When you've suffered some damage to your car in a crash, you'll want to get back on the road as soon as possible. Still, you may be fascinated by the techniques used in order to reshape those bent panels, especially when you see some of the tools used by an expert. So, how exactly do panel beaters use hammers and odd-shaped pieces of metal known as "dollies?"

Dollies and Hammers

When it comes to the tools of the trade, hammers and dollies are front and centre. Yet those are not ordinary hammers but have specially-cast tips on either side of the business end, which are designed for particular tasks.

Detailed Work

The dollies are also carefully manufactured to provide the right level of opposition to the hammer. In short, the panel beater will hold the dolly on one side of the misshapen metal and gently tap away on the other with the hammer.

This approach is great at dealing with small creases in a panel. The technician will deliver a series of accurate blows, pushing the metal against the dolly to progressively flatten it. The head of the dolly is curved, and the panel beater will choose from a range of tools, so they always use the correct one based on the intended result.

Different Methods

Alternatively, they may also hit the metal panels slightly to the side of the dolly while using the latter implement to stabilise the panel. This is good when working with larger depressions and if they need to make general corrections first. They will then move back to the original method when they're happy, tapping away gently to perfect the job.

Skill and Patience

As you can imagine, this approach takes a tremendous amount of skill and a lot of patience. The panel beater needs to go through a great deal of training before they perform any commercial work, and as time goes by, they become even more skilled at their craft. Some people reckon that the hammer's sound as it pushes the panel against the dolly can tell the expert whether they are achieving the correct result.

Trust the Experts

When you entrust the repairs on your car to a knowledgeable panel beater, you can be sure that they'll do a great job. They'll return your misshapen vehicle to its original condition so that some fresh, new paint can be added, and you'll be back on the road. Look into smash repairs for more information.