rijidij
13th July 2009, 12:02 PM
I asked the question in another thread, wether anyone had successfully repaired damaged flares on a Defender/County using heat etc. I didn't really get an answer, so I decided to have a crack at it anyway.
Front R/H flare before repair.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/950.jpg https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/951.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/952.jpg https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/953.jpg
I used an LPG torch and a welding glove. A heat gun would also be ok.
I gently heated the damaged area, a small section at a time, just keep moving the flame around slowly. You'll see the plastic start to move slightly when it's starting to soften. You don't need to heat it much. Once you take the flame away, you basically hold the warm plastic in the correct position until it cools enough to hold it's shape, or, as it's cooling, you can keep manipulating it gently. It seems to remain pliable for about 30 seconds or so.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/954.jpg https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/955.jpg
This is the flare after the repair. It's not perfect, but it's a hell of a lot better than it was. I could probably get it better, but I didn't want to damage the paint more than I already had. Just the clear coat was cracking. On an unpainted flare, this wouldn't be a problem.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/956.jpg https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/957.jpg
One of the other flares had a slight dent in the middle of it, so I repaired it while still on the car. Same again, just gently heated the area and pushed it out until it cooled. It all worked well.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/958.jpg https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/959.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/960.jpg
Front R/H flare before repair.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/950.jpg https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/951.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/952.jpg https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/953.jpg
I used an LPG torch and a welding glove. A heat gun would also be ok.
I gently heated the damaged area, a small section at a time, just keep moving the flame around slowly. You'll see the plastic start to move slightly when it's starting to soften. You don't need to heat it much. Once you take the flame away, you basically hold the warm plastic in the correct position until it cools enough to hold it's shape, or, as it's cooling, you can keep manipulating it gently. It seems to remain pliable for about 30 seconds or so.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/954.jpg https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/955.jpg
This is the flare after the repair. It's not perfect, but it's a hell of a lot better than it was. I could probably get it better, but I didn't want to damage the paint more than I already had. Just the clear coat was cracking. On an unpainted flare, this wouldn't be a problem.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/956.jpg https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/957.jpg
One of the other flares had a slight dent in the middle of it, so I repaired it while still on the car. Same again, just gently heated the area and pushed it out until it cooled. It all worked well.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/958.jpg https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/959.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2009/07/960.jpg