Repairing Small Exterior Dents?

[T2Express]

Well folks i got some bad news. looks like someone has attacked my rig with a ball peen hammer and left many dents on one side of my rig.

So i m looking to find a way to get rid of the dents. i know i already need to repaint the rig but i wasnt sure if a guy could just use body filler and sand them down and paint over them or if there is another way.

pretty sad sunday.. i just dont understand why people just cant leave things alone.

[Oz]

Very sorry to hear about the vandalism.  Unfortunately, vintage RVs are often the targets of such things.  Mine has been shot in the windshield and paintballed too.  But, whacking a rig with a hammer?  Well, I'd like to find that person and see what kind of dents I could put in their skull with the same item they used on your rig... but, that's irrelevant to the question.

I've used fiberglass resin filler.  It adhere's much better than Bondo but, it's still a pain all around.  I would suggest using the same method auto body techs use.  Drill a small hole in the center of the dent.  Use a slide hammer dent puller and pull the dent out.  I've also done this and then just put a squirt of sandable sealant in the hole.  When dry, sand off the sealant plug and paint over the area.

[JDxeper]

T2,
We had a severe weather front move through with winds from the north, northwest, could it have been hail, mine looks like you described but not as bad.  Have you had any hail damage to the crops nearby.  Just a thought.

I am going to try the pop-a dent kit from, Harbor Freight.  and see if I can pull a few of the dings out. If not the body filler. Don't want to reskin the bug.

mine were mostly on one side.

[T2Express]

thats what i thought but i checked the weather and local reports with no reports of hail. plus judging where the rig was sitting and the location of the dents i don t think hail is the cause.. the dents were all on the east facing side.

[fgutie35]

In my area, there is a shop that specializes in dents. they have a huge array of different shape and size suction cups that are adapted to an industrial vacuum machine. they are pretty good at getting rid of dents, even on delicate materials like aluminum. Check in your area if there is a shop like that. other than that, I would also suggest bondo for plastic, is more flexible and will be less prone to crack.

[Beachcomber]

Some forms of aluminum panelling have a "memory". On occasion, the company I used to work for would have various scrapes and dents to the aluminum bodied delivery "side step" vans we used. They found a body shop that was able to use a process of heating the aluminum surface to a certain temperature (?), then suddenly cooling it again, often causing the aluminum to return to it's original shape. Can't give more details, but it's intriguing to say the least, and could be an option to reduce the extent of the dents. I recently had hail damage to my 1974 Chieftain in the "eyebrow" area, which was previously perfect. I mutter everytime I look up and see those dents now!

[sputnik]

Hi.  I'm certainly no expert, but I read somewhere that bondo will not stick to aluminum, believe it was in the famous "Phread's notes".  Also, bondo will not stick to paint, therefore you would have to take it down to bare metal wherever you wished to put the bondo.

The same source that I read about the bondo recommended the usage of PC-11 marine epoxy for 'body putty' on your aluminum rig.  I can say that I have done exactly that myself in several places, not the most beautiful work ever, but it does seem to work great otherwise.  And it is a bit softer than bondo too, so someone with some talent could smooth it just fine.  Also, I applied it over the top of paint as well and it sticks just fine.
My .02 worth... 

[wrolandhyattjr]

http://www.wisebread.com/remove-car-dents-quickly-and-cheaply

While it may sound crazy, there are many videos on youtube showing the process in action.  Basically, you heat the area with a blow dryer or heat gun and hit it with liquid CO2.  POP out goes the dent.  As long as it's not creased.  I'm anxious to try it on several of my own.

Roland Hyatt