I need to roll my front fenders. What is the best way to do this without causing significant paint damage or warping the fenders. I have heard about the baseball bat method, will that really do the trick?
I always do mine with a body hammer and some finesse. You can use a sandbag to support the outer lip of the fender but I have used just about anyting I had laying around. You just have to be careful, go slow, and do a little bit at a time. Move the lip a little the whole lengh and then keep repeating until you get it where you want it.
This is a project where you must take your time. I used the cut method.
Cut my lip about every 1/2 inch and simply rolled the lip and then finished off with bondo. Be careful and do not cut too deep as it will leave "dimples".
I have purchased the fender roller from Eastwood Co. and am going to roll my fenders this weekend. I will let you know how it turns out. I would be interested in selling this tool when I am done with it if you don't want to go about it any other way.
No offense intended Historic....but do not cut slits in your fender lips mxmattd, there is no need for it on a Mustang, Shelby didn't cut it and I have not found a reason to since the lips roll quite well with a hammer and dolley/sandbag. You can trim the depth of the lip if you like a little to make it easier and cleaner especially in the back....there are two panel overlapped to make the rear lip and one is usually longer than the other so you can grind until they are the same depth....that works well and makes rolling a little easier.
The secret to rolling with a hammer is to go really slow and just roll the lip a little at a time. The metal will stretch well withouth getting damaged if you go in small steps, in fact once you reach the breakover part it is really easy.
Nothing wrong with it at all. The only cons I can think of:
* Less material on the fender lip makes it easier to damage
* Depending on where you trim, you could leave a sharp edge
Nothing wrong with it at all. The only cons I can think of:
* Less material on the fender lip makes it easier to damage
* Depending on where you trim, you could leave a sharp edge
And it looks like you took a cutoff wheel to the lip.
Plus, it leaves a bare metal edge that then will have to be treated, and you'll have metal shavings and cutoff wheel crap all over you, (and the car probably) your sweetie won't want to shower with you when you are rusting.AND it won't gain you as much room as a properly rolled fender.