Monday, February 28, 2011

Bondo Basics - The Art Of Body Filler



Where would the world be today without the luxury of Bondo. Ever since I can remember, well 20 years or so, it has been all the hype. You have yourself a nice looking muscle car or any car for that matter and the first thing everyone wants to know, even if they don't say it is " how much bondo, looks really nice, hmm how much bondo, bondo bucket?" Well I'm here to say that bondo is an absolute necessity if you are going to have a nice looking, straight paneled ride.

Let's get one thing straight about the use of body fillers (bondo). It is not, and I repeat not for cars that have rust. It is not for cars that have holes in them. That is what you have a welder and patch panels for. If you think bondo will hold or last over a hole of any size you'll be assuredly let down. All those hopes and dreams of having that ugly hole patched will certainly come back and haunt you. If not today, which is sometimes all the longer it takes, give it a year. Moisture will have a field day pushing out the plastic filler and leave you again worse off with a rusty, bubbling, bondo'd up sick looking disgusting scabby eye sore! - geez London "take that bondo" :)

Bondo, or plastic filler, body filler, call it what you want is great stuff, but it is made to smooth out panels. It's a filler in the sense that it fills waves and imperfections in metal. It doesn't take the place of it. It is a cheap and easy replacement for the use of lead. If you have holes you really need metal to patch them, and truthfully it's much quicker to simply cut a piece of metal and tack it in there. It will last if done right for years, especially if you keep it dry and clean. If you live where I do near the great lakes "keep it out of the salt".

All body fillers are basically the same. Some claim to be better than others, but seeing as we're not patching holes anymore with it, I go for the one that sands the easiest. These are known as the light weight body fillers. They usually sand quite easy, and they won't clog up the sand paper nearly as bad as the heavy weight (gold) fillers. I personally stay away from the 'bondo' brand, don't know why really, maybe it's the nightmarish name from my past, but that's neither here nor there, I go with the Evercoat brand. I have had great success over the years and see no need to change. They haven't been able to improve too much on it over the past 15 years.

I have experimented with most brands and weights over the years and one thing they have in common is how to mix it. The single most greatest factor in mixing bondo is the temperature where you're using it. If it is 60 degrees in the shop it will take 15-20 minutes or longer to set up, if it's 80-85 degrees where you are, you have just enough time to mix it fast and run to get it spread. Mixing is the standard 1 inch ribbon of hardener / golf ball size filler. If it's hot, cut back a tad. If it's cold, DON' T add more for it won't help. That can and usually will create pinholes and gummy bondo that will not sand well. You are forced to let it harden on it's own or put some heat on it. Heat the panel first a little if you can, it will help at least to get it to start setting up. Have patience, if you get on it right away it may let go, or flake off the panel and you'll be starting over. Let it bond to the panel thoroughly. Take your nail or a pocket knife and scratch on it. I usually nurse it awhile till it sets up just enough where I can carve any mess I made out of it spreading it , off. It saves time when it comes to sanding.

They make a plethora of tools to work with bondo, most of them will be trial and error for you, you'll find a system that works for you and have all the confidence you'll ever need in working with body fillers. I'll have to save the sanding techniques for a upcoming article, they need explanations, for they all are good for some things and not so well for others. Stay in touch!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=London_Vande_Zande

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Hunter DSP-600


Corby's Collision is a Full Service Body Shop. We do everything from repairs to alignments. We are one of maybe only 2 body shops in Solano County that have an alignment rack. By owning this piece of equipment, we not only can be full service but, we save our customers a lot of time and are able to return their vehicle to them in a more timely manner.

We use the top of the line Hunter Engineering alignment machine. This machine features the latest in alignment system technology including the new DSP600 Digital Imaging Alignment sensors for Picture Perfect® alignment.

Our rack has been lowered into a pit where other shops have the rack above ground. This allows us to align cars that are low to the ground as well as duallys, big trucks, extended cab, and crew-cabs.

Corby's is able to service its own customers, along with the customers of 3 other body shops in the town of Vacaville.

Check out Hunter Engineering Company's brochure to read more about the Hunter DSP-600 or visit their website.

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Blackhawk Prower Pro 360L Used By Corby's

Power-Pro's bearing supported, tube-style towers easily roll 360 degrees around the platform and the spring release handle locks the tower into the desired position. With Power-Pro's two towers, you can quickly and easily make combination front, rear and side damage pulls for improved productivity. Position the 10 ton towers side-by-side and concentrate repair efforts. Technicians are able to make precise pulls with a simple adjustment of the pull collar. Add the optional third 10 ton tower and watch your productivity levels soar.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

"The Shark" By Blackhawk

The Shark is a computerized electronic measuring system that relies on ultrasound technology for dramatic productivity improvements and the industry's best speed and accuracy. The Shark provides live "measure-as-you-pull" functionality that virtually eliminates costly rework. Of course at Corby's Collision we use THE SHARK!

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Helping The Earth With Auto Body Repair


You have bought an eco-friendly car believing that it is all you can do to help the environment. But have you thought that you can even help the environment by opting for auto body repair instead of buying new replacement for the damaged portions of your car?

There are some auto body repair shops who work in an Eco friendly manner; by choosing them you are doing your best for the environment. By using such a company, you will not only help the environment, but also end up saving huge amount of money.

So how does auto body repair actually help the environment?

When a part of the car gets damaged you decide to get it replaced. This entails that the old part just ends up in the dump - more trash for the earth to deal with. However, when you opt for an auto body repair, you reduce the amount of dump, as well as save all the tons of packaging that is wasted on each new body part.

The repair shop makes it a point to recycle all the materials, which helps to reduce the build up in the dumping grounds. Auto body repair can be done on all kinds of car, no matter what the make of the car is. The repair work includes bumper repair, repairing of the windshield, repairing the rim, paint- less dent removal and many other similar jobs on your car.

Again, if you are contemplating getting a new car, just because a few parts of your car are damaged and it had some dents, you should reconsider. Buy buying a new car and by discarding the old car, you are creating a huge adverse impact on the environment - you are basically wasting additional resources of the Earth, when there is no reason to. Thus, it makes more sense to simply go to one of the best repair shops around and get a full-fledged repair work done on your car.

You will be surprised by how good a job an auto repair shop can do. Your car will get a new look and completely take you by surprise! You can actually make your car look great; perform great with the help of auto body repair and still save a huge amount of money.

Choosing an auto repair shop

An auto body repair shop that you choose for yourself should ensure that they make an honest effort to help the environment. If they unscrupulously dump their excess materials, instead of recycling them, they will completely negate all your effort to help the environment.

Also make sure that they do not use any harmful material for the auto body repair job. You can now make a difference to the environment by opting for an auto body repair job from a reputed place. Even if you are not a huge tree lover, you can at least take the responsibility to make the world a healthier place, but not causing any more damage to her.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Danielle_Sage

Saturday, February 12, 2011

At Corby's Collision ~ We Care!


Corby's Collision has been in business for 47 years in Vacaville, California. Current Owner, Paul Troutner, took over the company in November of 1993. They moved the business to the current 9,000 square foot facility in 1998.

Paul was born and raised in Fairfield, California but, because of his love for the town of Vacaville he moved his family there in 2000. Paul has not only come to love the town but, the people who live there as well and is on a "first name" basis with most of Corby's customers.

When you do business with Corby's Collision you will not only deal with their qualified and professional staff but, also with Paul himself. He is an Owner/Operator and likes to be "hands on" with everything that goes in and out of the shop.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Collision Mitigation Systems



Many commercial trucks are beginning to use collision mitigation systems to help avoid front end collisions while driving. These systems use forward looking radar to detect distance and speed of vehicles that are in the front of the truck. These systems are also equipped with collision warning and adapt to cruise control and braking systems.

When the collision mitigation system is installed in a commercial truck, it will interface with the cruise control, in an effort to stop acceleration, as well as, the braking system when a front end collision hazard has been detected. The radar sensor is mounted on the front bumper of the vehicle. It has the ability to transmit and receive high frequency radio signals to determine the distance of the vehicle or object that is in front of the truck.

The collision detection unit in the collision mitigation system will alert the driver with an audible and visual warning. The radar on these systems can be adjusted to the needs of the driver and many of these systems can look forward as far as 500 feet.

When the system is detects that an unsafe distance, according to the predetermined settings, it will alert the driver in an attempt to have the vehicle manually slowed to create safe following distance. When an imminent collision is detected the system has the capability to shut down the cruise control as well as apply the brakes to attempt to avoid collision. These types of technological advances are expected to increase in the future of the trucking industries.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Paul_R_Woodward

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Corby's Collision Video 3


"Hands On" Owner / Operator Paul Troutner talks about happy employees and happy customers.


Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Corby's Collision Video 2


"Hands On" Owner / Operator Paul Troutner talks about Corby's history and sense of community.