Door Skin Repair
#1
Posted 06 June 2010 - 03:01 AM
http://www.wanderthe...221_1173059.jpg
http://www.wanderthe...221_1321150.jpg
I further inspected the door and was happy to find out that the damage was relatively minor. The hole did not go all the way through and the damaged area was only about 3" X 3". I brainstormed several ways to fix this some of which included Bondo, epoxy, or having the door re-skinned. Finally, I realized that I could use some flashing to repair the area and that it would look just as good as new.
Here is a quick walk through on what I did.
1) I removed the ATC sticker and tried as much as possible to pull the dented material out and to plug the whole up with the piece of aluminum that was torn out.
2) I removed the aluminum bar that was 12" up from the bottom of the door
3) Cleaned the entire area with denatured alcohol and then very carefully taped the damaged area with Vinyl Tape. If you look at the picture I laid the tape starting at the bottom so that successive layers overlap each other like shingles on a house. This should help with water penetration if water were to ever get down into this area.
http://www.wanderthe...221_1273671.jpg
4) Once I had the damage patched up I measured how much flashing I needed to cover the entire door from the bottom all the way up to were the aluminum bar was that I removed. The area turned out to be 12"H X 24.5"W. I included the distance under the trim on the door.
5) I cut the flashing using an exacto knife. This is a key(once the flashing is scored bend it back on itself and it will snap giving you a perfectly clean line)step and makes for a very clean cut. If you cut with tin snips it is hard to keep the flashing straight, which will make the final installation much more difficult.
6) Once I had the flashing cut I used a putty knife to very gently and carefully pull up the trim on the door in the area that I was working. I did not want to pull it up to much, but just enough to be able to slide the flashing underneath and still have a good snug fit.
http://www.wanderthe...221_1524212.jpg
7) Next I worked the flashing under the trim on the sides and the bottom. I used the putty knife and some paper towels in this step. This was a slow process but worked perfectly.
http://www.wanderthe..._221_360371.jpg
http://www.wanderthe..._221_997269.jpg
8) I put a healthy bead of silicone sealer on the top edge and then re-installed the aluminum cross bar. Once the bar was on I used another bead of silicone to ensure that no water will penetrate down behind the flashing.
I am extremely happy with the way this turned out and I actually like the way it looks. You can't tell that it didn't come this way from the factory. Now all I need to do is get another sticker.
http://www.wanderthe..._221_776226.jpg
Hopefully this thread will help someone else out.
Cort
#2
Posted 06 June 2010 - 03:13 AM
2003 Ford Ranger FX4 Level II 2013 ATC Bobcat SE "And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years."- Abraham Lincoln http://ski3pin.blogspot.com/
#3
Posted 06 June 2010 - 03:39 AM
I have the exact same dent in my rear bumper too. For a minute there, I thought I was looking at a "new" picture of my own rig!
#4
Posted 06 June 2010 - 06:24 AM
#5
Posted 06 June 2010 - 04:24 PM
Its possible, as light as it is, that the person never even knew they hit you. Not likely but I like to think they'd have a note if they knew.
I was coming home from the other day, car stopped suddenly in front of me, I managed to brake in time but then I hear a thump. Ah heck someone hit me. I pulled over and so did the other person. I was envisioning major damage to the camper but she'd hit my hitch my instead. Poked a nice hole in her hood but didnt' even scratch my truck. Turns out she'd been hit from behind and pushed into me, and the person that hit her fled the scene.
Craig K6JGV_________________________ 2004 2500 CTD 4X4 FWC HAWK 1960 CJ5
#6
Posted 07 June 2010 - 02:08 AM
Stew will be interested in this thread. He can't put it in R without implaing his camper on a tree. In fact, I would say it's 50/50 that Stew was the one that backed into your camper
Hey, DD, I wasn't anywhere near NorCal over the last few weeks!
Stew
2007 Custom All Terrain Camper Panther Shell on 2012 Toyota Tundra 4x4 in SE CO
#7
Posted 11 June 2010 - 03:45 AM
Stew will be interested in this thread. He can't put it in R without implaing his camper on a tree. In fact, I would say it's 50/50 that Stew was the one that backed into your camper
Yes! Finally I'm no longer the only member to be the butt of DD's jokes. And thank goodness he doesn't know about the tree I backed into. Or the sign post. Or the beer truck...
"Not all who wander are lost. Except Ted, he's usually lost." Dirty Dog
#8
Posted 24 June 2010 - 11:19 PM
Yes! Finally I'm no longer the only member to be the butt of DD's jokes. And thank goodness he doesn't know about the tree I backed into. Or the sign post. Or the beer truck...
So true, even the smallest slip up and DD is on your case for life. At least I haven't suffered the ultimate humiliation of having DD put some silly name under my avitar, MAGELLAN. I can only guess what you did to deserve that.
Stew
2007 Custom All Terrain Camper Panther Shell on 2012 Toyota Tundra 4x4 in SE CO
#9
Posted 25 June 2010 - 03:33 AM
2003 Ford Ranger FX4 Level II 2013 ATC Bobcat SE "And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years."- Abraham Lincoln http://ski3pin.blogspot.com/
#10
Posted 25 June 2010 - 05:15 AM
2007 Dodge 2500 5.9 CTD QC 4X4, *1996 FWC/ATC hybrid* *2021.5 GeoPro 19FBS* "If you can read this, Thank a Teacher. Because you read this in English, Thank a Vet."
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