rear Axle
Starting System
Steering
Suspension
Transmission

Other links

Scope of service

• Class A Service usually includes facilities for rendering complete body and fender repair and refinishing service, and the rebuilding of totally wrecked vehicles. It embraces frame and axle straightening, woodwork, upholstering, trimming, and complete spray painting and related services.
• Class B Service specializes on all classes of fender repairing and less difficult body and top repair and touch-up spray painting. A profitable service for these shops is the dressing up of used cars or trade-ins for resale.
• Class C Service is limited to the repair of fenders and minor body injuries, including touch-up painting by brush. These shops frequently lose profitable opportunities because of an ill-founded fear of imaginary difficulties of complete body and fender refinishing service.

Quick check of equipment

While the following tabulation is not presented as complete in every respect, still it will prove helpful when checking needs for shops according to how extensively they intend to go into body and fender work. The "A, B or C" in the shop classification column indicates that shops in this category should have this particular item.

Equipment for car and body repair:

• AB Air compressor
• AB Air hose, nozzles, gauges
• ABC Anvil
• AB Bench grinder
• AB Blow torch for soldering
• ABC Body and fender tools
• A Body builders clamps
• A Body jack
• AB Brush (wire rotary)
• AB C-clamps
• ABC Creeper
• A Electric band saw
• AB Electric drill
• ABC Electric extension cord
• AB Electric lamp stand
• AB Electric polisher and sander
• A Frame straightener
• A Glue pot
• ABC Horses and trestles
• ABC Gas furnace for soldering coppers
• ABC Garage jacks
• AB Paint spray gun
• A Paint spray booth
• A Exhaust fan for spray
• A Light reflectors
• AB Shop coats
• AB Shop covers (fender and seat)
• A Taps and dies
• ABC Tool racks
• ABC Vises
• ABC Welding outfit (complete with cutting torch)
• AB Wheel pullers
• ABC Work benches
• A Vacuum cleaner

Tools:

• AB Bevel square
• AB Bit brace
• ABC Bolt extractors
• ABC Breast drill
• ABC Brushes, paint
• ABC Center punches
• ABC Chisels
• ABC Drifts
• ABC Drills (wood and steel)
• ABC Files (body and mill)
• ABC Hammers (ball peen, engrs.)
• AB Hammers (trimmers)
• ABC Hand vise
• ABC Hack saw
• AB Hub cap wrench
• ABC Mallets
• ABC Pliers
• AB Pry bars
• ABC Screwdrivers
• ABC Soldering coppers
• A Striping pencils
• AB Tin shears
• ABC Wire brush
• A Wood brace and bit
• AB Wood chisels
• A Wood plane
• A Wood saw
• ABC Wrenches, end
• ABC Wrenches, socket
• ABC Body and fender tools

Supplies

• ABC Abrasive cloth and paper
• AB Abrasive disks
• ABC Body filler metal, steel and aluminum
• ABC Bolts, nuts, and washers
• ABC Electric light bulbs
• A Glue
• ABC Grinding wheels
• ABC Hack saw blades
• ABC Lacquers
• AB Masking tape
• ABC Painting materials
• ABC Penetrating oil
• AB Polishing materials
• AB Running board material
• AB Tacks and nails
• ABC Welding supplies
• ABC Wiping rags
• AB Wood and metal screws

Buy the best you can afford

It should always be remembered that in buying equipment the purchase is not being made for a day, a week, or a month, but that the item will be used for years. Therefore, the purchase should be of quality equipment and can very properly be bought on time, if necessary, and paid for out of profits.

Such time buying may be handled in various ways: through the jobber who sells the equipment, through a special finance house, or through your own bank. While it may give one a good feeling to pay cash, it should be remembered that really big business is not built this way. Since money costs probably 6 per cent a year and good equipment, well used, will return many times this amount, it is good business to buy needed equipment and tools on time.

Portable power press

One item not included in the equipment tabulation and which is finding increasing favour in various shops, especially on difficult body work, is "Porto-Power," a portable and powerful press that can be adapted to nearly any pressing, bending, or straightening operation.

Briefly this equipment is a hydraulic cylinder or pump connected to the hydraulic ram by a flexible tube. This arrangement makes for compactness of the ram, which, by means of various attachments, can be placed on practically any job needing high pressure under sure control. Then with the pump conveniently located outside of the job the mechanic can develop just the pressure needed to get the results desired. The whole outfit is carried on a special rolling stand.

Complete welding equipment

In welding equipment, perhaps more than in some other items, completeness and quality are particularly important. In the oxy-acetylene welding equipment it is best to buy a complete outfit which will include a cutting torch.

And in this type of equipment one should watch the size and weight because proper body and fender work will never require a large flame. The smaller torch is easier to handle and less expensive to operate. The big torch would be used for straightening bent axles and steering arms—and this should never be done with heat!

Speaking of complete electrical welding, it is well to consider an electrical outfit that does both arc and spot welding. The spot welding is especially desirable for steel top replacement and for installing or repairing various panels.