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Well, I managed to break an A pillar on Strangebrew's cool Camaro.

And of course I could not even find it.
So needed to make a new one!





Used some scrap styrene rod and flattened it with a pair of pliers. Then trimmed it to fit the best I could. Use light drops of super glue using a toothpick.
But the real neat thing is this Hansens Hard as Nails. Like Paul Gage shared, this stuff works great for small body hole filling, etc. Once it hardens it is sandable. I gave it a good coat, let dry and sanded it the best I could.



Tried to match the paint he used. I did not have the Ace brand so I first coated with Wal-Mart red, then a top coat of Krylon. Pretty close.

Not perfect, but better than nothing.

If you don't have a bottle of this Hard as Nails on your bench, think about it.

You did tell him it had a 50/50 warranty and he signed the waiver...right?

Yeah, now I think I definitely want you to put "Return to Sender" on mine BEFORE you open it...

Lol. Battle scars!

"Dude I can fix it...my Dad is a TV repairman" :whistle:

Wow cool repair Harry, I knew that stuff was handy but not this handy. Guess I'll have to get my own bottle the wife let me borrow hers a couple times but I can see it disappearing pretty quickly now. PS she's going to have to pick it up for me, the girls at the till got quite the chuckle last time I picked out nail polish for the airbrush :mrgreen:

And you talk about the SEMO boys :laughing-rolling:

Man, and I thought the guys I race with were rough on cars... :whistle:

:lol:

Did you give it a Post Guarantee?

That's impressive! Picture no.2 looks like duct tape wrapped around the A pillar. I thought that looked pretty good. LOL but after paint you cant really tell. Nice work. Jim

Harry, you ruined the authenticity of the car. You know how those 5-Star fiberglass bodies were on the 1:1's.

Funny story......That car was my pal Douggie's 1st ASA ride in 1982. On his 1st trip to Milwaukee going down the backstretch
at around 140mph, the entire windshield blew in on him, pushed his helmet down to his nose & he couldn't see anything.
He recovered enough to not crash, but he said he thought he was blinded for a moment.
Turns out after getting back to the infield & talking to his buddy Rusty Wallace, they had used Plexiglass instead of Lexan.
Just one of MANY rookie mistakes along the road to racing.
So the broken A pillar is closer to reality than you might think.

Thanks guys. That is a cool story Brew!

Here is another method that can be used for repair, but mostly for PREVENTION.

You can find old sources of plastic/silicone coated wire from just about anywhere. I found these old headphones in a box at a yard sale for 25 cents. I have collected a lot of this in different diameters to match the project I am doing.



Once you trim this, it is easily formed to fit the contour of your model.



You can use the cheapest Super Glue you can find at the local dollar mart.



Why? Because most any Super Glue will deteriorate from the moment you open the bottle. Some lasts longer than others, but I have not bought a high end product for years because they are not worth it to me.

In any event, this coated wire serves a good purpose. FIRST it simply helps strengthen the area. With the wire inside, it will keep this area reasonably strong. It also helps keep the outside of the area secure even if it takes a hard hit and cracks. So instead of searching for that pillar somewhere, most often it will still be stuck to the wire. Now you can just glue it back, sand and repaint.



The final thing it does is that it can help add detail. If you place it just right, it can simulate roll bar material and the effect works for my eye. So this little mod can pay you dividends over time.



If you are working in areas that may not have a lot of material, or you simply do not want or need to add any bar detail, try this:



This craft wire comes in many sizes and can be found at just about any craft department.



It is also fairly easy to form to match the contour of your area. Use the same cheap Super Glue to secure. I like to coat mine with Hansens Hard as Nails as well. This smaller wire will also serve the same purpose as the larger and possibly assist in keeping these fragile pillars in your car a little longer.

Hope this helps some of you.

That is some very nice tips. Thanx.
The clear nail polish works fantastic on filling op small holes and dents. I also use cheap super glue and drop on a bit of baking soda. It hardens quickly and can be sanded smoothly.
Gavin

Excellent tips, this site is the best.