Fender Rolling and Pulling

[h.s1]

saw a shop doing fender rolling by dropping the car on catalogues/yellow pages.

[Tonys18t]

Hey there. Sorry I have not been on the Forum that much lately. But you can now find me on Facebook and Instagram at fenderrollingbytony

[cult45]

Normally the best thing to do ( I have to correct dozens of these for people who try to roll their own fenders ) is to adjust the bumper corner by slotting the bumper tab. You can pull the bumper corner out a tiny bit and make it line up with the pulled quarter. It wont be perfect but it will look a lot better. DO NOT try to reshape the metal or try to pull the quarter more to meet the bumper. that will buckle and/or dent it.

What exactly do you mean by this? Can you possibly post a picture. I did my own quarters/fenders and they came out pretty good. I may have pulled them out a bit too much as the bumper looks like the picture of that blue Subaru posted above. When you say slotting the corner do you mean putting a small notch in it? To allow it to come out slightly?

[Tonys18t]

i've a few, including one of my own, do it by hand, hammer and dolly style

[Daphatch]

Have u ever rolled the fenders on a w124/w201 Benz? Was thinking about doing it myself but they are more of a square shape then the normal round wheel well so kinda skeptical about doin it.

[Tonys18t]

Feel free to call me 818 368 4395. LANDLINE number

on the e36 your choice of tire will make all the difference, aside from that just follow the steps i've outlined before with the e36

[edirty6_jaime]

Hey whats up tony I'm getting ready to roll the fenders on my e36 and i wanted to know what advice you could give me before i start. I need to fit 17x10 -4 et , what steps should i take , i just purchased a eastwood fender roller and heat gun

[Tonys18t]

dont buy knockoff stuff, its a false economy

that fender looks like it has had relief cuts before being rolled... NEVER do this. the metal will split and warp.

If the fender has more than minor surface rust DO NOT try to roll/pull it.

[8DOM8]

Quick question, may be a silly one but here it goes. Is it possible to roll rear fenders that have minor bubbling?

I have only rolled and pulled my own E36, but it had one fender with minor bubbling. That fender tore apart from several places as the rust had already gone too deep. This was only after serious pulling, but I would still not do it UNLESS you plan on doing some bodywork.

Image is after sandblasting the rear fender:

[adge_dre]

opinions on a knockoff fender rolling tool off ebay for $60????

[Tonys18t]

If the bubbling is from rust under the paint on the arch it might not be a good idea.
You could work the area with a hammer and dolly very carefully if the rust is not too bad, but use your judgement on how bad things look before you attempt it.

[shippedout]

Quick question, may be a silly one but here it goes. Is it possible to roll rear fenders that have minor bubbling?

[Tonys18t]

The Subis can be a major pain in the ass to do correctly... there are a few tricks but the main thing is not to overpull the quarter... which you managed to do.
The problem is that you have pulled the metal too much and because the Subaru has such thin quarters ( its two layers that are almost Coke can thin ), the center has pulled and eitheir side has bowed in.

Normally the best thing to do ( I have to correct dozens of these for people who try to roll their own fenders ) is to adjust the bumper corner by slotting the bumper tab. You can pull the bumper corner out a tiny bit and make it line up with the pulled quarter. It wont be perfect but it will look a lot better. DO NOT try to reshape the metal or try to pull the quarter more to meet the bumper. that will buckle and/or dent it.

[unknown-sss]

Panel correction for WRX 11-14

You can correct that section and un-curl it by using pliers and a rag.
* Heat up that lower section first and start slowly by unfolding the lip gradually working it back so it becomes like a L shape. This distortion damage will always show on this panel design. To avoid it I shave back 5cm back that section to obtain a factory undisturbed look.
* This curl/distortion will always happen on a panel design where the metal lip meets the rear bar. In saying that, this is your scrubbing axis where if you lower your car, the tyre wall will scrub.
* If this is the case, the rear bar needs to be trimmed diagonally near the screw mount.
* Be careful when you heat the WRX 2011-14 models that you do not sag the sealant line that travels along the guard lip.
* Paint thickness measurement should read anywhere from 46-60 microns for factory WRX paint and should be heated appropriately from 180-205f using a digital heat temperature gun.
* If you plan on doing the fronts, you will need to taper off and refrain from using the Guard rolling tool as it is a single gauge sheet which will cause high distortion and movement on the guard that may cause guard to dis-align from guard to door. I suggest using the traditional mallet technique with a fender finisher.
* Fronts have a squared dual tab situated at 12oclock and 2oclock rear of guard on passenger in which you need to trim the splash liner before starting.
* Paint micron thickness on WRX fronts are 25-44 micron layers at most which is a concern in which you will have to work half a guard section at a time as the paint will crack if performed in the 1 heating pass.

Good to see your top work Tony, I am from Australia and have worked on many cars and just like you have shaved, cut, rolled, flare, pulled and played around guards for many many years.

[bicycle_wreck]

First of all I would like to thank you all for your contributions to this thread. I've read it several times and have learned quite a bit. I registered to this forum just to post here.

Unfortunately, I didn't find it until after I had already rolled one of my rear quarters on my 2012 WRX. I have a new set of Enkei NT03+Ms in 18x9.5 et40 that I'm going to wrap in 265/35R18 Bridgestone Potenza S-04 Pole Positions.

This is a popular fitment for the 2011-2014 WRX since it has pretty accommodating fenders. I was told that I would need a roll in the rear to avoid rubbing under hard cornering or heavy loads. Since I do Solo II events (autoX), I figured I should roll them to be safe.

Well, after a few hours battling with a borrowed fender roller that was constantly binding up under adjustment, I unintentionally pulled the arch, and the rear of the quarter---where it meets the rear bumper cover---kind of dives into the body work. It definitely messes up the factory body line.

My question is: is this even worth trying to fix? It seems like it might be one of those things made worse if someone inexperienced (i.e., me) tries to fix it. I was thinking about removing the bumper cover and finishing the roll on the back of the quarter to try to even it up. I think the bumper would still reach, but I think there is a possibility I would make it worse.

The other thought was to see a PDR specialist to see if they could smooth it out somehow. The rest of the roll turned out OK, with minimal cracking (I accidentally creased about 1.5" inches of the front arch, but you can't really see it unless you're looking at it from underneath).

Any insight is appreciated, and again I found this thread to be invaluable, so thank you all. My second quarter has yet to be rolled since the roller I borrowed seized up despite repeated lubrications and inspections. The allthread portion finally just spit out threads--cheap Chinese pot metal is my guess. An Eastwood fender is on the way. Pics below.









All for these guys: