Body Dolly made for convex/concave areas?

[theKbStockpiler]

Is there such a tool?
Body tools don't seem to be standardized in a logical way but I'm not seeing a specific dolly for domed areas.
Thanks!

[Ol'fogasaurus]

Oops!

Lee

The term "body dolly" you used covers such a large field as it covers not only https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=bo ... RE&first=1 but it also can include banging and bending metal as has been posted after mine.

If you are just trying to bend/form/metal, then what is out there is designed to cover general purposes which means that you might end up having to make your own specific shape including the potential of also using different materials.

Lee

[R2.0]

Have you looked at Eastwood's selections?

https://www.eastwood.com/autobody/hamme ... llies.html

[theKbStockpiler]

Thanks for the replies.
It looks like a hand version is not made. I did find some tools with a search of 'mushroom stakes' , blacksmithing tools, forming heads ,plannishing tools and forming tools. http://wiki.dtonline.org/index.php/Planishing_Stake

I did not realize I was more of a blacksmith.

[Ol'fogasaurus]

Bending metal is not always a "whack-um-up" thing, but more of a gentle stretching/forming/guiding of the metal to reach the shapes and sizes you want to accomplish. Also, a hammer is not always the controlling tool one needs.

https://www.bing.com/search?q=metal%20f ... 7&msnews=1

With some of the new CAD/COM tools out there now, the COM program can, in a matter of hours or overnight get you what you want. If you watch "Bitchen Rides" and several other TV programs, they show what can now be done via. computers (cost is in there at a much higher rate but somethings it is worth it).

Lee

[SCOTTRODS]

There's plenty of tools for Shaping and "bending" metals... Most of them, in all orders of body dollies are general and require knowledge and skill that is specific to get done what you desire.

Wray Schelin has a Youtube channel with lots of videos showing a lot of techniques to shape things in metal. Basically he is a coach works training "god" of sorts. He has unique tools available and, of course, his videos to help you understand and implement those tools, as well as exploring new ways to do things. He actually makes a lot of tools from scratch, and most start of fairly rudimentary and become more refined over time. He is a big talent to follow if you're trying to figure out how to do even simple Stuff.

Also, for the sake of knowledge, there's another Youtuber, Lazze, who is a go getter and a great teacher online. You don't have to go to classes to learn everything, but you can also take what you learn from these online guys and improve on them to fit your needs.

I suppose what you are seeking could be found more specifically (maybe), but over all... Metal working has it's representations all over the web and, in my estimation, is Super interesting for someone who has a yearning to learn new mechanical and even artistic, or inventive Skills.

[theKbStockpiler]

I did notice that the cheap 'rail' style of dollies has a convex end on it. I wonder if that's all some people use? The head of a plastic mallet would work if it fits in the space it needs to. Basically, any object that has a shape to it that is slightly smaller than the panel you are shaping will work. The guy from 'Cold War Motors' uses a trailer hitch ball sometimes.

After you get used to the heavy Australian accent, I think Peter Tommasini has the most informative videos. "Austin Mud guard' project is the best one I have seen. Peter Tommasini builds a full quarter panel for a Holden but does not go into detail. After you figure out what Wray calls 'arrangement' his vids lose appeal .I still plan on watching more of his vids but just to reverse engineer them. I'm interested in the edging that goes on panels and window channels. Maybe Wray has some vids on those.

[Bad Bob]

I’ve never seen a concave dolly. If you want to stretch into a hammer form or a shot bag, you can use a blocking hammer (steel or plastic), or anything with a radius that fits the bill. In my toolbox, I have a large ball bearing welded onto a piece of round stock, a railroad spike with both ends polished and a valve with a dome shaped head ( it came out of a big radial engine). Keep an eye out for unique shapes in the scrap bin!

I’ll get some pic’s when I get home.

[Ol'fogasaurus]

Bending metal is something you have to learn. "Pounding the meta"l to shape isn't all ways the way to go, sometimes it is just tap, tap, tap with one of the shaped tips of the body hammer's head and not always against a dolly. "Touch" is a learned thing but when you get there... wow!

The hardest I have had to do was three conjoining bends with a corner radius bent to the same radius, e.g. like the corner like the bottom of a box (the radius there is called a spherical radius but then there are other types of radiuses that are also called "spherical radiuses". That spherical radius was the hardest part of the formation as keeping the radius the same without stretching the material too thin so it might have torn. (I ended up cheating on the shape by doing some notching and tiny welding ).

Again, there are times where any of several different shapes of hammer heads or dollies to be used and sometimes a jig has to be made to get the basis formation built. Below are some of the shapes you can get of body hammers.

https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=bo ... ML&first=1

Lee

[theKbStockpiler]

I’ve never seen a concave dolly. If you want to stretch into a hammer form or a shot bag, you can use a blocking hammer (steel or plastic), or anything with a radius that fits the bill. In my toolbox, I have a large ball bearing welded onto a piece of round stock, a railroad spike with both ends polished and a valve with a dome shaped head ( it came out of a big radial engine). Keep an eye out for unique shapes in the scrap bin!

I’ll get some pic’s when I get home.

I'm interested in a dolly for crown so If I shrink an area down too much and can only get a dolly behind it while pushing out.

[Ol'fogasaurus]

You could make your own form (with the proper arc radius and proper bend radius) attaching it to a mount or clamp it to something then bend to what you want to achieve.

The cost may be + or - a purchased form but, depending on how you build the form it might be good for other things too. I've done that several times myself.

Lee

[Ol'fogasaurus]

Do you have a picture of what you are trying form?

It makes a difference as to what king of bending form you might need to make.

Lee

[Kafer_Mike]

I'm interested in a dolly for crown so If I shrink an area down too much and can only get a dolly behind it while pushing out.

Covell makes a crown dolly. This what you are looking for? https://www.trick-tools.com/index/page/ ... y%2C+Crown

[Ol'fogasaurus]

The term "dolly" can mean many different things/devices.

No, it was not what I thought you might be looking for which is why I asked, a nice-looking device though.

Lee

[Ol'fogasaurus]

Opinions are worth just what you pay for them. This is an opinion:

https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=bo ... HoverTitle The pix you posted is just one of many types and shapes of metal forming tools. I took some pix of my tools including the different forming hammers usually used for forming metal but something is going on in my laptop that I don't know what it is so I can't post pix but here are some shapes including one that also contains dollies. The pix you posted is a longer shaped version of some of the ones in the URL. It would be good for a tapping base to get the smoothness over distance when needed.

I also use standard ballpeen hammers, but I put the domed end where I want some forming done then lightly tap on the flat end to get the results I want. I also move the hammer end to get a running shape. Thinner metal is formed easily so control over the forming should be controlled.

There are several car shows on TV that show metal forming with "Bitchen' Rides" being one of them where they do do a lot of this. There are two out of Texas that also form metal and some of the others now are getting into the metal forming on their shows. "Bitchen Rides also plas with CAM making of shapes but they are not necessarily made of metal.

My playing around with bending metal goes back to the middle 1950s but I didn't get into banging metal until the mid 1960s when I got into doing drawings for forming metal and other materials. I lot of information was required to know and use on the design side vs. the actual forming of the designs. It is interesting just how complicated even a simple design is vs. the complications in actually forming/making the part(s) of the design.

Lee

IMG_2767 (1) copy.jpg

This is the photo I was trying to post. Not all of the tools but it should give an idea of what a start of metal forming tools can be used.

Lee