john deere hood

[johndeeregreg]

hi guys, me and my dad are restoring a john deere 2510 and the nose of the hood is bent up pretty good. has any one used the die that you can order out of green magazine? are they worth the 115 + dollars? any other ideas for getting it straightened out with out having to use to much body filler? any tips are appreciated as we have never restored one and have some other dings in the hood and sheet metal to take care of too

thanks
 

[MO8N4ME]

Can you post a couple pictures of the damage? Different angles?
 

[B-maniac]

Just regular body hammer and dolly all you need is a suitable hammer and back-up. Not rocket science. Save your $$$ , you can get it close enough for filler. You will never get it good enough to use no filler. The metal isn"t thick enough to metal finish out the imperfections.Don't "overthink" it.
 

[rrlund]

My wife got me one of these auto body tool sets for Christmas for this kind of thing. $29.95
Body tool kit

 

[Mark-Ia]

I straightened many with just the basic body tools. Didn't need the expensive block of metal.
 

[MO8N4ME]

The "Hammer and Dolly" are good and necessary tools to complement any sheet metal repair. There is a certain expertise required before you just start pounding with a hammer.

Pounding without the dolly in the correct spot or pounding too hard can easily stretch the metal in the opposite direction. Once that stretch is there, it will require shrinking, which is another hole process in its self.

Not to "over think the matter". I wanted to see how bad the hood is damaged and the proper way to proceed to repair it. Repairing sheet metal properly, (he wanted to minimize body filler) isn't as easy...as say...boiling water, safety aside, requires little to no thinking at all.

johndeeregreg: Can you post any pictures, we might be able to help. I don't think you would need the $115 striking die, but if you have money to burn it may help you keep the correct profile of the hood.
 

[johndeeregreg]

pics of hood, last one should be a pic of a gouge it has by the fuel filler






 

[Bodyman]

First off, "what on earth happened to your tractor ? carried away in a tornado ?, Sorry, but WOW! , I have been in the body business for over forty years and have done work on new gen hoods and also 2 cyl models. AS well as auto and custom work. Anyway my original question was, do you have a pic of the die from GM ? If it is a quality product it would be my considered opinion, "Money well spent...unless your hood would require more expertise than is at your disposal" (Not meant as a smart A remark) Your metal may be already stretched too far to realistically think about repairing (Dollar wise) AS to the cut/ gouge by the fuel filler, that would be an easy, hammer, shrink,weld and light grind. Hope it works out regardless of your choice.
 

[MO8N4ME]

In my opinion after seeing the pictures, the hood die will not help. The die, by what I can decipher would help mostly around the curved profile of the hood.

This is the manufacturer of the die. not much information and good images are lacking.
http://sunsdahltooling.com/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=88&vmcchk=1&Itemid=88

In my opinion, a repair on that hood, would take the patience of Job- for a journeyman, let alone a novice.

Your concern about minimizing body filler on this hood shows your lack of experience and you would be best advised to start with a hood with a lot less damage.
 

[B-maniac]

Now that I've seen the pics, here is my opinion. Should only be attempted by a professional. If I did it it would cost you as much as a used one off e-bay or such. The only way I would attempt it is to continue massaging on it and blast it and use lead to get it filled out and glaze for final finnishing. I was just bidding on one the other day on e-bay and it went for $400. Damn cheap if you needed one. I just bid for resale and couldn't see much meat left on the bone at that price. Good luck.
 

[johndeeregreg]

we bought it like that this summer, i dont know how people mess up the tin and hood noses on these so bad, me or dad have never put a dent in a nose or on sheet metal.
 

[MO8N4ME]

Here's a link to a hood for your tractor. I don't know noth'n about them or price.



http://www.garypolkequipment.com/used-parts/index.cfm?Content_id=11264
 

[Stephen Newell]

Perhaps the previous owner had a temper.
 

[GordoSD]

Nothing 12 hours of pro hammer and dolly work and 2 gals of bondo can't fix.
You need a better hood.
 

[Jethro Lilley]

Looks like that 2510 had a front-end loader on it. Sorry hired help and a front-end loader equals a smashed hood every time. A product of its time, the 1960's when sorry help was all the help available... in my area all the good help had gone to Philadelphia or gotten jobs in a factory... load that bucket with gravel and try stopping on a dime to empty into a truck... Bump! Then multiply that over a ten or fifteen year span with beating it back out over the years and "Voila" your hood (and mine!) It was a working tractor, not a collector's piece. On mine, it was almost always the same guy, a fired welder from the shipyards... I would fire him and Dad would hire him right back. He would say, "I been here 25 years!" and I would say, "Yes, and every day's your first day!"

Get yourself a new hood. The 200 bucks you will spend on repairing that one would be 200 bucks toward a new one, or at least a good used one.