Body Shell Repairs

[Percymon]

Daft question perhaps, but to what degree can you actually repair a bodyshell, such as the one on a Blitzer Beetle ?

My beetle shell has its roof crushed in, the A and B pillars are there but bent/broken, there's a couple of breaks in the roof, one from the sunroof to the windscreen and another from the sunroof to the side(see pic). The roof will probably pull back up to original curvature when it has sufficient support.

I don't mind a bit of extra reinforcement inside the shell if its required ?

Is this feasible in say 2 hours work? What would i need - plastic weld cement and milliput ?

PS - i have a new shell anyway, but thinking it might be worth a bit of effort to have a runner shell and a shelf shell, especially given what i had to pay for the new shell, windows, Q parts etc !!.

Thanks for any advice

[Guest Greg67]

I have repaired a few split and bashed shells. I used silicone sealant for them.

It's hard to tell from the photo, but I would pop out the dents best I could, and just seal where the body split from the inside if silicone sealant. It's not the prettiest way, but it has worked for me before.

Dents can be tricky to pop out sometimes, but I used a hairdryer to soften the plastic a bit. be careful of any paint fumes, and maybe do that outside or in a vented area to avoid any fumes. Just some ideas.

Or you could get another used shell that is bashed in the front and cut a new canopy out of it and then just attach it to your shell. Just an idea.

[TamiyaDan]

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[BeetleLover]

Certainly can be done but with re-re Sand Scorcher shells around for not a great deal of money you will save a lot of sweat and elbow grease. You will get a much superior finish and stronger shell if you just purchase a new one. This one is past the quick fix scenario

cheers

James

[Percymon]

Thanks for the advice.

I will give it a go and judge progress after an hour or so.

Might just use it then to test out some paint colours before doing the new shell.

[WillyChang]

that doesn't look like a scorcher shell, and the rest of it looks ok... go do something INTERESTING with it.

Chop it into a Karmann convertible, or 2-seater utility, or a panelvan!